Zookeeper ( film ) - wikipedia Zookeeper ( film ) Jump to : navigation , search For the 2001 film , see The Zookeeper ( 2001 film ) . Zookeeper Theatrical release poster Directed by Frank Coraci Produced by Todd Garner Kevin James Adam Sandler Jack Giarraputo Walt Becker Screenplay by Nick Bakay Rock Reuben Kevin James Jay Scherick David Ronn Story by Jay Scherick David Ronn Starring Kevin James Rosario Dawson Leslie Bibb Music by Rupert Gregson - Williams Cinematography Michael Barrett Edited by Scott Hill Production company Metro - Goldwyn - Mayer Columbia Pictures Broken Road Productions Hey Eddie Happy Madison Productions Distributed by Columbia Pictures Release date July 8 , 2011 ( 2011 - 07 - 08 ) Running time 102 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $80 million Box office $169.8 million Zookeeper is a 2011 American comedy film directed by Frank Coraci , starring Kevin James , Rosario Dawson and Leslie Bibb , and featuring the voices of Nick Nolte , Sylvester Stallone , Adam Sandler , Don Rickles , Judd Apatow , Cher , Jon Favreau , and Faizon Love . It revolves around an unlucky zookeeper who turns to the animals at his zoo to help him find love . It was the first MGM movie to be co-produced with Happy Madison , yet distributed by Columbia Pictures . The film was released on July 8 , 2011 . This was the last film Don Rickles starred in before his death in 2017 . Filming began in Boston on August 17 , 2009 . The film received negative reviews from critics and it earned $169.8 million on a $80 million budget . Zookeeper was released on DVD and Blu - ray on October 11 , 2011 . Contents ( hide ) 1 Plot 2 Cast 2.1 Animals 2.1. 1 Voices 3 Production 4 Reception 4.1 Box office 4.2 Critical response 4.3 Accolades 5 Soundtrack 6 References 7 External links Plot ( edit ) A zookeeper named Griffin Keyes ( Kevin James ) sets up a plan to propose to the love of his life Stephanie ( Leslie Bibb ) , but she rejects him and claims that his career as a zookeeper is what is keeping her away , therefore breaking Griffin 's heart . Five years later , Griffin is shown to be the lead zookeeper at the Franklin Park Zoo who cares deeply for the zoo animals . That night , Griffin holds a party at the zoo for his brother Dave ( Nat Faxon ) who is getting married , but freaks out when he discovers that Stephanie was invited . Dave offers Griffin to come and work with him at a car dealership , explaining that it is the best way to get Stephanie back . Griffin contemplates quitting his job at the zoo and joining his brother at the dealership . Later , the animals hold a meeting saying that they think Griffin is the best zookeeper at the zoo and do n't want him to leave , so they decide to find some way to help him win Stephanie 's heart . Jerome the Bear ( Jon Favreau ) suggests that they teach Griffin their animal mating techniques , but Joe the Lion ( Sylvester Stallone ) protests , reminding them that it 's against the animal code to talk to humans . Donald the Monkey ( Adam Sandler ) says that Stephanie will be at the zoo tomorrow , and all the animals have to do is make Griffin look like a hero in front of her . The next day , Donald unlocks the door to the lion enclosure and lets Joe out , who confronts Stephanie and Dave 's fiancée Robin ( Steffiana de la Cruz ) . Kate ( Rosario Dawson ) , the zoo 's vet , manages to get them away from Joe , but Griffin fails to jump into the lion enclosure , ruining the animals ' plan . When he climbs out of the enclosure , Joe yells at Griffin , causing Griffin to believe he has gone mad . The next night , all the animals break their code of silence and tell Griffin that they will teach him what to do to win Stephanie . Griffin learns their different mating rituals , but ends up humiliating himself in front of the other zookeepers and the guests . Griffin then has a talk with Bernie ( Nick Nolte ) , a forlorn gorilla who was moved into a deep enclosure after allegedly attacking a zookeeper named Shane ( Donnie Wahlberg ) . Bernie explains to Griffin that Shane abuses the animals and he fell when he was abusing Bernie . He lied and said that Bernie attacked him , causing Bernie to lose his trust in humans . Griffin discovers that Stephanie is dating her other ex-boyfriend , a bullying alpha - male named Gale ( Joe Rogan ) . Joe 's mate Janet ( Cher ) tells Griffin that the best way to attract a female is to be seen with another female , so Griffin asks Kate to go with him to Dave and Robin 's wedding . Griffin then takes Bernie to T.G.I. Friday 's and they bond , with Bernie telling Griffin that he 's his best friend . Griffin and Kate go to the wedding and seem to have fun together . Griffin becomes brave enough to stand up to Gale and this grabs Stephanie 's attention . After Kate tells Griffin she had a great time with him , Stephanie asks Griffin out to dinner . Griffin accepts and they go to dinner and then go to a fashion show . Stephanie tells Griffin that his job at the zoo is holding him back , so Griffin decides to quit his job and accepts Dave 's offer , which upsets Kate . Bernie also becomes upset and tells Griffin that he thought he could trust someone again , but was proved wrong when Griffin quit his job . Kate decides to leave the zoo and accepts a job in Nairobi . Griffin becomes the best employee at the car dealership , but misses working at the zoo . Stephanie proposes to Griffin , but Griffin refuses and dumps her . He then goes back to the zoo and apologizes to Bernie , who accepts Griffin 's friendship . The animals then tell Griffin that Kate is heading to the airport . Griffin heads out to stop her , though he does make a stop first to beat up Shane . Then , with Bernie 's help , Griffin manages to catch up with Kate on the bridge and confesses his love for her . Six months later , Griffin and Kate are back working at the zoo and Bernie is now living in a new enclosure where he gets a great view of the city . When Bernie asks what a `` Benihana '' is , Griffin asks Bernie if he still has his iZod . Cast ( edit ) Kevin James as Griffin Keyes , the lead zookeeper . Rosario Dawson as Kate , Griffin 's friend and the zoo 's veterinarian . Leslie Bibb as Stephanie , Griffin 's antagonistic love interest who turns down his marriage proposal because of the job he has . Joe Rogan as Gale , Stephanie 's alpha - male ex-boyfriend . Nat Faxon as Dave Keyes , Griffin 's brother who convinces Griffin to work at his car dealership . Ken Jeong as Venom , Griffin 's friend and the worker at the reptile house . Steffiana de la Cruz as Robin Keyes , Dave 's fiancé later turned wife . De La Cruz is the real life wife of Kevin James . Thomas Gottschalk as Jürgen Mavroc Donnie Wahlberg as Shane , an abusive zookeeper Brandon Keener as Nimer Animals ( edit ) Tom Woodruff , Jr. as Bernie the Lowland Gorilla ( in - suit performer ) Crystal the Monkey as Donald the Capuchin Monkey Bart the Bear 2 as Jerome the Grizzly Bear Honey Bump Bear as Bruce the Grizzly Bear Voices ( edit ) Nick Nolte as Bernie the Lowland Gorilla Sylvester Stallone as Joe the African Lion Adam Sandler as Donald the Capuchin Monkey Judd Apatow as Barry the Indian elephant Cher as Janet the Lioness , Joe 's mate Jon Favreau as Jerome the Grizzly Bear Faizon Love as Bruce the Grizzly Bear Maya Rudolph as Mollie the Reticulated Giraffe Bas Rutten as Sebastian the Wolf Don Rickles as Jim the Bullfrog Jim Breuer as Spike the Crow Richie Minervini as Elmo the Ostrich Production ( edit ) Filming began in Boston on August 17 , 2009 , aiming for a release in October 2010 , which was then released on July 8 , 2011 . Filming ended on October 30 , 2009 . Tweet , the giraffe who rose to fame as a star in the classic Toys `` R '' Us commercials ( by being cast as Geoffrey , the company 's official mascot ) and who appeared alongside Jim Carrey in the film Ace Ventura : Pet Detective , died after filming Zookeeper at the Franklin Park Zoo . The 18 - year - old giraffe collapsed during feeding and in the care of his trainer . Tai the elephant was featured in a video , reportedly filmed in 2005 and released in 2011 by Animal Defenders International ( ADI ) , which showed him being abused by its trainers . A campaign to boycott the movie was formed since the outbreak of the news . ADI has also contacted the American Humane Association , urging them to re-evaluate how they assess the use of animals in films and the statements being made which effectively endorse the use of performing animals . Animal rights advocates PETA also urged the public to boycott the film . Around 50 people came to the film 's premiere at the Regency Village Theatre in Westwood , Los Angeles , California to protest against the filmmakers for their alleged animal abuse . Frank Coraci claimed that the animals were not harmed during production . In an interview , Coraci stated , `` ... We worked with people who love their animals and ( the American ) Humane Association was there to ensure that they were being treated correctly . We did n't do anything that we should n't do . We treated the animals with love and respect . '' Reception ( edit ) Box Office ( edit ) Zookeeper made its debut in 3,482 theaters in the United States and Canada . It grossed $7.4 million on its opening day and $20.1 million on its opening weekend , ranking it # 3 for the weekend behind holdover Transformers : Dark of the Moon and newcomer Horrible Bosses . The film earned a worldwide total of $169,852,759 . Critical response ( edit ) Rotten Tomatoes , a review aggregator , reports that 14 % of 130 surveyed critics gave the film a positive review ; the average rating is 3.4 / 10 . The site 's critical consensus reads , `` Zookeeper smothers Kevin James 's inherent likability with a sodden script and a surfeit of jokes inappropriate for the young viewers who would be intrigued by its juvenile storyline . '' On Metacritic , the film has a score of 30 out of 100 based on 29 critics , indicating `` generally unfavorable reviews '' . Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of `` B + '' on an A+ to F scale . Mary Pols of Time magazine named it one of the Top 10 Worst Movies of 2011 . British newspaper The Telegraph named Zookeeper one of the ten worst films of 2011 , saying `` Portly Kevin James is the hero of this `` comedy '' , which boasts five screenwriters and not a single amusing moment . '' Ignatiy Vishnevetsky , who co-hosts the movie review series Ebert Presents : At the Movies , said that `` even though the movie looks hilarious from the trailer , it is only hilarious if you enjoy seeing Kevin James fall down a lot '' . He gave the film a `` thumbs down , '' as did Christy Lemire , the other co-host of the series . In May 2011 , RedLetterMedia ( creators of the Mr. Plinkett reviews ) did an episode of the show Half in the Bag reviewing the film 's first trailer . The hosts sarcastically praised the trailer as if they thought it was a fake , well crafted parody of a tired subset of the comedy genre , at one point noting `` All they were missing was a wise cracking sidekick for Kevin James , played by a rapper . '' Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun - Times published a three - out - of - four star review , stating , `` Look , a great movie this is not . A pleasant summer entertainment it is . I think it can play for all ages in a family audience ... and besides , I 'm getting a teensy bit exhausted by cute little animated animals . The creatures in this zoo all have the excellent taste to be in 2D . '' Accolades ( edit ) Award Recipients Result Teen Choice Award Choice Summer Movie Star -- Female Rosario Dawson Nominated Razzie Award Worst Supporting Actor Ken Jeong Nominated Soundtrack ( edit ) I 'll Supply the Love -- Performed by Toto Carry On Wayward Son -- Performed by Kansas Anything for You -- Performed by The Axis Smokin ' -- Performed by Boston Low -- Performed by Flo Rida featuring T - Pain Unbelievable -- Performed by EMF Two Out of Three Ai n't Bad -- Performed by Meat Loaf Kickstart My Heart -- Performed by Mötley Crüe Boogie Wonderland -- Performed by Earth , Wind & Fire You 're the First , the Last , My Everything -- Performed by Barry White Bebop Blues -- Performed by Peter Blair Jazz Quartet Easy -- Performed by Commodores Kiss You All Over -- Performed by Exile Ball of Confusion ( That 's What the World Is Today ) -- Performed by Love and Rockets ( Shake , Shake , Shake ) Shake Your Booty -- Performed by KC & The Sunshine Band So Much Class -- Performed by Doctor Jay featuring J. Sabin In the Car Crash -- Performed by Swayzak Yoga Music -- Written and Performed by Ana Brett , Ravi Singh and Tom Carden Cum On Feel the Noize -- Performed by Quiet Riot More Than a Feeling -- Performed by Boston References ( edit ) ^ Jump up to : McCarthy , Todd ( July 7 , 2011 ) . `` Zookeeper : Film Review '' . The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved February 18 , 2017 . ^ Jump up to : `` Zookeeper '' . Box Office Mojo . IMDB . Retrieved November 20 , 2014 . Jump up ^ Kaufman , Amy ( July 7 , 2011 ) . `` Movie Projector : ' Transformers ' expected to crush newcomers ' Zookeeper ' and ' Horrible Bosses ' '' . Los Angeles Times . Tribune Company . Retrieved July 11 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Fleming , Mike ( April 4 , 2010 ) . `` MGM Uncertainty Prompts Sony To Take Over ' Zookeeper ' Domestic Distribution '' . Deadline . Retrieved April 8 , 2010 . Jump up ^ Sperling , Nicole ( April 27 , 2010 ) . `` Sony moves upcoming Kevin James comedy ' Zookeeper ' into summer 2011 '' . Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved June 21 , 2010 . Jump up ^ `` Zookeeper Film Production Details '' . Variety . September 10 , 2009 . Retrieved June 21 , 2010 . Jump up ^ `` Giraffe dies on Franklin Park Zoo film set -- The Boston Globe '' . boston.com . Jump up ^ Valencia , Milton J. ( September 14 , 2009 ) . `` Tweet the giraffe , star of ads and movies , dies at Franklin Park Zoo '' . The Boston Globe . Retrieved June 21 , 2010 . Jump up ^ `` Group claims elephant abuse in film `` , Stuff ( New Zealand ) / Reuters , May 11 , 2011 Jump up ^ `` Movie Star Electric Shocked '' . ADI . May 7 , 2011 . Retrieved May 11 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` Water for Elephants star electrocuted and beaten with hooks '' , DailyMail.co.uk . Retrieved 2011 - 05 - 12 . ^ Jump up to : `` PETA protests at ' Zookeeper ' premiere . Director says animals were treated ' with love and respect ' '' . Entertainment Weekly . July 7 , 2011 . Retrieved July 7 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` ' Transformers ' Stays on Top , ' Bosses ' Fires ' Zookeeper ' '' . July 10 , 2011 . Jump up ^ http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/zookeeper/?search=Zookeeper Jump up ^ `` Zookeeper '' . Metacritic . CBS . Retrieved July 8 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` CinemaScore '' . cinemascore.com . Jump up ^ Pols , Mary ( December 7 , 2011 ) . `` The Top 10 Everything of 2011 -- Zookeeper '' . Time . Retrieved December 13 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` Ten worst films of 2011 '' . The Telegraph . London . December 15 , 2011 . Retrieved December 17 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` Red Letter Media Special Edition : The Zookeeper trailer : '' . redlettermedia.com . Jump up ^ `` Zookeeper Movie Review & Film Summary ( 2011 ) '' . Chicago Sun - Times . July 6 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Ng , Philiana ( 2011 - 07 - 19 ) . `` Teen Choice Awards 2011 : ' Pretty Little Liars , ' Rebecca Black Added to List of Nominees '' . The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on 2011 - 07 - 27 . Retrieved 2011 - 07 - 27 . External links ( edit ) Wikiquote has quotations related to : Zookeeper ( film ) Official website Zookeeper at AllMovie Zookeeper at Box Office Mojo Zookeeper on IMDb Zookeeper at Rotten Tomatoes Films directed by Frank Coraci Murdered Innocence ( 1995 ) The Wedding Singer ( 1998 ) The Waterboy ( 1998 ) Around the World in 80 Days ( 2004 ) Click ( 2006 ) Zookeeper ( 2011 ) Here Comes the Boom ( 2012 ) Blended ( 2014 ) The Ridiculous 6 ( 2015 ) Happy Madison Productions Films Deuce Bigalow : Male Gigolo ( 1999 ) Little Nicky ( 2000 ) The Animal ( 2001 ) Joe Dirt ( 2001 ) Mr. Deeds ( 2002 ) The Master of Disguise ( 2002 ) Eight Crazy Nights ( 2002 ) The Hot Chick ( 2002 ) Anger Management ( 2003 ) Dickie Roberts : Former Child Star ( 2003 ) 50 First Dates ( 2004 ) The Longest Yard ( 2005 ) Deuce Bigalow : European Gigolo ( 2005 ) Grandma 's Boy ( 2006 ) The Benchwarmers ( 2006 ) Click ( 2006 ) I Now Pronounce You Chuck And Larry ( 2007 ) Reign Over Me ( 2007 ) Strange Wilderness ( 2008 ) The House Bunny ( 2008 ) You Do n't Mess with the Zohan ( 2008 ) Bedtime Stories ( 2008 ) Paul Blart : Mall Cop ( 2009 ) The Shortcut ( 2009 ) Funny People ( 2009 ) Grown Ups ( 2010 ) Just Go with It ( 2011 ) Zookeeper ( 2011 ) Bucky Larson : Born to Be a Star ( 2011 ) Jack and Jill ( 2011 ) That 's My Boy ( 2012 ) Here Comes the Boom ( 2012 ) Grown Ups 2 ( 2013 ) Blended ( 2014 ) Paul Blart : Mall Cop 2 ( 2015 ) Pixels ( 2015 ) Joe Dirt 2 : Beautiful Loser ( 2015 ) The Ridiculous 6 ( 2015 ) The Do - Over ( 2016 ) Sandy Wexler ( 2017 ) The Week Of ( 2018 ) Television series Rules of Engagement ( 2007 -- 