In 1995 a talking pig by the name of Babe stole the hearts and minds of children and adults around the world. It helped birth the live-action genre and breathed new life into children’s filmmaking .
It remains steadfast as an incredible achievement in film with a powerful message.
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But in order to fully appreciate all the ins and outs, you’re going to want to check out these 10+ behind the scenes secrets fans didn’t know about Babe .
1. There were a ton of pigs used in the film.
To say that production came prepared is an understatement. In total, forty-eight different pigs were bred for the film and each saw varying amounts of screen time.
There was only one animatronic pig used for the entire movie.
2. Babe is actually a girl!
Though it isn’t actually revealed at any point in the movie, all of the pigs that were used during production were female .
Every single piglet was aged between 16-18 weeks and was 18 inches tall.
3. The film was considered highly controversial in certain countries.
In fact, Babe was banned outright in Malaysia .
The country is home to a large Muslim community and the powers that be didn’t want to risk upsetting the cultural values of its people.
4. James Cromwell fell in love with Australia while filming.
“I felt like, wow, I can just show up every day and enjoy every moment of this, shooting in this beautiful place, and I’m staying in this really nice place, I really like this country.”
5. Actor James Cromwell didn’t take the film seriously at first.
In fact, he thought the entire concept was ” silly “.
What initially drew James to the role was the fact that Farmer Hoggert had only 16-lines of dialogue for the entire film.
But 16-lines was all it took to land James an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor!
James was won-over by what he called a “Sophisticated yet pure-of-heart piglet .”
He, unfortunately, didn’t take home the Oscar gold but nevertheless the role still remains just as impactful and career-defining.
6. Over 900 different animals were on set during filming.
When your film takes place on a farm, you need to make sure that it looks the part!
According to an animal trainer, Karl Miller, more than 970 animals were on set and over 500 actually made it into the film.
7. Legendary composer, Jerry Goldsmith, was fired at the last minute!
Jerry is the genius mind best-known for China Town .
As legendary as he is, for whatever reason his vision simply wasn’t meshing with what the production team had in mind.
8. The film made a serious splash at the Academy Awards.
While it only managed to take home a single statue, Babe was nominated in several major categories!
It even managed to secure a nomination for Best Picture of the Year.
9. James Cromwell doesn’t believe that *Babe* is a kids’ movie at all.
James believes that the film goes much deeper than that:
“The sophistication of Babe is that it analyzes, in parable form, the circumstances that people find themselves in when people are prejudiced against them.”
10. The voice of Babe is very familiar.
Babe was voiced by the late-actress Christine Cavanaugh . Over the years, Christine lent her talents to an array of children’s shows.
You’ll most likely recognize her unmistakable voice from her days as Chucky from Rugrats !
11. The film caused a national drop in pork sales.
It wasn’t the sole cause necessarily, but it certainly contributed as far as public opinion was concerned.
The film’s adorable protagonist, as well as its pro-vegetarian message, caused many families and young children to reconsider their source of protein.
12. Mrs. Hoggett spent a serious amount of time in the makeup chair.
Mrs. Hoggett was played by a woman by the name of Magda Szubanski .
During the time that filming took place, Magda was only 34 — a full 20 years younger than her co-star! She needed a lot of makeup and prosthetics to look age-appropriate.
13. “The Babe Effect” is a real thing.
“The Babe Effect” argues that the film is the catalyst for a number of young people turning both toward veganism and vegetarianism.
The internet is awash with people all telling the same story of how they never ate meat again after watching Babe .
Even James Cromwell became a vegetarian!
“I had made the choice to become a vegetarian because I came across the country on my motorcycle and went through the feedlots in Texas for like a whole day, and just said, ‘This really s***s. I can’t do it.'”
Last Updated on July 29, 2020 by Jordan Claes
