Pixar's Marvels
This weekend, at their D23 fan event, Disney mapped out a mammoth amount of updates across all their brands.
There were casting updates that brought a slew of talented actors into The Walt Disney Company fold.
We had eight major updates for Disney films, which saw not just some interesting sequels but a curious live-action adaptation as well. Amongst these was some questionable CGI in Snow White.
Pixar had five significant updates, which included two original films, one starring an Emmy-winning actor. The most interesting original was a body swap film.
Four major Marvel announcements were made, including a revitalization of a key property. Plus, a Black Panther character got their own spinoff.
Three Star Wars updates were announced, including a long-awaited first-look deal. And Jon Favreau makes a glorious return.
Let’s go!
INVASION OF THE BODY SWAPPERS
Pixar loves a good body swap.
An original Pixar film, Hoppers, was announced at Disney’s D23 fan event.
Here’s the official synopsis:
A young girl, Mabel, who can transfer her mind into a robot beaver with the goal of going undercover in the animal kingdom. She winds up befriending a regal beaver, King George, and uniting the animals to fight off the plans of a greedy real estate developer (Jon Hamm).
Pixar is no stranger to plots that revolve around body swaps, either real or metaphorical.
In Soul (2020), an aspiring jazz musician, Joe Gardner, and a cynical unborn Soul (#22) accidentally switch bodies. Joe ends up in a cat’s body, while 22 inhabits his. This mix-up leads to a profound discovery of why life is worth living.
In Monsters Inc. (2001), the little girl the monsters are supposed to scare to keep their scream-powered factory alive turns out to be the most terrifying (and cute) monster of them all.
One of the most memorable moments in Toy Story 3 (2010) occurs when Buzz Lightyear is accidentally reset to his original factory settings, becoming horrifically macho.
All of these cut through to some of our favorite Pixar themes, those of identity and empathy, understanding one another through literally being in someone else’s body.
We’re excited to see Hoppers delve into these themes… and, honestly, just to see Jon Hamm as a greedy beaver.
For More:
Disney’s Freakier Friday: Production kicked off the sequel to the 2003 hit body swap comedy. Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan reprise their roles.
DISNEY
Snow White, the live-action adaptation of the 1937 Disney classic, showed a brand new trailer, an extended look at Whistle While You Work, and a first glimpse of the CGI Dwarfs, a pivot Disney made after a public lashing from Peter Dinklage.
Rachel Zegler plays Snow White; and Gal Gadot plays the Evil Queen.
Release date: March 21, 2025, which was pushed a year because of the actors str’s strikes.
Mufasa: The Lion King (2024), the live-action prequel to The Lion King (2019, #9 highest-grossing film of all time), has released its first full trailer. The story centers on Scar and Mufasa growing up as young lion cubs.
There is something sweet about Scar’s unwavering protection of his newfound brother Mufassa, but it’ll be interesting to see how director Barry Jenkins (dir: Moonlight) plays out the subsequent Shakespearean betrayal.
What makes Jenkins’ Moonlight so revelatory is that the protagonist is so isolated that anyone who offers him the slightest attention, be it his abusive mother, the magnanimous stand-in father figure Mahershala Ali, or a school crush, molds his trajectory.
It’ll be captivating to see how Jenkins tackles his first big IP studio project and if he is able to maintain his own origins.
Release date: December 20th.
