Frozencame out back in 2013 and even though it has been a few years, it feels like the movie just came out last week. The movie has retained a rabid fan base of seemingly all ages and it is still pretty hard to avoid hearing “Let It Go” every now and again. That being the case it is no surprise at all that Disney is working onFrozen 2, but some fans may have been expecting the movie to be coming out already. Don’t fear, because it is happening.
Even if nobody from the original wanted to do aFrozen sequel, it seems likely that Disney would find a way to make it happen.Frozenis not only the highest-grossing animated movie of all time, but according toBox Office Mojo, it is the ninth highest grossing movie ever. Period. With a total take of $1.27 billion worldwide, there is almost no way Disney was going to let the franchise end with a single movie.
Hollywood is very sequel obsessed at the moment and Disney is very good at cranking out a successful sequel. Looking at thePirates of the Caribbeanfranchise or any of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies it is easy to wonder whyFrozen 2hasn’t already been released. But Disney has had a more difficult road with sequels to their original, animated movies outside of Pixar, which has definitely enjoyed massive success with sequels. Just this yearFinding Dorywent on to gross more than $1 billion worldwide and was the highest-grossing movie of the year domestically. ButFrozenis a special case and the studio will put their resources behind making aFrozensequel as good as possible.
We have already seen a little bit of the potential that could exist forFrozen 2. WhenFrozen Foreverwas released last year in front of Disney’s live-actionCinderella, it gave fans a taste of what they can maybe hope for when the sequel finally does arrive. All of the voice cast returned to reprise their roles in theFrozen Forevershort, which made it feel authentic but also made fans even more eager to see another full-length movie.
We may not have any specific plot details or anything of that sort, but we do know that Disney has greenlitFrozen 2and that the movie is being worked on right now. Don’t worryFrozenfans, you will soon be able to return to the kingdom of Arendelle to see what Elsa, Anna and Olaf are up to. Here is everything we know aboutFrozen 2.
9Kristen Bell Will be Back as Anna
Unless Disney were going to go the anthology route, Anna is an absolutely essential character to theFrozenfranchise. So, it makes total sense thatKristen Bellwill be back to reprise her role as Anna inFrozen 2. She committed to the sequel pretty early on, so it seems like she enjoyed making the movie and it wasn’t as though Disney had to coax her back. Granted, if for some reasonKristen Bellhadn’t wanted to return, they could have tried to recast the role of Anna, but this seems much better. Anna was the emotional center of the firstFrozenandKristen Bellwas able to bring a lot to that, so fans will likely be very happy that she is coming back.
8Idina Menzel Will be Back as Elsa
While Anna may have been the one we followed during the main journey ofFrozen, there is no doubt thatElsawas the character that so many people latched onto. So, it is an absolute no-brainer that Broadway starIdina Menzelwill be reprising her role as Elsa inFrozen 2. She couldn’t seem to “Let It Go,” as it were. One of the most important parts of the firstFrozenwas the soundtrack. Nobody is going to deny thatKristen Bellcan sing, but there is no way of replacing the powerhouse voice ofIdina Menzel. Not only that, but it seems like we will get to explore her character a lot more inFrozen 2, given that she won’t be burdened by her powers as much and because she and Anna are not at emotional war with one another anymore. Not only that, but inFrozen Forever, we already saw that her character is much more happy, so it will be nice to explore a happy version of Elsa inFrozen 2. No doubt, Disney Princess fans all around the world will be super excited to have Elsa back forFrozen 2.
Disney has a very long history of bringing wonderful, lovable sidekicks to the big screen. Especially in their animated movies. One of the best things they did withFrozenwas introduce the character of Olaf, arguably one of the most beloved sidekicks in Disney history. Given that Elsa made a point to ensure that Olaf could survive the summer at the end of the firstFrozen, it is a sure thing thatJosh Gadwill be back as Olaf inFrozen 2. Much likeShrekneeds Donkey,Frozenis going to absolutely need Olaf moving forward, so it is a very natural that Olaf will back. Not only that, butJosh Gadhas continued his good relationship with Disney in the time sinceFrozenleft theaters. He is playing the role of Le Fou in the studio’s upcoming live-action adaptation ofBeauty and the Beastnext year, so Disney clearly likes the guy.Frozenfans love him too, so it will be great to see Olaf back inFrozen 2.
