Sir Anthony Hopkins swims into action: 'Bruno Penguin and the Staten Island Princess' champions ocean conservation

IOL News

01-07-2025

The campaign draws inspiration from the extraordinary life of Bruno Zehnder, a pioneering Swiss photographer dedicated to documenting the emperor penguins of Antarctica for decades.
Image: Instagram.
In a bold response to the looming crisis facing Earth's marine and polar environments, Enderby Entertainment has unveiled its new global initiative, Endangered Wonders.
This innovative initiative is linked to the anticipated release of the feature film, "Bruno Penguin & the Staten Island Princess", featuring the multi-award-winning Sir Anthony Hopkins and directed by Nick Cassavetes.
Anthony Hopkins Sir Anthony Hopkins.
Image: File.
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The film, which is notable for being the first major Hollywood production to film in Antarctica, also has Shia LaBeouf in talks for a role and will enter production in November.
Hopkins will play the iconic art agent Ben Windsor.
The campaign leverages the power of cinema and visual storytelling to galvanise immediate efforts to safeguard our oceans, the critical polar regions central to Earth's climate and threatened species such as the emperor penguin.
With only 8.5% of the world's oceans currently under protection and less than 1% of environmental philanthropy directed toward ocean health, Endangered Wonders seeks to shift this alarming narrative.
Four fundamental pillars serve as the campaign's foundation: advocacy, innovation, strategic alliances and creative expression. Every component is designed to appeal to a variety of groups and promote real progress toward urgent ocean and climate goals.
"Hollywood has a unique ability to move people, and we believe it should be done with intention,' said Rick Dugdale, CEO of Enderby Entertainment.
"This isn't just entertainment, it's a call to action. Through the film and the Endangered Wonders campaign, we're inviting audiences to care deeply and act boldly for the future we all share."
The campaign draws inspiration from the extraordinary life of Bruno Zehnder, a pioneering Swiss photographer dedicated to documenting the emperor penguins of Antarctica for decades.
Long before climate change captured global headlines, Zehnder's work highlighted the fragile beauty and increasing vulnerability of the Antarctic landscape.
Zehnder was obsessed with the species - their kindness, the way they lived, their deep levels of affection for one another. He spent his life trying to learn how to communicate with them, and over time, the colonies grew to know him and returned his fondness.
He became so obsessed that he legally changed his name to Bruno Penguin and found great success, both creatively and financially, with his photographs.
Zehnder ultimately got caught in a giant Arctic whiteout and froze to death.
As Antarctica and the Southern Ocean warm at a rate nearly three times higher than the global average, ice shelves are destabilising, marine biodiversity is threatened, and iconic species face dire risk.
The urgency of global action against these changes is not a matter of choice; it is an imperative.
To boost these efforts, the Endangered Wonders campaign is assembling a coalition of passionate, values-driven partners from diverse sectors, uniting to mitigate these environmental threats.
The initiative has garnered the support of leaders like Amaury Vergara, CEO of Grupo Omnilife and C.D. Guadalajara Football Club.