Ashley Judd Balances Maternal Love, Concern in ‘Dolphin Tale 2’

She most recently co-starred in Neil Burger’s sci-fi hit “Divergent,” with Shailene Woodley and Kate Winslet, and Antoine Fuqua’s actioner “Olympus Has Fallen,” with Gerard Butler and Aaron Eckhart. Now, Ashley Judd returns to her role of the big-hearted mother, Lorraine, for Warner Bros. Pictures’ eagerly anticipated sequel, “Dolphin Tale 2.”

Ashley Judd says of the premise of the new film, “It’s always wonderful when young people find their voice and their autonomy, and it’s great to watch the kids in this film begin to act on the courage of their convictions. In the first ‘Dolphin Tale,’ Lorraine was mostly concerned about her son, Sawyer, and then was relieved that he was going to be okay. Now, maybe he’s gonna be too okay because he’s getting ready to leave for several months. Of course, as a mom she wants him to go out and do big things.”

The actress, who is an outspoken animal advocate, adds, “I was so pleased to discover that so much of this film focuses on the animals. To be on set with Winter and see the range of her emotions—from the unbelievable gentleness with which she interacts with both children and adults with disabilities to her mischievousness and humor—is one of the most profound experiences of my career. As Dr. McCarthy likes to joke, with intentional inaccuracy, ‘She’s a hell of a fish,’” Judd laughs.

Morgan Freeman returns as Dr. Cameron McCarthy, the ingenious prosthetics doctor who devised the artificial tail that saved Winter’s life in the first film. “Dolphin Tale 2” also marks his fourth collaboration with Judd, whom he says is “one of the women I love most in the world. “She is super smart, she is gorgeous and she has a beautiful soul. What’s not to love?”

He and Judd also share an admiration for their aquatic co-stars. “Dolphins are extremely bright creatures; the fact that they don’t make computers or cars doesn’t diminish that fact,” he observes. “I think their intelligence is part of what draws us to them and them to us. And that’s also part of what makes the ‘Dolphin Tale’ movies such terrific family affairs. We have to remember, as filmmakers and storytellers, that children do not listen to what we say; they’re watching what we do. So if we make movies about caring for the environment and its animals, that’s what they learn. We should be joyous when something good comes along that will resonate with people who are concerned about taking their children to the movies.”

In “Dolphin Tale 2,” it has been several years since young Sawyer Nelson (Nathan Gamble) and the dedicated team at the Clearwater Marine Hospital, headed by Dr. Clay Haskett (Harry Connick, Jr.), rescued Winter. With the help of Dr. Cameron McCarthy (Morgan Freeman), who developed a unique prosthetic tail for the injured dolphin, they were able to save her life. Yet their fight is not over. Winter’s surrogate mother, the very elderly dolphin Panama, has passed away, leaving Winter without the only poolmate she has ever known. However, the loss of Panama may have even greater repercussions for Winter, who, according to USDA regulations, cannot be housed alone, as dolphins’ social behavior requires them to be paired with other dolphins. Time is running out to find a companion for her before the team at Clearwater loses their beloved Winter to another aquarium.

Opening across the Philippines on Oct. 08, 2014, “Dolphin Tale 2” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment company.