''Little Man'' (stylized as ''LiTTLE MAN'' and/or ''LiTTLEMAN'') is a 2006 American

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Keenen Ivory Wayans Keenen Ivory Desuma Wayans (born June 8, 1958) is an American actor, comedian, director and filmmaker. He is a member of the Wayans family of entertainers. Wayans first came to prominence as the host and creator of the 1990–1994 Fox sketch c ...

, who co-wrote and co-produced it with

Marlon Marlon is a masculine given name. According to the ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', the popularity of Marlon Brando led to general awareness of the name (his father was also named Marlon), though the origin of the name is not known. Speculatio ...

and

Shawn Wayans Shawn Mathis Wayans (born January 19, 1971) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He made his debut on the comedy television series ''In Living Color'' (1990–1993). He went on to work with his brother Marlon Wayans on The WB si ...

, who both also star in lead roles. The film co-stars

Kerry Washington Kerry Marisa Washington (born January 31, 1977) SidebarCertificate of Live Birth: Isabelle Amarachi Asomugha(County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health). Gives Kerry Washington birth dateArchivedfrom the original on May 2, 2016.Note: Fil ...

John Witherspoon John Witherspoon (February 5, 1723 – November 15, 1794) was a Scottish-American Presbyterian minister, educator, farmer, slaveholder, and a Founding Father of the United States. Witherspoon embraced the concepts of Scottish common sense real ...

Tracy Morgan Tracy Jamal Morgan (born November 10, 1968) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He was a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy television series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1996 to 2003, and played Tracy Jordan in the NBC sitcom ''30 Ro ...

Lochlyn Munro Lochlyn Munro (born February 12, 1966) is a Canadian actor. His most notable film roles include ''A Night at the Roxbury'' (1998), ''Scary Movie'' (2000), ''Freddy vs. Jason'' (2003), ''White Chicks'' (2004), ''The Predator (film), The Predator ...

Chazz Palminteri Calogero Lorenzo "Chazz" Palminteri (born May 15, 1952)
. Chazzpalminteri.net. Retrieved on November 19, 2013. is an America ...

and

Molly Shannon Molly Shannon (born September 16, 1964) is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1995 to 2001. In 2017, she won the Film Independent Spirit Award for playing Joanne ...

. It follows a jewel thief with

dwarfism Dwarfism is a condition of people and animals marked by unusually small size or short stature. In humans, it is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than , regardless of sex; the average adult height among people with dwarfism is . '' ...

who hides the proceeds of his latest robbery, then pretends to be a very large baby in order to retrieve it. Theatrically released in the United States on July 14, 2006, the film was a commercial success, but was critically panned and won three

Golden Raspberry Awards The Golden Raspberry Awards (also known as the Razzies and Razzie Awards) is a parody award show honoring the worst of cinematic failures. Co-founded by UCLA film graduates and film industry veterans John J. B. Wilson and Mo Murphy, the Razzi ...

Plot

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Calvin "Babyface" Simms is a very short convicted jewel thief who gets released from prison and meets up with his dimwitted cohort Percy. Percy tells Calvin of a job involving stealing a valuable diamond, ordered by a mobster named Mr. Walken. After the successful robbery, the duo are almost arrested by the police, but not before Calvin manages to stash the diamond in the purse of a nearby woman. Both Calvin and Percy follow the handbag's owner to her home where they discover a couple, Darryl and Vanessa Edwards, the former of whom is eager to have a child. Calvin and Percy hatch a plot to pass Calvin off as a baby left on the couple's doorstep in order to get the diamond back. After learning that Child Services is closed for the weekend, Darryl and Vanessa decide to look after Calvin in the meantime. However, Vanessa's dad Francis, "Pops", has a bad feeling about Calvin. Friends of the couple find Calvin strange as well. Despite this, Calvin eventually takes a liking to having a family and starts to feel remorse for using them, especially when they throw him a birthday party (coincidentally on his actual birthday) as he never had parents who'd throw him a party. Walken grows impatient and demands the diamond from Percy, who attempts to recover Calvin by posing as his father, but is thrown out by Darryl. Walken's men witness this altercation and as a result believe that Darryl is Calvin. Darryl and Vanessa decide to adopt Calvin but upon coming home from a date, they find Pops and Calvin getting into a clash as the former has discovered Calvin's secret. Pops is sent to a

retirement home A retirement home – sometimes called an old people's home, old folks' home, or old age home, although ''old people's home'' can also refer to a nursing home – or rest home, is a multi-residence housing facility intended for the elderly. Ty ...

