There's no better way to relive your childhood than by rewatching your favorite old cartoons, and The Peanuts is one of the best. The classic group of characters originated as a comic strip in 1950, then branched into animated TV specials starting in 1965, and now in 2015 Charlie Brown and his friends are hitting the big screen for the first time in 35 years. The Peanuts Movie is a modernized version of the original concept in several ways, including that it is in 3D. Another major difference is that because it's been so long since the original specials, the cast of voice actors had to be revamped. Really revamped — you'd never guess who voices The Peanuts Movie characters.
The cast of The Peanuts Movie is made up totally of child actors, as opposed to having some or all of the main characters voiced by adult actors who could manipulate their voices to resemble those of children. This was definitely a daring decision, since child actors can be much more difficult to work with than adults, due to both lack of experience and the strict rules surrounding minors' work schedules in the entertainment industry. A lot of The Peanuts Movie kids are also newcomers to the industry, which was another bold choice on behalf of filmmakers. Here's what you should know about the talented youngsters voicing Charlie Brown and the rest of the gang.
Noah Schnapp
The 11-year-old who plays the beloved Charlie Brown actually has two movies in theaters right now. In addition to Peanuts, he appears as the on-screen son of Tom Hanks in Bridge of Spies .
Hadley Belle Miller
Charlie Brown's football-snatching friend Lucy is also played by an 11-year-old, Hadley Belle Miller. This is Miller's first feature film, although she has previously appeared in multiple roles on television.
Alexander Garfin
Alexander Garfin plays Linus, the little brother of Lucy and best friend of Charlie Brown who is known for his trusty blue security blanket. The young actor has already received praise from critics for how much he sounds like Linus in the new film.
Mariel Sheets
This 10-year-old brings gallons of cuteness as the voice of Charlie Brown's baby sister Sally. Sheets has previous experience in voicework, as well as commercial and print campaigns.
Francesca Capaldi
Charlie Brown's crush (who is only ever referred to as "the little red-haired girl") is played by Francesca Capaldi, the former star of the Disney series Dog With a Blog. The 11-year-old also had a role on How I Met Your Mother.
Mar Mar
Marleik "Mar Mar" Walker makes his feature debut in The Peanuts Movie as Franklin, but the young actor has previous on-camera experience from roles on several different TV series.
Kristin Chenoweth
Wildcard! The one and only Kristin Chenoweth provides the vocals (albeit, no real grammatical language) for Fifi, a pink poodle who is the object of Snoopy's desire. Puppy love, literally!
Personally, I think it's awesome that The Peanuts Movie is using real kids for the voices of its main characters. The Peanuts are a sweet, funny icon of childhood, and the use of a child-based cast pays tribute to that. The actors may not be the exact voices you associate with the stars of The Peanuts, but they'll definitely reach the kid in you.
