Taika Waititi Leads Celebrity Reading Of James And The Giant Peach

Following the news earlier this month that the first book in the Harry Potter series will be read by a series of famous stars over the next few months, another classic children's book is getting the celebrity treatment. Roald Dahl's James & The Giant Peach will be read by Taika Waititi, Ryan Reynolds, Lupita Nyong’o, and Chris Hemsworth to hep raise money for charity.

Dahl's much-loved 1961 book will be read in its entirety across 10 episodes to raise money for charities impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The initiative has been created by the Roald Dahl Story Company, which controls the author's classic work. The episodes can be watched at the official Roald Dahl Youtube channel. You can check the full list readers below, and watch the first two episodes right now.

• Utkarsh Ambudkar
• Cate Blanchett
• Jamie Cullum, Benedict
• Cumberbatch, Roman Griffin Davis
• Cara Delevingne
• Cynthia Erivo
• Beanie Feldstein
• Josh Gad
• Chris Hemsworth
• Liam Hemsworth
• Mindy Kaling
• Nick Kroll
• Kumail Nanjiani
• Lupita Nyong'o
• Sarah Paulson
• Billy Porter
• Gordon Ramsay
• Eddie Redmayne
• Ryan Reynolds
• Ben Schwartz
• Meryl Streep
• Tessa Thompson
• Taika Waititi
• Olivia Wilde
• Ruth Wilson
• Archie Yates

In March, it was reported that Waititi will write, direct, and executively produce two new animated series based on Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory for Netflix. The shows will be the first results of a deal between Netflix and Roald Dahl Story Company. There are also plans to adapt stories such as Matilda, The BFG, and The Twits.

Waititi's next movie will be the Marvel sequel Thor: Love and Thunder, which releases in February 2022, having moved back from its initial November 2021 release date.