Harry Connick Jr had doubts over Dolphin Tale 2

The 47-year-old actor, who plays Dr Clay Haskett in the true-life story, admitted he needed convincing over a second film.

“I remember when I first heard it, Broderick [Johnson], one of our Alcon producers, said, ‘They’re talking about doing a second one.’ And I actually laughed,” he recalled.

“I said, ‘Man, you’ve got to be kidding.’ I thought it was a joke, really. And then I read the script and I’m like, ‘Holy c**p.’ Charlie is , really smart, man. I mean, this is, in some ways, better than the first one, I think.”

Harry, a judge on American Idol, needed no persuasion to reprise his role of the Clearwater Marine Aquarium (CMA) operator for the follow-up alongside Ashley Judd, Nathan Gamble and Morgan Freeman. The sequel tells the story of the dolphin Hope, who also needs a prosthetic tail.

“Even if it had been poorly received or people didn’t like it, there probably would have been a reason behind it (the sequel). But if it were exactly the movie that it was and people didn’t like it, I would have come back and done it again anyway, just for lots of reasons,” he said.

“It was just a great filming experience, working with Charles [Martin Smith, director], working with the rest of the cast, being at CMA, all of those things really contributed to this being, I’d probably say, the best filming experience I’ve ever had. It was just great. It was just such a positive experience.”