Queen Latifah becomes a mom in Ice Age 3

Queen Latifah finds herself anew on a risky journey from sub zero temperature to the sizzling heat of the dino world in the latest family movie Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.

It’s the second time Queen Latifah has played Ellie, the delightful woolly mammoth who is now married to Ray Romano’s Manny, and in this engaging film, the third in the Ice Age series, we find her pregnant. She and husband Manny are thrilled to be starting a new family. Manny is full of trepidation, while sensible Ellie is taking everything in her stride — at least until trouble begins — trouble which threatens the little close-knit herd and their entire world.

What happens to Ellie in the movie?

This time Ellie is pregnant which is fun and exciting, and I think it is kind of cool. The characters are entering a new world and there are so many crazy things going on. At the same time, Manny is like an obsessive father to be; he is nervous and crazy. But Ellie seems to be handling everything pretty well. She is as calm as she can be. Of course she is a bit anxious, but she is a strong mammoth.”

People who work with you comment on how supportive, friendly and compassionate you are — that you have a maternal quality a bit like Ellie. Is it easy for you to relate to your character?

I can totally relate to Ellie. I started my career when I was 17. I opened up a management company with my partner when I was 19; I spent a lot of time on the road. Sometimes people get sick and you have to take care of them. Their girlfriends aren’t around, their moms aren’t around and you kind of become a surrogate mom. My Mom is like the mom of our whole camp and she is very nurturing, very loving and very compassionate. I drew upon my experiences with my own mom to portray both my character in The Secret Life of Bees and to portray Ellie in the Ice Age movies. I injected the very person my mom is into those characters.

What is it about this third Ice Age film that makes it really interesting?

One of the cool things is that in this film we are in a whole new world. There are dinosaurs, which is strange for this group; it’s a warm world, very different from their cold world. But overall this new world is exciting and strange and they have to figure out how to make their way without getting eaten by a dinosaur.

Is it fun for you and exciting making a film like this?

It’s definitely hard work but as it moves along it becomes more fun because you see it come to life. I enjoy seeing the scenes go from the rudimentary pencil type cartoons and watching how the film develops with color and movement and animation, and I like getting to watch the scenes and hearing the sound effects and the way they bring these creatures to life. It is amazing. As you start to see all that, it gets more and more exciting. It is a very long process though.”

Opening tomorrow, Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs will also be available in 3-D Digital in Trinoma, Gateway, Robinsons Galleria, The Block and Mall of Asia cinemas.