D23 Expo Animation Panel is Full of Fun Surprises
The Walt Disney Pixar Animation Studios panel is always one of the highlights of the D23 Expo and this year was no exception.
The show got started with Chief Creative Officer John Lasseter coming out in one of his trademark shirts and delighting the 8,000 fans with a shirt cannon.
The first clip featured the jets of the Cars universe blasting over Radiator Springs in a speed test that took them to space.
Concept art from a new Disney animated film about going to space. Source: ohmydisney.com
Lasseter stressed that they have no title for this project yet but he can’t wait to get into it.
Next up was a trip to Arendelle for Olaf’s Frozen Adventure. The holiday short stars the entire returning cast of Frozen.
Kristen Bell came on stage to explain that Olaf and Sven travel through the kingdom to find new holiday traditions for Anna and Elsa. A sound glitch led to the surprise appearance of Josh Gad, who then sang Olaf’s holiday song live. Olaf’s Frozen Adventure is set to screen before Coco when it hits theaters.
Fans were then treated to a rough cut scene from Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck it Ralph 2. The scene features Sarah Silverman’s Princess Vanellope hanging out with other Disney princesses, all voiced by the original actresses.
The meta jokes in this clip were off the charts hilarious and had the crowd screaming in laughter. It would be worth seeing the film just for that one scene.
This led to the spectacular moment where nearly all the Disney princess voice actresses appeared on stage introducing each other.
After a short video about Edna Mode’s influence on fashion, The Incredibles 2 director Brad Bird showed an early clip of baby Jack Jack finally revealing his powers in a very funny fight scene.
Bird was then joined on stage by the cast including Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter and Samuel L. Jackson.
After a quick but uninformative tease about Toy Story 4, the panel closed out with a nice presentation of Coco.
The creative team introduced a lengthy scene that revealed the film’s plot.
This was followed by a huge musical performance by the movie’s stars Anthony Gonzalez and Benjamin Bratt. They were joined by dancers on stage and in the crowd.
It was a perfect showcase that left many fans more excited about the latest Pixar movie.
Coco opens Nov. 22 .
Which upcoming Disney Pixar animated film are you most excited about?
