Disney Teases FROZEN III First Look
By Movieguide® Contributor
During the Disney Animation Showcase at D23, filmmaker Jennifer Lee shared the first concept art for FROZEN III while teasing that a fourth movie may also already be in the pipeline.
The concept art showed Elsa on a white, ethereal horse, with Anna close behind her on a brown one with Olaf beside her. The shadow of a horned figure holding a spear was projected behind them, possibly hinting at the movie’s villain.
First concept art from Frozen 3 #D23 pic.twitter.com/N0CDBmWqbX
— IGN (@IGN) August 10, 2024
“[The concept art] captures the scene of Anna and Elsa…everyone at Disney Animation is excited to be back in this world,” Lee said, adding, “coming out of FROZEN II, we still have some questions. A lot of questions actually. Now, you see why we need two films to tell this story.”
The decision to return to the world of FROZEN highlights Disney’s move back in the direction of its family-friendly content that taught strong morals. This change began this summer with the release of INSIDE OUT 2, which has become the highest-grossing animated movie Disney has ever created — beating out FROZEN II.
The original FROZEN shared a picture of Christian love and sacrifice when Anna sacrificed herself for Elsa at the end of the movie. Its story was recognized by Movieguide® when it was awarded the Teddy Bear Award® for the Best Movie for Families in 2013.
The second movie continued this focus on Christian love by, once again, highlighting the value of sacrifice, though it also included some elements of spiritism which made its story slightly less impactful than the first.
Though FROZEN III was originally scheduled to release in 2026, during this teaser, Lee announced it would be pushed back to 2027. Meanwhile, the hinted-at fourth movie has no public timeline for its release.
Other notable announcements at the D23 conference included INCREDIBLES 3, TOY STORY 5, a live-action LILO & STITCH and a first look at ZOOTOPIA 2.
Movieguide® previously reported on FROZEN III:
Disney is dropping hints about more installments of FROZEN.
“The team is hard at work,” Jennifer Lee, the Chief Creative Officer of Disney Animation, said of the upcoming FROZEN 3. “We are deeply excited about the story we are shaping together, and it’s so epic it may not fit into just one film.”
No plot details about the movie have been released, but Lee said she was “blown away” by the work the team has done so far. Deadline added that the movie is “‘so epic’ they might need to make another film.”
“All I’ll say is that last week, they carved out time for me to work with the creative team on it. And I’m blown away,” she shared. “I’m so excited. I don’t know what I’m doing on it yet. I might be doing nothing.”
FROZEN 3 is already confirmed, but could there be a fourth movie? Disney CEO Bob Iger thinks so.
