The Bad Guys 2 (dir. Pierre Perifel)

by Jack Martin | Jul 26, 2025

Certificate: PG

Running Time: 104 mins

UK Distributor: Universal Pictures

UK Release Date: 25 July 2025

WHO’S IN THE BAD GUYS 2?

Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Craig Robinson, Awkwafina, Anthony Ramos, Danielle Brooks, Natasha Lyonne, Maria Bakalova, Zazie Beetz, Richard Ayoade, Lilly Singh, Alex Borstein, Omid Djalili, Jorge R. Gutierrez

WHO’S BEHIND THE CAMERA?

Pierre Perifel (director), Yoni Brenner and Etan Cohen (writers), Damon Ross (producer), Daniel Pemberton (composer), Jesse Averna (editor)

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

The reformed criminal group known as The Bad Guys set out to prove they’re now good…

WHAT ARE MY THOUGHTS ON THE BAD GUYS 2?

In animated films, there have been plenty of stories about villains learning to be good, but few have looked as cool as DreamWorks Animation’s 2022 feature The Bad Guys, a movie that blended stylish animation with old-school Rat Pack-era charm and Looney Tunes-esque cartoon slapstick. Even though it fell victim to predictable family movie messaging, not to mention the vibe-killing inclusion of a farting piranha, it had enough wit and sophistication to stand out among the likes of Despicable Me and DreamWorks’s own Megamind as a silly good-vs-evil story with serious swagger.

As fun as that original movie was, The Bad Guys 2 steps it up quite a few levels. There are still plenty of cutesy moments designed specifically for the younger crowd, but in terms of story, character, action and suspense, this is a surprisingly impressive sequel that feels smoother and more mature than what came before. Even the farting piranha is dialled way down here, surely a sign that something has gone very right here.

The film, from original director Pierre Perifel, takes place shortly after the events of the first film, wherein the criminal group of animals known as “the Bad Guys” – including Mr. Wolf (Sam Rockwell), Mr. Snake (Marc Maron), Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson), Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina) and the farting piranha himself, Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos) – were successfully rehabilitated as do-gooders. However, their criminal pasts have not been forgotten by everyone else, as they are struggling to land honest jobs and continue to be under the watchful eye of police commissioner Misty Luggins (Alex Borstein), since nobody by the city governor Diane Foxington (Zazie Beetz) is able to trust them despite their genuine pledge to be good. Soon, those fears are exploited when the group is framed for a series of robberies involving a mysterious substance amusingly called “MacGuffinite”, with the real culprits – a new criminal group led by Kitty Kat (Danielle Brooks) and her associates Doom (Natasha Lyonne) and Pigtail (Maria Bakalova) – blackmailing the former Bad Guys into assisting them with their next big score, one that involves hijacking a wedding and, later on, a rocket launch.

Admittedly, The Bad Guys 2 takes a bit of time to find its groove. After a pretty fun opening heist, one that makes strong use of the film’s vibrant and fast-paced animation style, there are a few instances where the film dabbles in familiar modern kids movie tropes, from overly hyperactive action sequences that come dangerously close to causing a headache for those over a certain age, to a soundtrack that’s largely made up of what’s popular right now to listen to. It’s hard to get that mad about it here as these kind of things have been done way worse and more cynically in other kids movies – looking directly at you, Smurfs – but it can still take you out of the movie since you can always sense when you’re being manipulated or pandered to, regardless of how light it may be in comparison to others.

But once we’re properly introduced to our new villains, whose plan as it turns out is pretty diabolical, the film suddenly becomes a lot sturdier. So much, in fact, that the jokes become funnier, the characters become more three-dimensional, and even the voice acting sounds more focused, as director Perifel tightens everything so that there’s less flab and more precision in the overall narrative. There’s more of a dilemma among the main characters who are weighing what to do with themselves in a world that can’t seem to forgive them for their past actions, and rather than just use it for simplistic purposes they spend a good amount of time having actual conversations about it without often resorting to easy jokes. There are even some legitimately shocking developments as certain threats against specific characters are followed through with no way to undo them, raising the personal stakes considerably as they’re happening to people who you do genuinely like, and making things fairly unpredictable as to where things could go next. It is genuinely suspenseful, which you wouldn’t have guessed from a movie with a farting piranha, but then again this is the same studio that made us care about a panda doing kung-fu and a fairy tale ogre, so at this point’s anything’s possible.

As in the previous film, the animation really is top-notch, blending 2D designs with 3D textures and backgrounds wherein characters zip to and fro between with a similar energy to a Genndy Tartakovsky cartoon, all with a distinct smoothness that matches the suave coolness of Perifel’s direction. It’s also a very well edited movie, often used for comedic purposes with sharp cuts that generate some of the biggest laughs in the movie, as well as featuring some striking sound design, particularly during a climax that certainly owes a huge debt to Gravity but is executed with as much heart-pumping tension as the Alfonso Cuarón movie. Daniel Pemberton’s score is slick in its widespread homage to classic heist capers, while elevating the heavier dramatic moments with great ease, which do make up for the more corporate soundtrack choices earlier on.

While the first movie was one that I enjoyed just fine, I am still quite surprised by how much I thought The Bad Guys 2 was a strong improvement. Not only is it funnier and more focused, but it has actual stakes with characters I did care about, with stunning visuals that elevate it even further. Not bad at all for a movie with a farting piranha.

SO, TO SUM UP…

The Bad Guys 2 is a surprising sequel that elevates the humour, character work and even the suspense of the original while continuing to dazzle with fantastically stylish animation.