Hop is a 2011 American live-action/computer-animated fantasy comedy film produced by Illumination Entertainment, in association with Relativity Media, and distributed by Universal Pictures. The film was directed by Tim Hill and produced by Chris Meledandri and Michele Imperato Stabile, with a screenplay written by Brian Lynch, Cinco Paul, and Ken Daurio. Paul and Daurio also conceived the film's story. Starring James Marsden, Russell Brand, Kaley Cuoco, Hank Azaria, Gary Cole, Elizabeth Perkins, David Hasselhoff, Chelsea Handler, and Hugh Laurie, the film follows a young rabbit who would rather drum in a band than succeed his father as the Easter Bunny, as a human slacker have the title for himself. Hop was released in theaters on April 1, 2011, by Universal Pictures, and earned $184 million. It received generally negative reviews from critics. To date, it is the only Illumination Entertainment film that combines live-action photography with animation.