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HBO Max's 'Charlotte's Web' Adaptation Fails to Match Original's Timeless Charm
1 Oct
Summary
- HBO Max's new 'Charlotte's Web' adaptation struggles to capture the magic of the classic children's book
- The CG animation and uneven voice cast fail to do justice to E.B. White's beloved tale
- Despite its shortcomings, the adaptation still manages to convey the poignant themes of the original
As of October 2, 2025, HBO Max has released a new adaptation of the beloved children's classic 'Charlotte's Web' by E.B. White. The three-part special, produced by Sesame Workshop, aims to bring the story of Wilbur the piglet and his spider friend Charlotte to a new generation. However, the adaptation struggles to match the timeless charm and emotional resonance of the original.
The Yurie Rocha-directed cartoon follows the familiar narrative, with Wilbur (voiced by Griffin Robert Faulkner and Elijah Wood) being saved from slaughter by the justice-minded Fern Arable (Natalie Chan). When Wilbur is later threatened with becoming Christmas dinner, his new friend Charlotte (Amy Adams) endeavors to "trick" the humans into sparing his life.
While the core of the story remains intact, the adaptation is bogged down by drab CG animation and an uneven voice cast. The animal characters are rendered serviceably, but the human figures appear stilted and weightless. The voice performances, aside from a standout turn by Randall Park as the selfish rat Templeton, fail to capture the depth and nuance of the original characters.
Despite its shortcomings, the adaptation still manages to convey the poignant themes that made E.B. White's 'Charlotte's Web' a beloved classic. The bittersweet exploration of friendship, change, and mortality continues to resonate, even if the execution falls short of the source material's timeless appeal.
