Harry Connick Jr. back for new challenge

MANILA, Philippines - HarryConnickJr. returns to play the real-life character of Dr. Clay Haskett who heads the non-profit marine animal rescue facility responsible for dolphin Winter’s rescue and rehabilitation, in Warner Bros.’ eagerly-awaited sequel, Dolphin Tale 2.

In the first Dolphin Tale, Dr. Clay — as the head of what was then the Clearwater Marine Hospital — was dealing with money troubles that put the entire facility on the brink of closing down. It was a threat to the one thing he had dedicated his life to: The survival of all the animals, including the dolphin Winter, who faced an uncertain fate in the wake of losing her tail. But the invention of the groundbreaking prosthetic tail that saved Winter’s life also gave new life to the marine animal rescue hospital, which now bears a new name: Clearwater Marine Aquarium (CMA).

However, Clay knows there is a more pressing issue that could jeopardize the future of the Aquarium and its most popular resident.Harryoffers, “They need to find a new poolmate for Winter, but that’s easier said than done. One possibility is Mandy, a female dolphin that was found beached and badly sunburned, but the mission of CMA is Rescue, Rehab and Release, so it remains to be seen if Mandy will stay or will be returned to the wild. They have no right to keep Mandy if she can survive on her own in the ocean, where she belongs. Clay is getting a lot of pressure from all sides to hold on to Mandy in order to keep Winter, so he’s at a point where he has got to make a pretty tough decision.”

“Harryhas a genuine goodness about him that comes across in his portrayal of Clay,” says director Charles Martin Smith. “He is also hilarious and a total jokester; he was always making everyone laugh during the first movie, and he picked up right where he left off.”

(Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment company, Dolphin Tale 2 is now showing nationwide.)