Summary
A 32-year-old change made by the real LEGO company was subtly called back to inThe LEGO Movieduring the villain’s story.The LEGO Movie’sreturn to streamingreminds fans how the film’s strong moments were not only thanks to its fun and surprisingly poignant story. The characters of the film, including Chris Pratt’s portrayal of Emmet Brickowski, added to the film’s charm. However, the story’s villain, President Business, truly tied the message together and allowed the role to become one ofWill Ferrell’s most iconic characters.
President Business’s hilarious moments throughout the film are only compounded by the moving storyline of the second half where Ferrell’s the Man Upstairs reconciles with his son Finn (Jadon Sand). Some of the smaller details included inThe LEGO Movie, however, may have gotten lost in the story. One detail is the name of President Business’s corporation and the real-life ties it has to the LEGO company, creating a fascinating saga of its own.
The LEGO Movie 3: Confirmation, Studio Change, & Everything We Know
A new LEGO Movie is coming from Universal, but this means big changes in the characters, cast, and story for the franchise.
President Business' Corporation Is Based On LEGO City’s 1992 Octan Oil Company Change
LEGO Originally Used The Names Of Real Gas Companies
Having President Business' company inThe LEGO Moviebe named The Octan Corporation calls back to a change made for its LEGO City sets. Before the early 1990s, LEGO had used the names of real gas companies, including Shell, Exxon, and Esso within its toy universe.However, in 1992, LEGO created Octan Oil, a fictitious gas companythat soon appeared in its city-based sets. An interesting thing to note is how, in theChris Pratt movie, the company was owned by the villain. The choice could be due to the real-life actions of some of LEGO’s former oil partners.
LEGO Ended Its Real Oil Company Agreement The Same Year That The LEGO Movie Premiered
LEGO’s Agreement With Shell Ended in 2014
LEGO ended its agreement with Shell the same year asThe LEGO Movie’s premiere due to protests from Greenpeaceregarding Shell’s plan to drill in the Arctic. According toThe Guardian,LEGO initially resisted the environmental campaign group’s efforts to sway the company. LEGO’s response to the group was to discuss their concerns with Shell itself rather than targeting the toy maker. Despite this, the group persisted until LEGO conceded to not renewing its agreement with Shell after the existing contract expired.
Octan’s appearance inThe LEGO Movieis not only a small nod to this interesting saga.
LEGO has since made Octan a manufacturer of renewable energy in its LEGO universe, creating sets such as a biofuels processing plant to encourage conservation efforts. Not only that, butLEGO Educationadded lessons on renewable energy, teaching children about new technology and ways that can assist those efforts. Octan’s appearance inThe LEGO Movieis not only a small nod to this interesting saga. It also makes the movie feel less like amanufactured corporate filmand allows its message to be all the more powerful, making everything even more awesome.
The Lego Movie
Cast
The first film in the Lego movie franchise, 2014’s The Lego Movie tells the story of Emmett Brickowski (Chris Pratt), an average construction worker from the Lego city of Bricksburg. After finding the fabled “Piece of Resistance”, Emmett finds himself opposing the plans of the villainous Lord Business (Will Ferrell) with the help of both original characters and licensed ones such as Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman.