, but not before he tells Darryl to "check the teddy bear", referring to a gift he gave to Calvin earlier at his party. Darryl discovers the bear is actually a nanny cam and witnesses Calvin admit to his deception. Walken and his henchmen come by the house after Percy lies to get out of troubl, claiming that Darryl is his partner who has the diamond. In a series of comedic maneuvers, Calvin manages to rescue Darryl and have Walken and his men arrested. Darryl is given a substantial reward for the recovery of the diamond, and since Calvin saved his life, he doesn't turn him over to the police. Before he leaves, Calvin thanks Darryl for taking care of him even though he wasn't really a baby and admits that he thinks Darryl would make a great father for a real child someday. As Calvin walks away, he begins to cry hysterically knowing he will miss the family very much. Darryl then decides to let Calvin stay and the two men become the best of friends. The film ends at some point in the future with Calvin and Pops playing with Darryl and Vanessa's real baby, who looks exactly like Darryl.

Cast

Production

The story premise was lifted from a 1954

Bugs Bunny Bugs Bunny is a cartoon character created in the late 1930s at Warner Bros. Cartoons (originally Leon Schlesinger, Leon Schlesinger Productions) and Voice acting, voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his featured roles in the ' ...

cartoon called '' Baby Buggy Bunny'', in which Bugs takes in a foundling unaware that he is actually a wanted dwarf bank robber. Filming began in the

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

area on September 17, 2005, and finished on January 21, 2006. The scenes with Calvin Simms were played twice: once by nine year old 75 cm (2 ft 6 in) tall

dwarf Dwarf, dwarfs or dwarves may refer to: Common uses *Dwarf (folklore), a supernatural being from Germanic folklore * Dwarf, a human or animal with dwarfism Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a sh ...

actor

Linden Porco Linden Porco (born August 29, 1996) is a Canadian actor. He is 3'3" as of 2025 and is best known for his role as a body double in the 2006 American film ''Little Man''.Marlon Wayans Marlon Lamont Wayans (born July 23, 1972) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for his work with his brother Shawn Wayans on The WB sitcom ''The Wayans Bros.'' (1995–1999) and the comedy films ''Don't Be a M ...

alone, using a

greenscreen Chroma key compositing, or chroma keying, is a visual-effects and post-production technique for compositing (layering) two or more images or video streams together based on colour hues ( chroma range). The technique has been used in many fie ...

technique with a green background and green clothes. In post production, Porco's head on the images was replaced by that of Marlon. Porco's body was painted brown in order to match Marlon's face. Shawn Wayans' face was also superimposed in the final scene.

Soundtrack

* "My House" by

Lloyd Banks Christopher Charles Lloyd (born April 30, 1982), better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of East Coast hip-hop, East Coast hip hop group G-Unit, which he formed with childhood friends ...

and

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and television producer. Born in Queens, a borough of New York City, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 1996. In 1999–2000, ...

* "

Ridin' "Ridin is a song by American rapper Chamillionaire featuring fellow American rapper Krayzie Bone of Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, released on November 12, 2005, as the second single from his debut studio album '' The Sound of Revenge'' (2005). Produce ...

" by

Chamillionaire Hakeem Temidayo Seriki (born November 28, 1979), better known by his stage name Chamillionaire (), is an American rapper. He began his career in Houston's hip hop scene in the late 1990s. He was briefly signed with the local record label Swishah ...

and

Krayzie Bone Anthony Henderson (born June 17, 1973), better known as Krayzie Bone, is an American rapper. He is a member of the hip-hop group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony. Career Solo After finding success with Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Krayzie Bone recorded his so ...

