Peter Kay caused concern among US Netflix bosses after he improvised an English idiom in the Wallace and Gromit Christmas special that they missed.
Vengeance Most Fowl, a big comeback for the animated duo, premiered on Christmas Day on BBC One, marking the comedian’s first TV role in four years.
And employing his usual comedic talent and charm, Peter, 51, couldn’t resist improvising some of his lines as Chief Inspector Mackintosh.
The special saw the return of Wallace and Gromit’s archenemy, Feathers McGraw, 16 years after their previous adventure together.
And after it was watched by a whopping 9 million in the UK on Christmas Day, it will stream worldwide on Netflix from next week.
But executives at the streamer were reportedly left scratching their heads over one of Peter’s improvised lines and worried that the well-known English phrase was offensive.
Peter Kay caused concern among US Netflix bosses after he improvised an English idiom in the Wallace and Gromit Christmas special that they missed (pictured in 2017).
Making a big return for the animated duo, Vengeance Most Fowl premiered on Christmas Day on BBC One, marking the comedian’s first TV role in four years as Chief Inspector Mackintosh (pictured).
The special was watched by a whopping 9 million in the UK on Christmas Day and will stream worldwide on Netflix from next week.
The idiom “flippin’ Nora” is commonly used in the North as an expression of surprise or dismay.
Chief Inspector Mackintosh shouts the words after criminal penguin Feathers successfully escapes from prison.
But according to the sunNetflix was taken aback, with Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park telling the publication: ‘Peter improvises quite a bit.
‘At one point he is surprised by something and shouts “flippin Nora.” One day we received a note asking: “Who is Nora and why are they turning her around?”
As creative director Merlin Crossingham explained, they rushed to explain to executives that he was completely “innocent.”
He said: ‘(We had to explain to them that) it’s not rude, it’s not an insult, it’s an innocent phrase.’
It comes after Nick revealed he had to beg Peter to come out of TV retirement and appear in the Christmas special.
Speaking at the London premiere ahead of the film’s festive release, she revealed how she convinced Peter to get involved again, having previously starred in 2005’s The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.
But executives at the streamer were reportedly left scratching their heads over one of Peter’s improvised lines and worried that the well-known English phrase was offensive.
It comes after Nick revealed he had to beg Peter to come out of TV retirement and appear in the Christmas special (pictured last month).
Speaking at the London premiere ahead of the film’s festive release, she revealed how she persuaded Peter to get involved again, having previously starred in 2005’s The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (pictured).
Nick explained: ‘I actually wrote to him, I wrote him a letter. It was just to try to convince him to do this again, you know, because of how wonderful he was in Curse of the Were-Rabbit.
“We told him that we had expanded his character more in this one, that he has a bigger role in this one.
“He was about to start his giant tour, which we didn’t know at the time, so he did it while he was doing that, between gigs.”
Elaborating on Inspector Mackintosh, the creator added: “This was a great opportunity for us to really explore the character, find the comedy in his exasperation and his rather misplaced, old-fashioned views on how policing should work.” .
“So it was really nice to expand the character with Peter and make him a little more well-rounded.”
Speaking to MailOnline at the event, Merlin revealed that the comedian and actor also “did some improvisations and some of them managed to appear.”
He gushed, “He has a good way of expressing himself, and we really leaned into that, his ability to do more than what’s written.” Peter is especially good at it.
The highly anticipated feature film saw Gromit’s growing concern as Wallace becomes overly dependent on his inventions, which is justified when Wallace creates an “intelligent gnome” who appears to develop an evil mind of his own.
As events begin to spiral out of control, it’s up to Gromit to put aside his scruples and fight sinister forces, or Wallace may never be able to invent again.
The highly anticipated feature film saw Gromit’s growing concern as Wallace becomes overly dependent on his inventions, which is justified when Wallace creates an “intelligent gnome” who appears to develop an evil mind of his own.
Feathers McGraw is back with a vengeance, and the villain was last seen in the 1993 Bafta and Academy Award-winning short film The Wrong Pants.
But who could be behind such evil actions? No wonder behind bars all this time, Feathers McGraw is back with a vengeance.
The villain was last seen in the 1993 Bafta and Academy Award-winning short film The Wrong Pants.
The voice cast also featured the return of Ben Whitehead as Wallace, the eccentric, cheese-loving inventor from northern England who lives with his best friend and loyal dog, Gromit.
He stars alongside new cast members Lauren Patel and Reece Shearsmith, along with cameos by Diane Morgan, Adjoa Andoh and Lenny Henry.
Fans were delighted in 2022 when it was announced that Wallace and Gromit will return for a 2024 Christmas feature film, more than a decade after their last special, A Matter Of Loaf And Death.
Nick said: “I’d had the idea of making a film about garden gnomes turning bad for over a decade, but I could never figure out what made them bad.”
“It occurred to me that the question I get asked most when I meet fans is: will Feathers McGraw the penguin, Wallace and Gromit’s original antagonist in The Wrong Pants 30 years ago, ever return?
“We’ve had fun bringing him back as a cameo, but now, three decades later, it seemed like the right time.” Then it hit me: What if Feathers was involved with these gnomes?
“We hope this movie appeals to ‘Gnome Noir’ fans around the world and makes people feel satisfied when they see what Feathers has been up to since The Wrong Pants.”
Co-director Merlin added: “While we love reviving the excitement among our current fan base, we also want this film to reach people who have never encountered Wallace and Gromit before.”