After the recent teaser released just a month or so ago, it's safe to say that Disney is really pushing the hype to get fans excited for the new Zootopia sequel. There's certainly a lot to look forward to if the original footage is to be believed, but the new trailer dropped just today has us singing a different tune.
Nick and Judy are back and looking better than ever, even though it took Disney nine years to pull them out of mothballs. Joking aside, the new trailer paints a more colorful picture of Zootopia's various ecosystems, but it also puts its leads in hot water. Take a look at the official release below.
Zootopia 2: "Partners" in crisis
Per Disney's official description,
"After cracking the biggest case in Zootopia’s history, rookie cops Judy Hopps (voice of Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (voice of Jason Bateman) find their partnership isn’t as solid as they thought when Chief Bogo (voice of Idris Elba) orders them to join the Partners in Crisis counseling program. But it doesn’t take long for their partnership to be put to the ultimate test when they find themselves on the twisting trail of a mystery tied to the arrival of a venomous snake in the animal metropolis."
The city of Zootopia is easily one of the most exciting and colorful worlds Disney has created within the past decade or so, and it's thrilling to see just how much the place has grown since the last time we were here. From both the teaser and the official trailer, we've already seen new biomes, characters, and hazards for our furry friends to face while Hopps and Wilde are on the case.
That's definitely an exciting development, and this writer certainly can't wait to see what lies in store for our favorite animated buddy cops, especially with Oscar-winner Ke Huy Quan in the role of Gary De'Snake. However, there is one major detail that is sure to have many longtime fans clutching their pearls.
If you're anything like this writer, Nick and Judy's relationship (and possible budding romance) was the highlight of the original film. The 2016 animated adventure was the feel-good flick of the year, and the thought of anything getting between these two is certainly a shock. All the more reason to buy a ticket to the movie, right?
That all being said, the tension is likely just a marketing ploy to get views. Disney and Marvel did the exact same form of emotional baiting back at the release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 with the tease of Rocket's death. Fortunately, fans were met with sweet relief once the film debuted.
It's likely that Disney is toying with our emotions yet again, but hopefully not with our expectations. As the animation studio struggles to make a comeback under Zootopia director Jared Bush's new leadership direction, this new film is certainly a return to what works. The original film blew us away in 2016, let's see if we can go wild again.
Disney's Zootopia 2 premieres in November of 2025.