* "The Message" by

Echo & the Bunnymen Echo & the Bunnymen are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1978. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Ian McCulloch (singer), Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant and bassist Les Pattinson. By 1980, Pete de Freita ...

* "Movin' on Up" by Jeff Berry and

Ja'net Dubois Jeannette Theresa Dubois (August 5 – February 17, 2020), known professionally as Ja'Net DuBois, Ja'net DuBois, and Ja'Net Du Bois (), was an American actress and singer. She was best known for her portrayal of Willona Woods, the neighborhood ...

* "Celebration" by Robert Kool Bell * " Home Sweet Home/Bittersweet Symphony" by

Limp Bizkit Limp Bizkit is an American nu metal band from Jacksonville, Florida. Its lineup consists of lead vocalist Fred Durst, drummer John Otto (drummer), John Otto, guitarist Wes Borland, turntablist DJ Lethal and bassist Sam Rivers (bassist), Sam ...

* "Lifetime" by

Maxwell Maxwell may refer to: People * Maxwell (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** James Clerk Maxwell, mathematician and physicist * Justice Maxwell (disambiguation) * Maxwell baronets, in the Baronetage of N ...

* "In This Moment" by

Ill Niño Ill Niño (Spanish for "ill child"; stylized as ill niño) is an American nu metal band formed in Union City, New Jersey, in 1998 by drummer Dave Chavarri, who remains the band's sole original member. They have released seven studio albums, two ...

* "Purple Haze" by

* "Buddy (D-Rex Theme Song)" by

Dwayne Wayans Dwayne Howell Wayans (born August 22, 1956) is a member of the Wayans family. Early life Wayans was born in New York City, the first child of Elvira Alethia (née Green; July 23, 1938–July 10, 2020), a homemaker and social worker, and Howell ...

and

Eric Willis Sir Eric Archibald Willis (15 January 1922 – 10 May 1999) was an Australian politician, Cabinet Minister and the 34th Premier of New South Wales, serving from 23 January 1976 to 14 May 1976. Born in Murwillumbah in 1922, Willis was educated ...

* "Best Friend" by

Harry Nilsson Harry Edward Nilsson III (June 15, 1941 – January 15, 1994), sometimes credited as Nilsson, was an American singer-songwriter who reached the peak of his success in the early 1970s. His work is characterized by pioneering vocal overdub experi ...

* "

Pump It "Pump It" is a song recorded by American group the Black Eyed Peas for their fourth studio album '' Monkey Business'' (2005). It was written by group members will.i.am, apl.de.ap and Fergie, along with frequent songwriting collaborator Thomas ...

" by

The Black Eyed Peas The Black Eyed Peas are an American musical group formed in Los Angeles in 1995, composed of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap and Taboo (rapper), Taboo. Fergie (singer), Fergie was a member during the height of their popularity in the 2000s, and ...

* "

Happy Birthday to You "Happy Birthday to You", or simply "Happy Birthday", is a song traditionally sung to celebrate a person's birthday. According to the 1998 ''Guinness World Records'', it is the most recognized song in the English language, followed by "For He' ...

" by

Mildred J. Hill Mildred Jane Hill (June 27, 1859 – June 5, 1916) was an American songwriter and musicologist, who composed the melody for "Good Morning to All", later used as the melody for " Happy Birthday to You". Biography Mildred Jane Hill, born in Louis ...

and Patty S. Hill * "

Praise You "Praise You" is a song by the English big beat musician Fatboy Slim. It was released as the third single from his second studio album, ''You've Come a Long Way, Baby'' (1998), on 4 January 1999. It reached number one in the United Kingdom and I ...

" by

Fatboy Slim Norman Quentin Cook (born Quentin Leo Cook, 31 July 1963), also known as Fatboy Slim, is an English musician and DJ who helped popularise the big beat genre in the 1990s. His music makes extensive use of Sampling (music), samples from eclectic ...