6The Original Directors Will be Back
The cast and characters were a really big part of what madeFrozenthe massive success that it was, but we can’t overlook how important that directing was.Frozenwas one of the biggest original hits for Disney in ages, so since it isn’t broken the studio definitely isn’t going to try and fix it. That being the case, co-directorsChris BuckandJennifer Leewill be returning forFrozen 2. They were heavily involved in every step of the process in crafting the story ofFrozenand most movies pretty much ride or die with their director. So a large percentage ofFrozen’s success is owed toChris BuckandJennifer Lee. Not only that, but since they developed and helped to create the first movie, they know the world very well so it would be much easier for them to step in and know where to take the story inFrozen 2. Not that another director couldn’t do it, but it seems much more logical to have the original duo back.
5The Frozen 2 Release Date
It may be hard to believe, but it has already been three years since the firstFrozencame out. Given the massive box office take and the tremendous amount of love from fans one would think that Disney would have already been well into production onFrozen 3. However, that is not the case. Fans are still eagerly awaiting the release ofFrozen 2to see the continuation of Elsa and Anna’s story. Disney has yet to announce a release date for the movie yet, but the clock is ticking and we know that the movie is being worked on. Earlier this year while promotingThe Boss,Kristen Bellsaid that she would be heading in to record some of her voice work forFrozen 2in the near future and made it seem as though the script was finished. Disney hasn’t confirmed that the actual production will be starting soon, but we can guess it probably will if it hasn’t already. That being said, there is no way the movie will come out in 2017, but it seems almost inconceivable thatFrozen 2won’t come out in 2018. That would already put it five years out from the release of the firstFrozen. Any later and it starts to make less sense. Get on it, Disney!
4They are Taking Their Time With it
In the modern Hollywood landscape, sequels are very often rushed into production if the first movie has any success. In the case ofFrozen, the first movie had a record-breaking level of success. As many of us know, just because the first movie is good that does not automatically mean that a sequel will be good and rushing things along certainly won’t help. Disney seems to understand that and is allowingFrozen 2to be developed naturally and isn’t rushing things along. In 2015, producerPeter Del Vechosaid that “We’re excited by the ideas we have, but it’s too early to talk about them. We wouldn’t be making a sequel if we felt that we didn’t have a story to tell that was equal to or greater than the original.” That is good news for fans and it is good that the creative team waited for the right idea to come along and didn’t forceFrozen 2to happen as a cash grab.
3Elsa and Anna’s New Looks
IfFrozengot one thing right, it was the characters of Elsa and Anna in seemingly every way. Since this is a Disney movie, the look of the characters was very important. If the amount of Halloween costumes, toys and Disney Princess dresses that have been sold with Elsa and Anna on it are any indicator, fans really seemed to love the look. The reason it will probably change forFrozen 2is becauseDisneywill want to be able to maximize the merchandising potential for the sequel. Girls will beg their parents for the new Elsa or Anna dress or the new doll that has the new look once the movie comes out. We have already seen in some of the newFrozencontent likeFrozen Foreverthat Elsa and Anna already have some more stuff in their wardrobe. If Disney changed Elsa and Anna’s look for that, be sure that they will do the same forFrozen 2.
2The Soundtrack
An argument could be made that the biggest star ofFrozenwas the soundtrack. The movie may have made a ton of money, but the soundtrack has endured and was an absolute phenomenon in the pop culture landscape. TheFrozensoundtrack has sold more than 4 million copies in the U.S. alone. Rest assured, making theFrozen 2soundtrack just as successful will be a top priority for everyone involved in the movie. It is not yet known ifKristen Anderson-LopezandRobert Lopez, who composed the music for the first movie will be back forFrozen 2, but it is hard to believe Disney won’t find a way to bring them back. The studio has deep pockets and outside ofKristen BellandIdina Menzel, they would seem like the people you want to pay to come back forFrozen 2. In any case, expect the soundtrack forFrozen 2to be a heavy focus when the movie comes out. But the idea of topping the success of something like “Let It Go” is no doubt a tall order.
1Will Elsa Get a Girlfriend?
We need to start out by saying, probably not for this one, but there is no doubt that this is something that Disney will need to contend with while makingFrozen 2. Earlier this year, there was a massive online campaign to#GiveElsaAGirlfriendand it honestly got so large that it would be impossible to just sweep it entirely under the rug. That is not to say that Disney needs to flat out make Elsa an obvious and over-the-top lesbian inFrozen 2, but it would seem like a weird side step to suddenly give her a typical male love interest or something like that. EvenIdina Menzelhas addressed the issue and seemed to be in support of it. DirectChris Buckis very aware of it, at one point saying to MTV that “We will tackle other issues that, I think, are out there today that boys and girls, men and women, are dealing with. I think we’re very aware of what is happening in society.” We don’t know what that means or how this will be handled, but it definitely does need to be handled in some way, shape or form inFrozen 2.
