Our favorite Central Park Zoo animals are back! Ben Stiller and Chris Rock are again voicing Alex the Lion and Marty the Zebra in Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa. They gave us the scoop on how to make a sequel better than the first.

Filmazing:  What were your feelings about working on the sequel?

Stiller: I was excited to come back because I felt like we’ve figured out who these people are and who these animals are.  Now we can have more fun with it because the first one was a very exploratory process.

Rock:  This one is more like the second season or third season of a good sitcom, we really figured it out.

Filmazing:  We heard the film starts off with a big bang, can you tell us a little bit about that? 

Rock: We get on a plane and we land in Africa.  We have a crash landing, which is pretty funny.  It might be a little bit stolen from Almost Famous but that’s a DreamWorks movie too, so might as well.

Stiller:  It’s a fun plane crash, so right off the bat it’s different from what you’re used to seeing in the movies where the plane crash is scary or having people die. This doesn’t happen. In this crash, everyone lands happy. 

Rock: Except, this one is without Leslie Neilson.

Stiller: That’s right, exactly. So, it’s the first fun plane crash since Airplane.

Filmazing:  Why do you think people love the penguins in the movie?

Stiller:  The penguins are great because they drive a lot of the story in terms of getting us off of Madagascar and getting the plane going.  They’re sort of always there stealing the show.

Filmazing:  What was it like working together while voicing the characters for Madagascar 2?  Normally, in an animated film the actors work separately.

Stiller:  It was fun to get in the booth together and see what Chris does.  I enjoy how Chris does his thing in these movies, and I was very impressed because
he’s funny.

Rock:  I’d seen Ben’s movies and read about him, so to actually get in the booth with him, I was a little intimidated.  It was kind of like when Monk met
Miles, but after awhile I realized he bled too, and I was able to do my thing.

Filmazing:  Is it true, Ben, that your kids participated in the film as well by providing some voices? 

Stiller:  Yes, both my son and daughter.  My daughter came in with my son to help coax him into doing it because he was only two and a half when they did it. He started crying and wanted to leave, and that was the portion they used in the movie because it was so real.

Filmazing:  Can you tell us about your real life experiences in Africa, Chris?

Rock: I’ve been on quite a few safaris and the movie does capture the feel of a safari.  When you’re out there, it’s so lush and it’s not just the animals, the
plants, the insects and the birds, it’s all of a sudden, you’re like, what the hell is that?!

Filmazing:  Why do you think families will want to see Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa? Are your own families excited to see the movie?

Stiller:  I feel people get excited when they hear about the movie because families really enjoy the film.  I know a lot of my daughter’s friends are
coming to the premiere tomorrow.

Rock: We’re bringing a bunch of friends.  Kids get excited about any job.  For example, when a kid says my dad drives an ice cream truck, the response is Wow, get out of here.