* "

Candy Shop "Candy Shop" is the second single by rapper 50 Cent from his second commercial album, ''The Massacre'' (2005). It features Olivia and was written by 50 Cent and the song's producer, Scott Storch. The single was released through Interscope Re ...

" (instrumental) by

and

Olivia Olivia may refer to: People and fictional characters * Olivia (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Olivia (singer), American singer Olivia Longott (born 1981) * Olívia (basketball), Brazilian basketball playe ...

Reception

Box office

''Little Man'' film grossed $58,645,052 domestically and a total of $101,595,121 worldwide. The film's budget was $64 million. The film was released in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

on September 1, 2006, and opened on #2, behind ''

You, Me and Dupree ''You, Me and Dupree'' is a 2006 romantic comedy film directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo and written by Mike LeSieur. It stars Owen Wilson, Kate Hudson, Matt Dillon, Seth Rogen, Amanda Detmer, Todd Stashwick, and Michael Douglas. ...

''.

Critical response

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the film has an approval rating of 12% based on reviews from 90 critics. The site's consensus is "Another gimmicky comedy from the Wayans brothers, ''Little Man'' comes with the requisite raunchiness, but forgot to bring the laughs." On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, it has a score of 26 out 100 based on reviews from 22 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews. Audiences surveyed by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...

gave the film a grade B+ on scale of A to F. The film received a 4.2 out of 10 on

Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an American nonprofit organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.

. Slant Magazine gave the film a 1.5 out of 4. In an especially scathing review on

BBC Radio 5 Live BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts mainly news, sport, Talk show, discussion, interviews and phone-ins, and is on air 24 hours a day. It is the principal BBC radio station Broadca ...

Mark Kermode Mark Kermode (, ; ; born 2 July 1963) is an English film critic, musician, radio presenter, television presenter, author and podcaster. He is the co-presenter (with Ellen E. Jones) of the BBC Radio 4 programme ''Screenshot'', and co-presenter ...

described the film as "possessed by the devil".

Awards

The film was nominated for seven 2006

Worst Picture The Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture is a prize at the annual Razzies to the worst film of the past year. Over the 45 ceremonies that have taken place, 232 films have been nominated for Worst Picture, with three ties resulting in 48 winn ...

, Worst Actor (

Marlon Wayans Marlon Lamont Wayans (born July 23, 1972) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for his work with his brother Shawn Wayans on The WB sitcom ''The Wayans Bros.'' (1995–1999) and the comedy films ''Don't Be a M ...

and

), Worst Actor (

Rob Schneider Robert Michael Schneider ( ; born October 31, 1963) is an American actor and comedian. He rose to prominence as a cast member on NBC's ''Saturday Night Live'' (1990–1994), where he earned three Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Following ...

, also nominated for his performance in ''

The Benchwarmers ''The Benchwarmers'' is a 2006 American sports-comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan, written by Allen Covert and Nick Swardson, and produced by Adam Sandler and Jack Giarraputo. The film stars Rob Schneider, David Spade, Jon Heder, Jon Lovitz, ...

''), Worst Director (

), Worst Screen Couple (

and either

), Worst Screenplay and Worst Remake or Rip-off (of the 1954

cartoon '' Baby Buggy Bunny''). It later won three of the awards, Worst Actor, Worst Screen Couple and Worst Remake or Rip-off.

Home media

The film was released on

Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...

, UMD and

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

in the United States on November 7, 2006, and also in the United Kingdom on 15 January 2007, and it was distributed by

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Inc. (abbreviated as SPHE) is the home entertainment distribution division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony. Background SPHE is responsible for the distribution of the Sony Pictures libra ...

. It would rank second on the DVD sales chart upon its release, behind ''

Cars A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are around one billio ...

''.

References

External links

* * * {{Navboxes , title = Awards for ''Little Man'' , list = {{Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor {{Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-off or Sequel {{Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screen Combo 2006 films 2006 crime comedy films African-American films American crime comedy films Films directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans Films scored by Teddy Castellucci Films set in Chicago Films shot in Vancouver Columbia Pictures films Revolution Studios films Golden Raspberry Award–winning films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films English-language crime comedy films