Asterix Conquers America

Asterix in Amerika
UK VHS cover
Directed byGerhard Hahn
Written byThomas Platt
Rhett Rooster
Story byPierre Tchernia
Based onAsterix and the Great Crossing
by René Goscinny
Albert Uderzo
Produced byGerhard Hahn and Jürgen Wohlrabe
StarringJohn Rye
Craig Charles
Howard Lew Lewis
Geoffrey Bayldon
Henry McGee
Christopher Biggins
Narrated byJohn Rye
Music byHarold Faltermeyer
Production
company
Extrafilm Produktion GmbH
Distributed by
Release dates
  • September 29, 1994 (1994-09-29) (Germany)
  • April 5, 1995 (1995-04-05) (France)
  • August 4, 1995 (1995-08-04) (Ireland)
  • August 11, 1995 (1995-08-11) (United Kingdom)
  • September 22, 1995 (1995-09-22) (United States)
Running time
85 minutes
CountryGermany
LanguageEnglish
BudgetDEM 19.000.000
Box office$768,488 (United States)

Asterix Conquers America (in France as Astérix et les Indiens; in Germany as Asterix in Amerika) is a 1994 English-language German animated film, directed by Gerhard Hahn, and co-produced by Hahn and Jürgen Wohlrabe.[1] The film is a loose adaptation of the Asterix graphic novel, Asterix and the Great Crossing, and the first film adaptation to be produced outside France. It is also the first Asterix movie to be made in English.[2] The plot focuses on Asterix and Obelix seeking to rescue Getafix, who is transported to North America by the Romans, before their village runs out of magic potion to defend themselves.

The film was mainly made for the direct-to-video market, and was distributed in Germany by Jugendfilm, with 20th Century Fox handling distribution in several European territories, including France and the United Kingdom.

Plot

After the rebel village of Gauls defeat another Roman army, a humiliated Julius Caesar angrily devises a plan to cut them off from the magic potion that gives them super-human strength. Caesar's instructs his most loyal patrician, Lucullus, to kidnap the druid Getafix and send him off the edge of the world. A freak accident during a fight amongst the Gaulish villagers spills a cauldron of potion. Getafix takes Dogmatix to locate ingredients to make more. Lucullus, pretending to be a druid, captures them. Asterix and Obelix spot the pair being taken on a Roman galley and pursue them.

They track the galley and are reunited with Dogmatix who was thrown overboard. On arrival at the east coast of North America, which they mistake for the world's edge, the Romans catapult Getafix ashore. Lucullus is delighted when Asterix, Obelix and Dogmatix crash on the shore and returns home to inform Caesar of the good news. Asterix and Obelix begin exploring North America. Asterix is captured by a tribe of Native Americans and tied to a pole beside Getafix, who reveals the Romans had catapulted him onto the hut of the tribe's medicine man.

Obelix rescues Minihooha, the daughter of the tribe's chief, from a bison stampede and impresses the chief with his strength. Asterix and Getafix are freed and the Gauls join the tribe's evening customs. Getafix humiliates the medicine man with his magic, and gives Minihooha magic potion to punish him for dousing her during a cheap trick. The medicine man visits the Gauls' tent offering peace and knocks them out with hallucinogens in a pipe, kidnapping Getafix. Obelix awakes in a drug-induced amnesia, leaving Asterix to rescue Getafix on his own.

After Minihooha cures Obelix, the Gauls say farewell and return home to find the Romans overwhelmed the village after they ran out of magic potion. Finding all but Cacofonix captured, Getafix brews the magic potion. Asterix and Obelix sneak into a Roman camp disguised as Roman soldiers, supply their fellow Gauls with the potion, and proceed to trash the camp. Lucullus is eaten by Caesar's pet panther, while Caesar himself discreetly escapes and returns home. As the villagers hold a celebratory feast, the group listen to Obelix describe his latest adventure before teaching them the song he learned from the Native American tribe.

