By Ryan Flaherty
Three days of the D23 Fan Expo, hosted by Disney, brought a huge new slate of television and movies from Disney Channel, including a whole lot of spinoffs and prequels.
Television
A new series that is explained to be “not a spin-off’ and “not a sequel” is titled ‘High School Musical the Musical the Series’. The show will premiere on November 12 when Disney+ launches, and is described to be shot in a documentary style. It follows a team of theater students that are auditioning for the roles of the iconic character from the original franchise.
Another popular Disney franchise is getting a reboot: the Muppets! They scored a series order for a short-form series ‘Muppets Now’. The show will include celebrity guest stars and operate in an unscripted format. More information is available here.
Lizzie McGuire is getting a reboot as well, starring Hilary Duff from the original series. The show will follow her life as a 30 year old woman living in New York, balancing her adult life and the animated character Lizzie. Full article here.
Pixar has two new series, the first titled ‘Forky Asks a Question’. The animated character, who recently appeared in ‘Toy Story 4’, now has his own project- a collection of shorts that contain Forky asking questions about the world around him.
The second series is a spinoff of the popular Disney film ‘Monsters Inc.’ and follows a new monster, Tyler Tuskman. As Tyler starts his first day at the factory, he soon learns that the company has transferred from scream power to laugh power. Ben Feldman (Superstore) will voice the title character, with some of the original cast returning. ‘Monsters at Work’ will debut in 2020.
Disney+ has ordered multiple unscripted projects for the streaming service, from reality to docu-series. First up is ‘The World According to Jeff Goldblum’, which stars Hollywood veteran Jeff Goldblum as he navigates history and science lessons. The series will premiere with 12 episodes the day that Disney+ is released, November 12.
Unscripted series ‘One Day at Disney’ will contain 52 shortform episodes with individual profiles of all of the different members of the Disney family. From imagineers to animators to environmentalists, it takes a whole lot of work to run all of the Disney divisions. In addition to the series, they will also be releasing a book and full length documentary.
Finally, Kristen Bell will host musical theater reality show ‘Encore!’ which will reunite high school classmates to put together a show they did when they were teenagers.
Film
A live action adaptation of ‘Lady and the Tramp’ will be available exclusively on the streaming service on November 12. The cast includes Tessa Thompson, Justin Theroux, Kiersey Clemons, Thomas Mann, Janelle Monae, Yvette Nicole Brown, Ken Jeong, F. Murray Abraham, and Sam Elliott. Disney also cast Monte, a shelter dog that was cast in the title role (and was adopted by his trainer!). Additionally, cast member Yvette Nicole Brown adopted Harley, who plays Lady. The film seems to be a happy story on an off screen.
Expert builders Phineas and Ferb and returning to the screen with feature film ‘Candace Against the Universe’ set to premiere in 2020. The film will follow the brothers as they attempt to rescue their bossy older sister in an alien utopia after she was abducted. Additionally, Disney announced that all past episodes of the series will be available on their upcoming service.
The upcoming comedy ‘Jungle Cruise’ teased footage from the film and announced that it will be released July 2020. Not much more information is known, besides that it will go hand in hand with the Disneyland ride.
Angelina Jolie is back to reprise her role of Maleficent in ‘Maleficent: Mistress of Evil’. They showcased a scene that included a debate on romance that ends in fury from the evil queen.
New details were discussed about the film ‘Cruella’ starring Emma Stone. They featured a first look of what Stone looks like dressed as the iconic Disney villain, as well as a taped message on set from Roberts. According to the video, the film is set in 1970’s London and includes the punk rock era in Europe.
Pixar veteran Pete Docter introduced the latest animated film, titled ‘Soul’ which will premiere sometime in 2020. It explores a middle school teacher turned jazz musician that suddenly dies. Jon Batiste will write original jazz and the cast includes Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Questlove, and David Diggs.
Tom Holland may no longer be at Disney with Spiderman, but he is starring in the new Pixar film ‘Onward’. Holland joins cast mates Chris Pratt, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Octavia Spencer. As for Spiderman, Holland said (without context) “It’s been a crazy week but I want to tell you thank you from the bottom of my heart”.
Awkwafina and Cassie Still are headlining ‘Raya and the Last Dragon’, which is an epic fantasy centered in Southeast Asia. Awkwafina plays the dragon, and added “I look good right? I like the hair”.
Finally, Frozen 2. One of the biggest movies in Disney history will return with a sequel, this time including more of a plot with Elsa and Anna’s parents. Evan Rachel Wood and Sterling K. Brown have joined the cast as the girls’ mother and Lt. Mattias. The film reportedly centers around a single question- why does Elsa have powers? The presentation finished off with the cast singing ‘Some Things Never Change’ and, of course, confetti.
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