13 ) The Gong Show with Dave Attell ( 2008 ) Nick Swardson 's Pretend Time ( 2010 -- 11 ) Breaking In ( 2011 -- 12 ) The Goldbergs ( 2013 -- present ) Imaginary Mary ( 2017 ) Key people Adam Sandler Allen Covert Jack Giarraputo Tim Herlihy Heather Parry Sony Pictures Entertainment Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Zookeeper_(film)&oldid=837179035 '' Categories : 2011 films English - language films 2010s romantic comedy films American romantic comedy films American films Films set in zoos Metro - Goldwyn - Mayer films Films directed by Frank Coraci Films featuring anthropomorphic characters Films shot in Massachusetts Happy Madison films Columbia Pictures films Films about animals Films produced by Adam Sandler Films set in Boston Films scored by Rupert Gregson - Williams Hidden categories : All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from January 2012 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from December 2011 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Deutsch Español فارسی Français Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית Magyar Nederlands 日本 語 Polski Português Русский Simple English Suomi Svenska Українська 中文 10 more Edit links This page was last edited on 19 April 2018 , at 06 : 15 . 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who plays the lion in the movie zookeeper
Zookeeper Theatrical release poster Directed by Frank Coraci Produced by Todd Garner Kevin James Adam Sandler Jack Giarraputo Walt Becker Screenplay by Nick Bakay Rock Reuben Kevin James Jay Scherick David Ronn Story by Jay Scherick David Ronn Starring Kevin James Rosario Dawson Leslie Bibb Music by Rupert Gregson - Williams Cinematography Michael Barrett Edited by Scott Hill Production company Metro - Goldwyn - Mayer Columbia Pictures Broken Road Productions Hey Eddie Happy Madison Productions Distributed by Columbia Pictures Release date July 8 , 2011 ( 2011 - 07 - 08 ) Running time 102 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $80 million Box office $169.8 million Zookeeper Theatrical release poster Directed by Frank Coraci Produced by Todd Garner Kevin James Adam Sandler Jack Giarraputo Walt Becker Todd Garner Kevin James Adam Sandler Jack Giarraputo Walt Becker Screenplay by Nick Bakay Rock Reuben Kevin James Jay Scherick David Ronn Nick Bakay Rock Reuben Kevin James Jay Scherick David Ronn Story by Jay Scherick David Ronn Jay Scherick David Ronn Starring Kevin James Rosario Dawson Leslie Bibb Kevin James Rosario Dawson Leslie Bibb Music by Rupert Gregson - Williams Cinematography Michael Barrett Edited by Scott Hill Production company Metro - Goldwyn - Mayer Columbia Pictures Broken Road Productions Hey Eddie Happy Madison Productions Metro - Goldwyn - Mayer Columbia Pictures Broken Road Productions Hey Eddie Happy Madison Productions Metro - Goldwyn - Mayer Broken Road Productions Happy Madison Productions Distributed by Columbia Pictures Release date July 8 , 2011 ( 2011 - 07 - 08 ) July 8 , 2011 ( 2011 - 07 - 08 ) July 8 , 2011 ( 2011 - 07 - 08 ) Running time 102 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $80 million Box office $169.8 million Zookeeper is a 2011 American comedy film directed by Frank Coraci , starring Kevin James , Rosario Dawson and Leslie Bibb , and featuring the voices of Nick Nolte , Sylvester Stallone , Adam Sandler , Don Rickles , Judd Apatow , Cher , Jon Favreau , and Faizon Love . It revolves around an unlucky zookeeper who turns to the animals at his zoo to help him find love . It was the first MGM movie to be co-produced with Happy Madison , yet distributed by Columbia Pictures . The film was released on July 8 , 2011 . This was the last film Don Rickles starred in before his death in 2017 . Filming began in Boston on August 17 , 2009 . The film received negative reviews from critics and it earned $169.8 million on a $80 million budget . Zookeeper was released on DVD and Blu - ray on October 11 , 2011 . A zookeeper named Griffin Keyes ( Kevin James ) sets up a plan to propose to the love of his life Stephanie ( Leslie Bibb ) , but she rejects him and claims that his career as a zookeeper is what is keeping her away , therefore breaking Griffin 's heart . Five years later , Griffin is shown to be the lead zookeeper at the Franklin Park Zoo who cares deeply for the zoo animals . That