It's a great time for animation, and not just because the game has been significantly changed by the SPIDER-VERSE and new TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES movies. Nearly every big studio is trying something new with animated movies or expanding their fan-favorite worlds.
While we wait for the MUTANT MAYHEM sequel and the third and final SPIDER-VERSE movie we'll see several Disney movies, including ZOOTOPIA 2 and Pixar's ELIO, and the wild and weird DOG MAN from DreamWorks Animation. There's far more coming in 2025, too. We have all the new animated movie titles listed below.
Note: If you're looking for movies that fall into the anime category, we've got a look at those, too!
Animated Movies Playing Now in Theatres
Mufasa: The Lion King
MUFASA: THE LION KING enlists Rafiki to relay the legend of Mufasa to young lion cub Kiara, daughter of Simba and Nala, with Timon and Pumbaa lending their signature schtick. Told in flashbacks, the story introduces Mufasa as an orphaned cub, lost and alone until he meets a sympathetic lion named Taka—the heir to a royal bloodline. The chance meeting sets in motion an expansive journey of an extraordinary group of misfits searching for their destiny—their bonds will be tested as they work together to evade a threatening and deadly foe. Read more about MUFASA: THE LION KING here. [December 20]
Animated Movies Coming to Movie Theatres Soon
And there's more to come in 2025!
Dog Man
Part dog, part man, all hero. From DreamWorks Animation—creators of the beloved blockbuster franchises Kung Fu Panda, How to Train Your Dragon and The Boss Baby—comes the canine-crime-fighting film adaptation of Dav Pilkey’s New York Times bestselling literary phenomenon: Dog Man. When a faithful police dog and his human police officer owner are injured together on the job, a harebrained but life-saving surgery fuses the two of them together and Dog Man is born. Dog Man is sworn to protect and serve—and fetch, sit and roll over. As Dog Man embraces his new identity and strives to impress his Chief (Lil Rel Howery, Get Out, Free Guy), he must stop the pretty evil plots of feline supervillain Petey the Cat (Pete Davidson; Saturday Night Live, The King of Staten Island). Petey’s latest plan is to clone himself, creating the kitten Lil Petey, to double his ability to do crime stuff. Things get complicated, though, when Lil Petey forges an unexpected bond with Dog Man. When Lil Petey falls into the clutches of a common enemy, Dog Man and Petey reluctantly join forces in an action-packed race against time to rescue the young kitten. In the process, they discover the power of family (and kittens!) to bring even the most hostile foes together. Read more about DOG MAN here. [January 31]
Elio
For centuries, people have called out to the universe looking for answers—in Disney and Pixar’s all-new movie “Elio,” the universe calls back! The original feature film introduces Elio, an underdog with an active imagination who finds himself inadvertently beamed up to the Communiverse, an interplanetary organization with representatives from galaxies far and wide. Mistakenly identified as Earth’s ambassador to the rest of the universe, and completely unprepared for that kind of pressure, Elio must form new bonds with eccentric alien lifeforms, survive a series of formidable trials and somehow discover who he is truly meant to be. Read more about ELIO here. [June 13]
The Bad Guys 2
The Bad Guys are struggling to find trust and acceptance in their newly minted lives as Good Guys, when they are pulled out of retirement and forced to do ‘one last job’ by an all-female squad of criminals. Read more about THE BAD GUYS 2 here. [August 1]
Wildwood
LAIKA’s next animated feature film is Wildwood, based on the bestselling novel written by Colin Meloy, lead singer and songwriter for The Decemberists, and illustrated by Carson Ellis. Wildwood is a tale of love, loss, sacrifice and secrets, and of the magic you can find on your doorstep, if you’re willing to look for it. Read more about WILDWOOD here. [Release Date TBA]
Zootopia 2
In Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “Zootopia 2,” detectives Judy Hopps (voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (voiced by Jason Bateman) find themselves on the twisting trail of a mysterious reptile who arrives in Zootopia and turns the mammal metropolis upside down. To crack the case, Judy and Nick must go undercover to unexpected new parts of town, where their growing partnership is tested like never before. [November 26]
We'll have more movies for kids and families in the months to come!
All images courtesy of Universal Pictures.