Cast

Character English (Original Dub)[3] French Dub German Dub
English (Original Dub) French Dub German Dub
Narrator Le narrateur Erzähler John Rye[3] Pierre Tchernia Harald Juhnke
Asterix Astérix Asterix Craig Charles[3] Roger Carel Peer Augustinski
Obelix Obélix Obelix Howard Lew Lewis[3] Pierre Tornade Ottfried Fischer
Getafix Panoramix Miraculix Geoffrey Bayldon[3] Henri Labussière Ralf Wolter
Julius Caesar Jules César Julius Cäsar Henry McGee[3] Robert Party Thomas Reiner (uncredited)
Lucullus Tumullus Lucullus Christopher Biggins[3] Jean-Luc Galmiche Michael Habeck
Medicine Man Le sorcier Medizinmann Rupert Degas[3][4] (uncredited) Tommi Piper
Chef Le cuisinier Koch Rupert Degas[5] (uncredited) Unknown
Cacofonix Assurancetourix Troubadix Rik Mayall[3] (uncredited) Michel Tugot-Doris Jochen Busse
Unhygienix Ordralfabétix Verleihnix Jonathan Kydd (uncredited)[6] Jean Dautremay Peter Zilles (uncredited)
Centurion Le centurion Zenturio Yves Pignot Andreas Mannkopff (uncredited)
Parrot Le perroquet Papagei Unknown
Vitalstatistix Abraracourcix Majestix Jim Carter (uncredited) François Chaix Jürgen Scheller
Stupidus Olivier Jankovic Unknown
Panacea Falbala Vanessa Feltz (uncredited) Nathalie Spitzer
Impedimenta Bonemine Gutemine Julie Gibbs (uncredited) Claude Chantal
Pirate Captain Le capitaine des pirates Piratenkapitän Jim Carter (uncredited) Joël Zaffarano Walter Reichelt (uncredited)
Indian Chief Le chef des indiens Indianerhäuptling Rupert Degas (uncredited) Sylvain Lemarié Unknown
Roman Un romain Römisch Jim Carter (uncredited)
Pirates Un pirates Piraten Rupert Degas (uncredited) Unknown
Christian Pélissier (uncredited)
Jim Carter (uncredited) Unknown
Senators Un sénateurs Senatoren Rupert Degas (uncredited) Philippe Valmont[7] Alexander Allerson (uncredited)
Michel Prud'homme Michael Gahr (uncredited)
Jim Carter (uncredited) François Jaubert Unknown
Galley Slaves Un galériens Galeerensklaven Rupert Degas (uncredited) Unknown
Jim Carter (uncredited) Michel Prud'homme (uncredited) Unknown
Etishu Ah-Choo Ha-Tschi Jennifer Blanc-Biehn (uncredited) Kristiane Backer
Fulliautomatix Cétautomatix Automatix Rupert Degas (uncredited) Unknown Oliver Stritzel (uncredited)
Pirate Lookout La vigie des pirates Piratenwächter Philippe Sollier Unknown
Impediment's Nephew Le neveu de Bonemine Gutemines neffe Julia Brahms (uncredited) Unknown
Old pirate Vieux pirate Alter pirat Jim Carter (uncredited) Thierry Buisson
Legionnaires Un légionnaires Legionäre Rupert Degas (uncredited) Unknown Thomas Albus (uncredited)
Jim Carter (uncredited) Michael Rüth (uncredited)
Gauls Les gaulois Gallier Rupert Degas (uncredited) Peter Thom (uncredited)

Uncredited

References

  1. ^ Collins, Fiona M.; Ridgman, Jeremy (2006). Turning the Page: Children's Literature in Performance and the Media. Peter Lang. pp. 141, 144. ISBN 978-3-03910-255-6.
  2. ^ "Asterix NZ – Asterix Movies "Asterix Conquers America"". Archived from the original on 10 December 2006.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i "The Asterix Conquers America Cast". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
  4. ^ "Voice Acting". Rupert Degas. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  5. ^ "Asterix Conquers America - Cast". www.tvtime.com. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  6. ^ "Jonathan Kydd 2 min Animation Reel". YouTube. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
  7. ^ Credited under the pseudonym Jean-Philippe Bouton.