night , Griffin holds a party at the zoo for his brother Dave ( Nat Faxon ) who is getting married , but freaks out when he discovers that Stephanie was invited . Dave offers Griffin to come and work with him at a car dealership , explaining that it is the best way to get Stephanie back . Griffin contemplates quitting his job at the zoo and joining his brother at the dealership . Later , the animals hold a meeting saying that they think Griffin is the best zookeeper at the zoo and do n't want him to leave , so they decide to find some way to help him win Stephanie 's heart . Jerome the Bear ( Jon Favreau ) suggests that they teach Griffin their animal mating techniques , but Joe the Lion ( Sylvester Stallone ) protests , reminding them that it 's against the animal code to talk to humans . Donald the Monkey ( Adam Sandler ) says that Stephanie will be at the zoo tomorrow , and all the animals have to do is make Griffin look like a hero in front of her . The next day , Donald unlocks the door to the lion enclosure and lets Joe out , who confronts Stephanie and Dave 's fiancée Robin ( Steffiana de la Cruz ) . Kate ( Rosario Dawson ) , the zoo 's vet , manages to get them away from Joe , but Griffin fails to jump into the lion enclosure , ruining the animals ' plan . When he climbs out of the enclosure , Joe yells at Griffin , causing Griffin to believe he has gone mad . The next night , all the animals break their code of silence and tell Griffin that they will teach him what to do to win Stephanie . Griffin learns their different mating rituals , but ends up humiliating himself in front of the other zookeepers and the guests . Griffin then has a talk with Bernie ( Nick Nolte ) , a forlorn gorilla who was moved into a deep enclosure after allegedly attacking a zookeeper named Shane ( Donnie Wahlberg ) . Bernie explains to Griffin that Shane abuses the animals and he fell when he was abusing Bernie . He lied and said that Bernie attacked him , causing Bernie to lose his trust in humans . Griffin discovers that Stephanie is dating her other ex-boyfriend , a bullying alpha - male named Gale ( Joe Rogan ) . Joe 's mate Janet ( Cher ) tells Griffin that the best way to attract a female is to be seen with another female , so Griffin asks Kate to go with him to Dave and Robin 's wedding . Griffin then takes Bernie to T.G.I. Friday 's and they bond , with Bernie telling Griffin that he 's his best friend . Griffin and Kate go to the wedding and seem to have fun together . Griffin becomes brave enough to stand up to Gale and this grabs Stephanie 's attention . After Kate tells Griffin she had a great time with him , Stephanie asks Griffin out to dinner . Griffin accepts and they go to dinner and then go to a fashion show . Stephanie tells Griffin that his job at the zoo is holding him back , so Griffin decides to quit his job and accepts Dave 's offer , which upsets Kate . Bernie also becomes upset and tells Griffin that he thought he could trust someone again , but was proved wrong when Griffin quit his job . Kate decides to leave the zoo and accepts a job in Nairobi . Griffin becomes the best employee at the car dealership , but misses working at the zoo . Stephanie proposes to Griffin , but Griffin refuses and dumps her . He then goes back to the zoo and apologizes to Bernie , who accepts Griffin 's friendship . The animals then tell Griffin that Kate is heading to the airport . Griffin heads out to stop her , though he does make a stop first to beat up Shane . Then , with Bernie 's help , Griffin manages to catch up with Kate on the bridge and confesses his love for her . Six months later , Griffin and Kate are back working at the zoo and Bernie is now living in a new enclosure where he gets a great view of the city . When Bernie asks what a `` Benihana '' is , Griffin asks Bernie if he still has his iZod . Kevin James as Griffin Keyes , the lead zookeeper . Rosario Dawson as Kate , Griffin 's friend and the zoo 's veterinarian . Leslie Bibb as Stephanie , Griffin 's antagonistic love interest who turns down his marriage proposal because of the job he has . Joe Rogan as Gale , Stephanie 's alpha - male ex-boyfriend . Nat Faxon as Dave Keyes , Griffin 's brother who convinces Griffin to work at his car dealership . Ken Jeong as Venom , Griffin 's friend and the worker at the reptile house . Steffiana de la Cruz as Robin Keyes , Dave 's fiancé later turned wife . De La Cruz is the real life wife of Kevin James . Thomas Gottschalk as Jürgen Mavroc Donnie Wahlberg as Shane , an abusive zookeeper Brandon Keener as Nimer Kevin James as Griffin Keyes , the lead zookeeper . Rosario Dawson as Kate , Griffin 's friend and the zoo 's veterinarian . Leslie Bibb as Stephanie , Griffin 's antagonistic love interest who turns down his marriage proposal because of the job he has . Joe Rogan as Gale , Stephanie 's alpha - male ex-boyfriend . Nat Faxon as Dave Keyes , Griffin 's brother who convinces Griffin to work at his car dealership . Ken Jeong as Venom , Griffin 's friend and the worker at the reptile house . Steffiana de la Cruz as Robin Keyes , Dave 's fiancé later turned wife . De La Cruz is the real life wife of Kevin James . Thomas Gottschalk as Jürgen Mavroc Donnie Wahlberg as Shane , an abusive zookeeper Brandon Keener as Nimer Tom Woodruff , Jr. as Bernie the Lowland Gorilla ( in - suit performer ) Crystal the Monkey as Donald the Capuchin Monkey Bart the Bear 2 as Jerome the Grizzly Bear Honey Bump Bear as Bruce the Grizzly Bear Tom Woodruff , Jr. as Bernie the Lowland Gorilla ( in - suit performer ) Crystal the Monkey as Donald the Capuchin Monkey Bart the Bear 2 as Jerome the Grizzly Bear Honey Bump Bear as Bruce the Grizzly Bear Nick Nolte as Bernie the Lowland Gorilla Sylvester Stallone as Joe the African Lion Adam Sandler as Donald the Capuchin Monkey Judd Apatow as Barry the Indian elephant Cher as Janet the Lioness , Joe 's mate Jon Favreau as Jerome the Grizzly Bear Faizon Love as Bruce the Grizzly Bear Maya Rudolph as Mollie the Reticulated Giraffe Bas Rutten as Sebastian the Wolf Don Rickles as Jim the Bullfrog Jim Breuer as Spike the Crow Richie Minervini as Elmo the Ostrich Nick Nolte as Bernie the Lowland Gorilla Sylvester Stallone as Joe the African Lion Adam Sandler as Donald the Capuchin Monkey Judd Apatow as Barry the Indian elephant Cher as Janet the Lioness , Joe 's mate Jon Favreau as Jerome the Grizzly Bear Faizon Love as Bruce the Grizzly Bear Maya Rudolph as Mollie the Reticulated Giraffe Bas Rutten as Sebastian the Wolf Don Rickles as Jim the Bullfrog Jim Breuer as Spike the Crow Richie Minervini as Elmo the Ostrich Filming began in Boston on August 17 , 2009 , aiming for a release in October 2010 , which was then released on July 8 , 2011 . Filming ended on October 30 , 2009 . Tweet , the giraffe who rose to fame as a star in the classic Toys `` R '' Us commercials ( by being cast as Geoffrey , the company 's official mascot ) and who appeared alongside Jim Carrey in the film Ace Ventura : Pet Detective , died after filming Zookeeper at the Franklin Park Zoo . The 18 - year - old giraffe collapsed during feeding and in the care of his trainer . Tai the elephant was featured in a video , reportedly filmed in 2005 and released in 2011 by Animal Defenders International ( ADI ) , which showed him being abused by its trainers . A campaign to boycott the movie was formed since the outbreak of the news . ADI has also contacted the American Humane Association , urging them to re-evaluate how they assess the use of animals in films and the statements being made which effectively endorse the use of performing animals . Animal rights advocates PETA also urged the public to boycott the film . Around 50 people came to the film 's premiere at the Regency Village Theatre in Westwood , Los Angeles , California to protest against the filmmakers for their alleged animal abuse . Frank Coraci claimed that the animals were not harmed during production . In an interview , Coraci stated , `` ... We worked with people who love their animals and ( the American ) Humane Association was there to ensure that they were being treated correctly . We did n't do anything that we should n't do . We treated the animals with love and respect . '' Zookeeper made its debut in 3,482 theaters in the United States and Canada . It grossed $7.4 million on its opening day and $20.1 million on its opening weekend , ranking it # 3 for the weekend behind holdover Transformers : Dark of the Moon and newcomer Horrible Bosses . The film earned a worldwide total of $169,852,759 . Rotten Tomatoes , a review aggregator , reports that 14 % of 130 surveyed critics gave the film a positive review ; the average rating is 3.4 / 10 . The site 's critical consensus reads , `` Zookeeper smothers Kevin James 's inherent likability with a sodden script and a surfeit of jokes inappropriate for the young viewers who would be intrigued by its juvenile storyline . '' On Metacritic , the film has a score of 30 out of 100 based on 29 critics , indicating `` generally unfavorable reviews '' . Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of `` B + '' on an A+ to F scale . Mary Pols of Time magazine named it one of the Top 10 Worst Movies of 2011 . British newspaper The Telegraph named Zookeeper one of the ten worst films of 2011 , saying `` Portly Kevin James is the hero of this `` comedy '' , which boasts five screenwriters and not a single amusing moment . '' Ignatiy Vishnevetsky , who co-hosts the movie review series Ebert Presents : At the Movies , said that `` even though the movie looks hilarious from the trailer , it is only hilarious if you enjoy seeing Kevin James fall down a lot '' . He gave the film a `` thumbs down , '' as did Christy Lemire , the other co-host of the series . In May 2011 , RedLetterMedia ( creators of the Mr. Plinkett reviews ) did an episode of the show Half in the Bag reviewing the film 's first trailer . The hosts sarcastically praised the trailer as if they thought it was a fake , well crafted parody of a tired subset of the comedy genre , at one point noting `` All they were missing was a wise cracking sidekick for Kevin James , played by a rapper . '' Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun - Times published a three - out - of - four star review , stating , `` Look , a great movie this is not . A pleasant summer entertainment it is . I think it can play for all ages in a family audience ... and besides , I 'm getting a teensy bit exhausted by cute little animated animals . The creatures in this zoo all have the excellent taste to be in 2D . '' Award Recipients Result Teen Choice Award Choice Summer Movie Star -- Female Rosario Dawson Nominated Razzie Award Worst Supporting Actor Ken Jeong Nominated Award Recipients Result Teen Choice Award Choice Summer Movie Star -- Female Rosario Dawson Nominated Razzie Award Worst Supporting Actor Ken Jeong Nominated I 'll Supply the Love -- Performed by Toto Carry On Wayward Son -- Performed by Kansas Anything for You -- Performed by The Axis Smokin ' -- Performed by Boston Low -- Performed by Flo Rida featuring T - Pain Unbelievable -- Performed by EMF Two Out of Three Ai n't Bad -- Performed by Meat Loaf Kickstart My Heart -- Performed by Mötley Crüe Boogie Wonderland -- Performed by Earth , Wind & Fire You 're the First , the Last , My Everything -- Performed by Barry White Bebop Blues -- Performed by Peter Blair Jazz Quartet Easy -- Performed by Commodores Kiss You All Over -- Performed by Exile Ball of Confusion ( That 's What the World Is Today ) -- Performed by Love and Rockets ( Shake , Shake , Shake ) Shake Your Booty -- Performed by KC & The Sunshine Band So Much Class -- Performed by Doctor Jay featuring J. Sabin In the Car Crash -- Performed by Swayzak Yoga Music -- Written and Performed by Ana Brett , Ravi Singh and Tom Carden Cum On Feel the Noize -- Performed by Quiet Riot More Than a Feeling -- Performed by Boston I 'll Supply the Love -- Performed by Toto Carry On Wayward Son -- Performed by Kansas Anything for You -- Performed by The Axis Smokin ' -- Performed by Boston Low -- Performed by Flo Rida featuring T - Pain Unbelievable -- Performed by EMF Two Out of Three Ai n't Bad -- Performed by Meat Loaf Kickstart My Heart -- Performed by Mötley Crüe Boogie Wonderland -- Performed by Earth , Wind & Fire You 're the First , the Last , My Everything -- Performed by Barry White Bebop Blues -- Performed by Peter Blair Jazz Quartet Easy -- Performed by Commodores Kiss You All Over -- Performed by Exile Ball of Confusion ( That 's What the World Is Today ) -- Performed by Love and Rockets ( Shake , Shake , Shake ) Shake Your Booty -- Performed by KC & The Sunshine Band So Much Class -- Performed by Doctor Jay featuring J. Sabin In the Car Crash -- Performed by Swayzak Yoga Music -- Written and Performed by Ana Brett , Ravi Singh and Tom Carden Cum On Feel the Noize -- Performed by Quiet Riot More Than a Feeling -- Performed by Boston
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