Given that Robert Downey Jr. was the star of Iron Man, the movie that popularized the trend of post-credits scenes, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Dolittle features its own credits sequence. The movie sees Doctor John Dolittle (Downey) embarking on an adventure with a pack of wisecracking talking animals that, if successful, will save the life of Queen Victoria.
The voyage involves a number of animal characters with famous voices, including John Cena as a polar bear named Yoshi and Rami Malek as a gorilla named Chee-Chee. However, the big-name talent isn’t just limited to voice work, there are also plenty of well-known actors playing live-action roles in Dolittle. Among them are Antonio Banderas as Dolittle’s father-in-law, Jessie Buckley as Queen Victoria, and Michael Sheen as the film’s primary human antagonist, Dr. Blair Mudfly.
Sheen’s character, an old academic rival of Dolittle who is determined to undermine him no matter the cost, is the focus of the mid-credits scene in Dolittle. The character was last seen falling down into a pit during all the chaos caused by Dolittle’s confrontation with the dragon Ginko-Who-Soars (Frances de la Tour), but he returns midway through the credits. Kicking off with a brief piece of voice-over from Emma Thompson’s parrot character Polynesia over a black screen, the scene then cuts to a shot of Mudfly sitting alone at the bottom of the pit calling out for help.
Realizing no help from humans is coming to his aid, Mudfly then hatches a new plan. Seeing a colony of bats hanging upside down nearby, Mudfly begins to take a cue from his rival and tries his best to communicate to the bats in an attempt to get their help. After a moment of comically failing to speak their language, the bats viciously descend on Mudfly. The mid-credits scene ends with Mudfly screaming in pain as the bats surround him.
Whereas many mid- or post-credits scenes are dedicated to setting up potential future sequels, Dolittle’s is merely there to wrap up a previously unresolved plot thread from this movie. Specifically, it provides a more pronounced level of justice for the villainous figure of Dr. Blair Mudfly, now doomed to be eaten by animals after spending a whole movie demeaning critters at every turn. Though moviegoers don’t get a tease for prospective Dolittle sequels through this mid-credit scene, the critically-derided Dolittle does, at least, provide some extra story closure.
Next: Dolittle’s Worst Scenes Were Added In Reshoots Due To Studio Meddling
