The tiny, blue Smurfs are back with their mushroom houses and their floppy white caps. After a series of commercially successful live-action and animated Smurfs movies, the franchise returns in 2025 with a reboot directed by Chris Lord (Puss in Boots, Shrek the Third) and produced by pop star Rihanna (who also has a voice role as Smurfette).
Based on the evergreen Belgian comic series by cartoonist Peyo, Smurfs follows the efforts of Smurfette and her fellow Lilliputian creatures as they set out to rescue their mentor Papa Smurf from the clutches of evil wizard brothers Gargamel and Razamel. The premise might seem familiar to previous Smurf adventures, but with Rihanna in the cast, the film’s soundtrack promises to be a step above its precursors.
The Smurfs movies have always stuck to a feel-good pop sound with singles like Britney Spears’s Ooh La La for The Smurfs 2 and Meghan Trainor’s I’m A Lady for Smurfs: The Lost Village. For 2025’s Smurfs, Chris Lord’s Puss in Boots collaborator Henry Jackman is on scoring duties, while a 14-track pop soundtrack boasts high-profile names like Tyla and Cardi B along with cast members Rihanna and James Corden.
With 14 uplifting pop numbers, the Smurfs tracklist captures the magical and cheerful nature of its little blue heroes.
What’s on the Smurfs soundtrack?
Milenge by Natania
Celebrate by Natania
Friend of Mine by Rihanna
Higher Love by DESI TRILL feat. DJ Khaled, Cardi B, Natania and Subhi
Liar For A Living by Natania
It Takes A Village by Natania and The Indian Connect
Big Dreams by James Fauntleroy
To Me by Lous and the Yakuza
Did We by Natania
Balle Balouza by Natania, Subhi and The Indian Connect
Everything Goes With Blue by Tyla
It’s My Party by Shenseea
Always On The Outside by James Corden
Higher Calling by The Indian Connect
The Smurfs soundtrack not only offers original pop tracks from Rihanna, “Water” hitmaker Tyla, and rapper Cardi B, but a good chunk of the songs also share an Indian connection. Featuring Indian-American vocalists like Subhi and Natania on multiple songs, the tracklist occasionally also features Hindi lyrics, such as Natania’s opening track Milenge (a Hindi word that roughly translates to “meeting someone”).
To reflect the different sounds and moods of the Smurfs, the artist lineup is also globally diverse, ranging from Congolese-Belgian rapper-singer Lous and the Yakuza to Jamaican dancehall artist Shensea. The most star-studded single off the album is Higher Love, a song produced by DESI TRILL, the British record label and collective that focuses on “desi” South Asian artists. With vocal contributions from Subhi and Natania, Higher Love also features frequent collaborators DJ Khaled and Cardi B.
As for Rihanna’s song Friend of Mine, the tropical dance track features very limited lyrics and more of vocal refrains. Still, at a time when the Barbadian megastar hardly drops any singles and albums, the Smurfs song and her lead role as Smurfette will be enough to appease her fans. Friend of Mine joins the ranks of Rihanna’s other notable soundtrack recordings like Lift Me Up (from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) and Sledgehammer (Star Trek Beyond).
Who is in the cast?
Unlike 2011’s The Smurfs which blended animated characters with live-action performances, the animated reboot sticks solely to a voice cast. Rihanna voices Smurfette, with character actor John Goodman voicing Papa Smurf, the leader of the Smurfs. This marks Goodman’s return to animation after voicing the memorable Sully in Monsters Inc.
Papa’s brothers Ron and Ken are voiced by Hollywood royalty Kurt Russell (Tombstone, The Thing) and TV star Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation, The Last of Us). Other Smurfs are voiced by Killing Eve’s Sandra Oh, Mrs and Mrs Smith star Maya Erskine, Cobra Kai breakout Xolo Maridueña, and British comedian-presenter James Corden.
Other cast members in undisclosed roles include popular comedy names like Nick Kroll, Hannah Waddingham, Dan Levy, and Natasha Lyonne. That’s not all, as Oscar-winner Octavia Spencer, masked DJ Marshmello, and talk-show host Jimmy Kimmel also join the ensemble.
When is Smurfs released?
Smurfs is in cinemas on July 18, 2025.
