Disney's D23 fan convention showcases 'Moana 2,' 'Avatar: Fire and Ice' and 'Incredibles 3' films
Includes new details about Marvel series paragraphs 11-13
By Dawn Chmielewski, Lisa Richwine and Danielle Broadway
ANAHEIM, California, Aug 9 (Reuters) -Walt Disney DIS.N, which reclaimed the top of the summer box office with Pixar animation's "Inside Out 2" and Marvel's raunchy "Deadpool & Wolverine," opened its D23 fan convention Friday with a live performance from the anticipated animated film "Moana 2."
Dwayne Johnson, a featured star who was joined by Auli’i Cravahlo and Hawaiian dancers, told the 12,000 attendees that in reprising his role as Maui, he would once again be singing, "in keys that don't exist."
The film reaches theaters on Nov. 27.
Director James Cameron took the stage, along with "Avatar" stars Zoe Saldana and Sam Worthington, to show off art from the next sequel, and announce its title, "Avatar: Fire and Ash."
Pixar's chief creative officer, Pete Docter, announced a new "Inside Out" series based on main character Riley's dreams, "Dream Productions," that takes place between the first two movies and will premiere in 2025.
Docter also announced a new installment of one of Pixar's biggest titles "The Incredibles," which is centered on a quirky superhero family and is getting a third film that will be directed by Brad Bird.
Disney said a slate of recorded live-Broadway musicals that will be arriving on Disney+, including the hit movie "Frozen." "We're really happy to announce that the hit musical (Frozen), which was filmed on stage, will premiere on Disney plus in 2025," said Jennifer Lee, Disney Animation's chief creative officer.
Lee said the company is also developing a Broadway musical based on the film "The Greatest Showman."
D23 shared an early look at the upcoming Disney+ series “Skeleton Crew,” which is a coming of age science fiction “Star Wars” series created by Jon Watts and Christopher Ford.
Director Jon Favreau offered an early look at “The Mandalorian and Grogu,” a big-screen adaptation of the Disney+ series due out in 2026.
Marvel reprised some of its greatest hits from last month's San Diego Comic-Con convention. It showcased the "Captain America Brave New World" and "Fantastic Four" films, and the forthcoming Disney+ series, "Daredevil Born Again" and "IronHeart."
It also dropped a trailer for its upcoming horror series “Agatha All Along,” based on the series “WandaVision” along with a haunting musical performance from the cast of witches in the series. The series includes original songs from the talent behind “Frozen” and “Coco."
“Percy Jackson,” the series based on Greek mythology that follows its namesake protagonist demi-god, is returning for a second season called “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, after the original book title by author Rick Riordan.
The company touted the strength of its movies during an investor call this week, marking a return to form after losing its place as the highest-grossing Hollywood studio in 2023.
"It's never too late to have that big Hollywood comeback," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore. "And they've certainly had that."
"Inside Out 2" is the highest grossing animated film of all time, with a global box office tally of $1.6 billion, surpassing the record set by Disney's "Frozen II." A month later, "Deadpool & Wolverine" had the best domestic opening for an R-rated film and has brought in more than $850 million in global ticket sales.
"There is of course variability in the film business," wrote Deutsche Bank analyst Bryan Kraft in a note to investors. "But if Disney has found its box office magic once again, additional growth may be ahead, as a strong theatrical slate continues."
Disney CEO Bob Iger extolled the film studio's theatrical lineup over the next two years, which includes the animated sequel “Moana 2,” a live-action version of “Disney’s Snow White,” a rebooting of the Marvel superhero franchise “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” and James Cameron’s third “Avatar” movie.
“When you think about not only the potential of those in the box office, but the potential of those to drive global streaming value, there's a reason to be bullish about where we’re headed,” Iger said on the investor call.
The release of “Inside Out 2” helped generate more than 100 million views of the original film on Disney+, the company said.
Investors and fans are hoping for more details on Friday about future plans for the Marvel superhero studio. The company had to choose a new villain for future films after actor Jonathan Majors was convicted of assaulting and harassing a former girlfriend. It also was forced to delay some titles because of strikes by Hollywood writers and actors last year.
At last month’s Comic-Con pop culture convention, Disney revealed that “Iron Man” actor Robert Downey Jr. will play the “Fantastic Four” villain, Doctor Doom.
Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski and Danielle Broadway in Anaheim, Lisa Richwine in Los Angeles; Editing by Josie Kao, Shri Navaratnam and Miral Fahmy
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
