Hi! I’m Jesse Eisenberg, the voice of Blu, the macaw in Rio. Although Blu is a much-loved pet, he has no idea what it’s like to be a bird. He doesn’t even know how to fly. It’s only when he gets a taste of the wild that he discovers his true self and how he ended up in a cage.

In real life, millions of birds like Blu are victims of the lucrative exotic pet trade. Unfortunately, the demand for these intelligent, complex creatures — whether captive-bred or wild-caught — is decimating the wild parrot species. I hope that Rio has helped audiences think twice about buying an exotic pet bird. If an animal’s natural home is in the wild, then chances are, that’s where it belongs. (x)