| “ | I knew it. I knew you were up to no good. Hiding a crocodile? You've broken so many rules. Wait until I tell your school. They'll throw you outta the city. You'll be gone, all of you, by Thanksgiving! | „ |
| ~ Grumps threatening the Primms – his most famous quote. |
| “ | KEEP YOUR FLITHY HANDS OF MY LORETTA!!! | „ |
| ~ Grumps' last words before being tackled by Mr. Primm. |
Alistair Grumps, or more commonly known as Mr. Grumps, is the main antagonist of the 2022 film Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile, based on the children's book of the same name by Bernard Waber.
He is the former owner of Loretta, and the arch-nemesis of Lyle and the Primms.
He is portrayed by Brett Gelman in his first villainous role.
Background[]
Not much is known about Mr. Grumps' life except that he was once Hector P. Valenti's neighbor and they grew up together in the apartment complex on East 88th Street before Hector was forced to move away after mortgaging his house to pay for a failed show when his exotic pet crocodile, Lyle, who was capable of singing, freezes up due to performance anxiety. After Hector left, Grumps soon found that he kept the deeds to his complex that was made official by the City of New York when the house was made by Hector's grandmother and hid them away under his bed and he soon took up a position in the Local Housing Administration to enforce a noise abatement policy. Unknown to Grumps, Hector left Lyle to stay at the house until he could find a way to pay back the debt.
At some point, Grumps acquired a rare pet cat that he named Loretta and has studied up on her species where he learns that they can't be fed non-cat food as it gives them indigestion.
Biography[]
Mr. Grumps first appears meeting the Primms when they begin to move into Hector's old complex before handing them a list of rules, most notably, the no-noise policy and also warns them not to come anywhere near Loretta when the youngest Primm, Josh takes a shine to her.
Throughout the movie, Mr. Grumps repeatedly gets irritated by the Primms when they actually get noisy, especially when they meet Lyle and Hector comes to the house to stay for a little while (as per a clause in the homeowner's agreement to the house). He soon installs security cameras to see what is happening and eventually calls a meeting with the rest of the neighbors, including Mr. and Mrs. Primm to address his complaints. However, Hector intervenes, reveals how he and Grumps know each other, and threatens to tell the cops about his unauthorized installment of the cameras if he doesn't drop his grievances. Despite this, Grumps does prevail against him by offering him a bribe to pay back all the loans he owns while trying to make it big in exchange for getting rid of Lyle, who's existence immediately made known to him. After animal control takes Lyle away, Mr. Grumps threatens to have the Primms evicted for keeping a wild animal in the house.
Some time later, after Lyle is freed (and sang in front of the audience from Show us what you got!), Mr. Grumps takes him and the Primms to court and argues that while Lyle is now renowned across the city for his singing talent, he is still a wild animal who could be more trouble than his worth. While the judge consents to this, Hector once again intervenes and present to him the deeds to the house (Loretta has guided him to the deeds because she had developed a bond with the Primms and dislikes her owner's bad attitude) that stipulates that any tenant has the right to keep an exotic animal as a pet. As a result, the Judge rules in favor of the Primms and Lyle after Grumps unintentionally insults him. Refusing to give up, Grumps desperately tries to get him to reconsider, but it fell on deaf ears. Mr. Grumps then tells them to keep their hands off of Loretta, who goes to stay with the Primms and Grumps is attacked by Mr. Primm when he tries to reclaim her.
It’s currently unknown what happened to Grumps after he was tackled by Mr. Primm. It is possible that he was evicted from his home and possibly arrested off-screen as punishment for his crimes and abuse.
It's also unknown that Grumps will get his revenge on Lyle and the Primms.
Relationships[]
Enemies[]
- Lyle the Crocodile - Archenemy
- Hector P. Valenti - Former Neighbor
- Primm Family - Archenemies
- Josh Primm
- Katie Primm
- Joseph Primm
- Loretta the Cat - Former Pet
Trivia[]
- His first name Alistair is only said by Hector due to them once being neighbors.
- His book counterpart actually managed to have a change in behavior after Lyle saved him and Loretta from a fire that was instigated in the house. In the movie, there was no fire and he was proven to be irredeemable.