D23 2017: Full Recap Of Pixar And Walt Disney Animation Studios Panel – ‘Frozen 2,’ ‘Incredibles 2,’ ‘Coco’

Today is officially the first day of the D23 Expo 2017, and there has already been so much information released by the Walt Disney Company. Early on Friday morning, there were a number of big celebrities and names who were inducted as Disney Legends, but the afternoon brought a lot of fun and big news. John Lasseter hosted the Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios presentation, which revealed information on Frozen 2, Wreck-It Ralph 2, Toy Story 4, Coco, and much more.

Many knew some of the likely topics to be discussed at today’s presentation, but no one could have expected the huge stars and surprises that shocked the crowd. There was news on many films already known of, and some which don’t even have titles as of yet.

Fans were really thrilled to find out that The Incredibles 2 will focus on Elastigirl, as reported by Collider and that it will feature a lot more Edna Mode. There were even some of the biggest names in fashion, such as Heidi Klum, who gave pre-recorded comments talking about her great style.

There was much more, though, and here is a complete rundown of what is to come from both Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios.

John Lasseter hosted the entire two-hour presentation and he started things off by giving props to Moana, Zootopia, Cars 3, and Finding Dory for their great success at the box office. From there he went into each of Disney’s animation studios.

DisneyToon Studios

There was only one thing shown from this studio and it is a yet-to-be-titled movie which appears to be Planes, but on a much higher level. A clip was shown and it was titled “Speed Test,” which focused on fighter jets — with eyes — flying around, but getting bested by a much speedier jet which even went out into the atmosphere.

The untitled film will be released on April 12, 2019.

Walt Disney Animation Studios

Starting things off for WDA was the short, Olaf’s Frozen Adventure, which will feature four brand new songs and the entire original cast of Frozen is back. Kristen Bell, the voice of Anna, came out on stage to talk about the short, and there were “technical difficulties” during Olaf’s song which brought out Josh Gad to sing it live for him.

The short will feature the holiday season in Arrendelle when Anna and Elsa realize they have no holiday traditions. Olaf ventures out with Sven to find some for them and bring them back to the kingdom while singing fantastic-sounding, and hilarious, new songs.

As for Frozen 2, we know it is happening and will be released on Nov. 27, 2019, but there is no further news on a more-unique title. The directors and producers did go to Norway, Iceland, and Finland so that the history and cultures of those countries can be included in the movie.

Wreck-It Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks The Internet was shown next, and Sarah Silverman, the voice of Vanellope, was there to explain the plot of the movie. Vanellope’s game breaks, and she and Ralph venture into the internet to find replacement parts, but they find a whole new world which is so strange and amazing to them.

Taraji P. Henson will voice a brand new character named “Yesss” in the movie and be on the lookout for a lot of Disney Princesses, and we mean a lot. As one scene shows almost all of them. Lasseter introduced their voices to the D23 Expo crowd.

• Jodi Benson – Ariel
• Paige O’Hara – Belle
• Linda Larkin – Jasmine
• Irene Bedard – Pocahontas
• Anika Noni Rose – Tiana
• Mandy Moore – Rapunzel
• Auli’i Cravalho – Moana
• Kelly MacDonald – Merida
• Kristen Bell – Anna

Pixar

John Lasseter introduced writer and director Brad Bird to discuss The Incredibles 2 and how the movie will feature a lot of new things including the evolution of Jack-Jack’s powers. At that point, the voices of many favorite characters came out on stage.

• Craig T. Nelson – Mr. Incredible
• Holly Hunter – Mrs. Incredible
• Sarah Vowell – Violett
• Huck Milner – New voice of Dash
• Samuel L. Jackson – Frozone

John Lasseter then announced that Josh Cooley had been named as the director of Toy Story 4, and he showed a video package through Pixar studios. There was not a lot of information given on the fourth film in the franchise, but there were a few subtle hints which were talked about quickly.

• There will be a new dolly character named Lulu
• The movie may have something to do with an RV trip

A new movie was then introduced by Dan Scanlon, but it doesn’t have a title yet either. It is a personal story which will be a “suburban fantasy world” and combine “fantastic and the everyday.” Scanlon said there will be no humans in the movie, but there will be lots and lots of unicorns.

Lastly, Lasseter introduced Lee Unkrich, Adrian Molina, and Darla K. Anderson to discuss Coco, which is hitting theaters on Nov. 22 of this year. Two clips were shown which showed just how much humor, history, and heart this movie is really going to have.

Finishing the D23 presentation off, Anthony Gonzalez, who voices Miguel, and Benjamin Bratt, who voices Ernesto de la Cruz, came out on stage to sing “Remember Me” together. Disney also brought out dancers and confetti and it was an all-out fiesta which ended things on a great note.

The D23 Expo 2017 is still going strong on opening day, as of this writing, and it will continue throughout the weekend at the Anaheim Convention Center right near Disneyland. Saturday is going to be a huge day with the live-action films panel, as well as the Disney Parks & Resorts presentation, which is sure to bring tons of huge news. This afternoon, though, Pixar and Walt Disney Animation revealed a lot and gave those in Hall 23 a treat with celebrities and awesome performances.

[Featured Image by The Walt Disney Company]