It might seem that after the apotheotic revelation of Robert Downey Jr.’s return to Marvel, Disney had few aces up its sleeve to surprise us in the coming months. But we’re talking about the world’s leading entertainment powerhouse, the owner of Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar and Fox, among other brands and franchises. So it was to be expected that at its annual D23, the event that the company reserves for fans of the House of the Mouse, there would be surprises.
D23 is a weekend of talks, presentations and events, but the heavy artillery is reserved for one of the conferences on the first day, which presents previews of films and series that will arrive in the coming months. These were the most notable presentations of this first conference.
Live-action remake of ‘Snow White’
Financially, the latest live-action remakes of Disney classics haven’t fared too well (artistically they never really shined, although that’s another matter), but Disney continues to believe in the formula. Although the recent ‘Peter Pan and Wendy’ or ‘Pinocchio’ went directly to Disney+, this version of ‘Snow White’ aims to recapture the impact of ‘Beauty and the Beast’, with which it has aesthetic points in common. Rachel Zegler plays the protagonist and Gal Gadot will be the shape-shifting witch from the tale. The premiere is scheduled for March 21, a year later than the original date, due to strikes by screenwriters and actors.
Avatar: Fire and Ash
The third installment of Avatar now has an official title: ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’. Even those attending D23 didn’t have the chance to see images of this new installment, but they did get some concept art relating to the Na’vi’s Ash Village, dark and submerged in spectral soot. Shot after ‘The Sense of Water’, this new installment continues to tell the story of the war between the Na’vi and humans, this time with the intervention of this new native clan, which Cameron says are more attracted to power and violence than others. Premiere on December 19, 2025.
The Incredibles 3
Among the many announcements related to Pixar (we must take advantage of the momentum of the success of ‘Inside Out 2’), this new installment of the company’s superhero family stood out. It’s been six years since the second installment (which until now held the record for the studio’s highest-grossing film), and Brad Bird, who wrote and directed the first two, returns to close the trilogy. At the moment there is no information about the plot or release date, so it is very likely that the project is in its initial stages of development.
New footage from ‘Daredevil: Born Again’
Although it hasn’t been officially shown (it won’t take long: it’s already leaked on social media), the new trailer for ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ corroborates why it is one of the most anticipated future Marvel series. Respecting 100% the aesthetics of the Netflix original series, the trailer emphasizes urban violence and the more adult approach of the series. It will be the first of 18 Marvel episodes, and in the trailer we could see the return of Punisher and the first appearance of another mythical character from the comics, White Tiger.
First look at ‘Tron: Ares’
The long-awaited and continually delayed sequel to the legendary ‘Tron’ has released new images that, so far, have only been enjoyed by those attending D23. The big news of the night was that other legends, Nine Inch Nails, will be in charge of the soundtrack, giving a replica to the one made by Daft Punk for the second installment. Along with the always disturbing presence of Jared Leto and the always reliable Jeff Bridges, the trailer showed how computer programs come to the real world, in a plot twist that is undoubtedly a leap into the unknown for the franchise.
‘Lilo and Stitch’ in real image
Experiment 626 has entered the chat! The live-action #LiloAndStitch is coming only to theaters in Summer 2025! pic.twitter.com/82KFLEFL5E
— Walt Disney Studios (@DisneyStudios) August 10, 2024
One of Disney’s least overused franchises (although its protagonist’s merchandising, curiously, is everywhere) is returning in the summer of 2025 with a live-action remake. Aware of its visual prowess, Disney has barely touched its original design, and the CGI version of Stitch is identical to the drawn one, but with more realistic hair.
New trailer for ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’
The long-awaited sequel to the realistic (not live-action) version of ‘The Lion King’ now has a new trailer. The acclaimed Lin-Manuel Miranda will write all the songs for the film, for one of the big releases this Christmas, as its arrival in cinemas is scheduled for this December 20. Without a doubt, the next big Disney blockbuster, which will tell the beginnings of the relationship between Mufasa and Scar.
New trailer for ‘Star Wars: Lost Crew’
‘Star Wars’ was the least talked about Disney franchise at this D23, possibly because plans for future series and films will be announced with all the fanfare they deserve at future events. For now, for this December 3, we have this clearly youth-oriented adventure, with an abundance of stuffed animals and adorable aliens, in what at times seems to be a Jedi-themed version of ‘The Goonies’. A decidedly minor product that will undoubtedly be boosted by the presence of Jude Law.
Argument from ‘Toy Story 5’
We already have the first clues about the plot of the long-awaited fifth installment of ‘Toy Story’, which after the box office failure of ‘Lightyear’ will focus again on the relationship between Buzz and Woody. On June 19, 2026, this film will be released, which will delve into the conflict, so present for today’s children, between traditional toys and electronic ones.
And also…
- Frozen 3: A release date of 2027 has been announced, and the promise of answering many questions that were left unanswered by the first two installments.
- Freakier Friday: This is the title of the belated sequel to ‘Freaky Friday’, or as it was known in Spain, ‘Put yourself in my place’. Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis return in this new story whose hook will be, of course, that Lohan already has her own children, so the body swapping will be even more multigenerational.
- Zootropolis 2: New installment of this zoological police thriller, which introduced a new species that we didn’t see in the first part: reptiles. Ke Huy Quan will play a viper in a new case that will reunite the unlikely pair of rabbit and fox investigators from the first installment.
- Hoppers: Among so many sequels, it was a relief that Pixar announced new moviessuch as ‘Elio’ or this very ‘Hoppers’. Jon Hamm is the protagonist of this film in which a young girl can transfer her mind into a robot beaver with the aim of infiltrating the animal kingdom. She ends up befriending a beaver king and uniting the animals to fight against the plans of a real estate developer. The release is scheduled for spring 2026.
- Elio: Another new Pixar film, which we had already heard about a year ago. It is the story of a boy transported to an interplanetary organization where he is chosen as the Earth’s ambassador to other galaxies. Zoe Saldana made her appearance as one of the actors in the film. Release scheduled for June 13, 2025, after a one-year delay due to strikes.
- Dream Productions: Of course we’re going to have a good amount of spin-offs from ‘Inside Out’ after the tremendous success of its first sequel (although this one was finished before the release of ‘Inside Out 2’). Dream Productions will be a series set between the first and second film, and in which we will witness the process of creating dreams, which are visualized in the series in the style of filming a movie. It will arrive on Disney+ in spring 2025.
- Monster Jam: A project of which few details are yet known (from what we know, it could even be a documentary), headed by Dwayne Johnson and which will take us into the world of monster trucks and their drivers.
- Moana 2: Disney has taught a new trailer from the film, which stars Dwayne Johnson as the imposing, tattooed demigod Maui. In this new film, Moana searches for the mythical island of Motufetu, which once united the ocean and is now hidden by a jealous god of storms. This film follows the live-action remake, also starring Johnson.
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