Frozen 2 seemed like an inevitability right around the time we all had "Let it Go" stuck in our heads. But full confirmation had yet to come from Disney that the sequel to the 2013 animated musical was a go. Today, Disney has confirmed that they plan to produce Frozen 2.
There's no confirmation of a release date or any production details at present, but what we do know is that the team behind Frozen -- directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, producer Peter Del Vecho -- are set to return for the next big freeze. Almost nothing about the plot was revealed, but it does involve a return to Arendelle, the original setting of Frozen.
Other details yet to be announced include whether or not voice stars Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Josh Gad and/or Jonathan Groff might return to reprise their roles as Elsa, Anna, Olaf and Kristoff respectively. But all signs (or one major Twitter sign) point to Kristen Bell being up for returning...
She's so cool. (Like, napping on a bag of ice cool)
It's not as if it comes as a surprise that Disney plans to follow Frozen with a feature-length sequel. The first film, which hit theaters near the end of 2013, was a massive success, earning a lifetime worldwide gross that surpassed a billion dollars. And parents aren't likely to stop shelling out dollars for Anna, Elsa and Olaf merch anytime soon. Though I do expect many (all?) of them have grown tired of hearing "Let it Go."
That brings us to another unknown. There's no mention of whether or not Oscar winning song-writing duo Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez will return to handle the soundtrack for the followup. Given how successful their contributions were to the first film though, we're very hopeful that they'll be back.
The fact that Disney hasn't dropped a release date for this feature is also unsurprising. Last we heard, from what Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck discussed in a recent interview, it sounds like finding the right story is a big priority for the sequel and that's something that may not be worked out just yet, in which case Frozen 2 might only be in the very early stages of development. It would explain the lack of confirmation of almost everything beyond the plans to make the film and the directors and producer's involvement. But from what John Lasseter said at Disney's Annual Meeting of Shareholders today, it sounds like they have come up with an idea for the story, and it involves a return to Arendelle...
Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck have come up with a great idea for a sequel and you will be hearing a lot more about it and we’re taking you back to Arendelle. We are so excited about that.
This news really couldn't be better timed -- probably not an accident -- as the Disney animated short Frozen Fever is set to play before Cinderella in theaters, starting this weekend. Check out the trailer for that below...
We'll be sure to share whatever updates Disney offers on Frozen 2 as new information emerges.
