Bob Iger got a rock star-worthy welcome Friday night, as roughly 12,000 screaming fans gave the Disney CEO a standing ovation as he kicked off a super-sized panel at D23.
“Wow. That was more than a warm welcome,” Iger told the crowd, adding, “Boy did I miss you.”
It was a homecoming for Iger, who missed the last D23 in 2022, as he was in the midst of a temporary retirement.
This year’s biannual convention gave filmmakers and execs such as James Cameron, Kevin Feige, Pete Docter and Jennifer Lee the chance announce new projects and tease what’s coming over the next year.
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This year’s presentation took place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., meaning around about twice as many people were in the room as in past years. Ahead of panel, a pep squad pumped up the crowd, while fans were handed light-up bracelets and envelopes with magician David Blaine’s logo on it and featuring a deck of cards (more on that later).
Read on for trailers, highlights and new announcements from the panel.
Mufasa: The Lion King
Filmmaker Barry Jenkins welcomed Lin-Manuel Miranda to his very first D23, with the songwriter debuting a new song from Mufasa: The Lion King. They then unveiled the trailer, which gave a look at the relationship between an orphan named Mufasa and the adopted brother who would later be named Scar.
Tron: Ares
After an appearance by castmembers Jared Leto, Evan Peters, and Greta Lee, Disney showed off mind-bending footage from the threquel. After that, a red laser revealed the iconic Nine Inch Nails logo, to screams from the crowd and the news that the band will compose the score, following in the footsteps of Daft Punk, who handled duties on 2010’s Tron: Legacy.
Snow White
Snow White whistled while she worked at D23, where the first trailer was revealed. And unlike some recent movies, which have hidden their musical pedigree in trailers, this one embraced the fact that it’s a musical.
Freakier Friday
Body swap comedy Freaky Friday 2 got a title, with stars Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis shouting out the title to the crowd.
David Blaine’s Do Not Attempt
The magician has a new show coming to National Geographic in 2025, and he showed off a mind-blowing trick for the crowd of 12,000. He asked everyone to take out a deck of cards they were given at the start of the show, cut their deck twice, and put the new card on top. He then pulled two people from the audience, and one pulled the three of hearts. It turned out everyone in the audience pulled the same card beforehand — so 12,000 people were holding up the three of hearts.
Agatha All Along
Kathryn Hahn led the cast in a musical number, with stars such as Aubrey Plaza joining in, before unveiling a new trailer for the Marvel Studios show, which bows in September.
Daredevil: Born Again
Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige revealed that season one of the series debuts in March 2025, and season two is about to go film. Among the stars onstage were Charlie Cox (Daredevil), Vincent D’ONofrio (Wilson Fisk), Deborah Ann Woll (Karen Page), Elden Henson (Foggy Nelson) and Jon Bernthal (The Punisher). Said Bernthal of returning “It’s a real honor. I couldn’t be up here with better people.”
Ironheart
Black Panther: Wankanda Forever filmmaker Ryan Coogler took the stage to talk the Marvel show centering on Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), who first debuted up in his 2022 movie. The character is a genius MIT student who builds her own Iron Man-style suit. Thorne, Anthony Ramos, Lyryc Ross, Alden Ehrenreich and Regan Aliyah joined Coogler onstage to show off footage. The show has long been in the works, and actually revealed footage at D23 in 2022.
“I always knew she had more to her story,” said Coogler of Riri Williams.
Fantastic Four and Captain America: Brave New World
Fresh off of San Diego Comic-Con just a few weeks ago, Marvel brought out Brave New World star Anthony Mackie, and showed off the same footage for both his movie, and Fantastic Four. The footage was not new, for those who were at Comic-Con. But Mackie did tell a story about seeing Harrison Ford as Red Hulk: “You have to appreciate Harrison Ford going that far.”
Ryan Reynolds Shows Gratitude (and Takes a Jab at Marvel)
Introducing the Marvel segment of the show, Deadpool & Wolverine star Ryan Reynolds sent in a video thanking fans for going to the movie, and also thanking Kevin Feige “A very special thank you for letting us make a few teensy jokes at Marvel’s expense. It’s my way of showing love. And of course, saving the studio,” he said to huge laughs. “I’m going to introduce the original Marvel Jesus himself, Mr. Kevin Feige.”
The Mandalorian & Grogu
“We just started filming a few weeks ago,” said director Jon Favreau of the first Star Wars movie to film since 2019’s Rise of Skywalker. He went on to show off some footage, including Snowtroopers AT-AT Walkers.
Andor
Andor season two will welcome some familiar faces from Rogue One, the movie that introduced the world to Cassian Andor (Diego Luna). New footage revealed that Ben Mendelsohn is back as his empire character Krennic, while Alan Tudyk will return to voice the droid K-2S0. “The rebellion goes big,” said creator Tony Gilroy in a video.
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew
Fans got a teaser for the series, which centers on young characters lost in a galaxy far, far away and stars Jude Law.
Frozen III
Disney Animation’s Jennifer Lee revealed that Frozen 3 will bow in 2027. As previously announced, she confirmed a fourth film is also in the works. The Frozen films have been big for Disney; 2013’s Frozen, starring Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel, earned $1.28 billion, while Frozen II (2019) brought in $1.45 billion.
Zootopia 2
Everything Everywhere All at Once Oscar winner Ke Huy Quan will join Zootopia 2 as a creepy new character, which star Ginnifer Goodwin described as “slithering, highly venomous viper” named Gary.
The Incredibles 3
Closing the Pixar portion of the presentation, Peter Docter left the crowd with a big tease: “That’s right, we’re making Incredibles 3. Brad Bird is developing it right now.” The Incredibles first subverted the superhero genre in 2004, while 2018’s The Incredibles 2, earned more than $1.2 billion.
Hoppers
Jon Hamm and Bobby Moynihan will lead the body-swap movie about a beaver and a human who exchange bodies. Yes, you read that right.
Toy Story 5
Director Andrew Stanton shared new details about Toy Story 5, revealing the toys will face off against technologies like iPads and iPhones. “It’s toy meets tech,” said Stanton, adding that there are 50 malfunctioning, commemorative Buzz Lightyear figures who will cause some “serious problems.”
Inside Out TV Spinoff
Pixar’s Docter took a victory lap after this summer’s success of Inside Out 2, thanking fans for making it the No. 1 animated movie of all time. He also shared some news: Inside Out will be getting a Disney+ TV series called Dream Productions, which will bow next year.
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Avatar mastermind James Cameron revealed the third Avatar film is called Avatar: Fire and Ash.
“There are new cultures and settings and creatures, and new biomes. You will see a lot more of Pandora, the planet, that you’ve never seen before,” said Cameron of the project, which opens in December 2025. “The new film is not what you expect, but it’s definitely what you want.”
Monster Jam
Little was revealed about this new project, but Dwayne Johnson introduced a film called Monster Jam that involves monster trucks.
“We can create something that is immersive and cool and fun,” said Johnson, calling it a live-action experience told from the point of view of “these incredible monster trucks and their eccentric owners.”
Moana 2
Moana 2 stars Auli’i Cravalho and Johnson got the crowd moving by performing a song from her upcoming sequel. “Maui is signing again. Singing in keys that don’t exist. And my hair looks fantastic in Moana 2,” quipped Johnson, who gave a shoutout to his six and eight-year-old daughters in the crowd.
The film is a sequel to the landmark 2016 original, which has consistently been among the most streamed movies in the world for several years. It initially was slated as a Disney+ TV series before getting upgraded to theatrical.
Audiences got a look at a new trailer, which has not yet been released online, then Johnson handed things off to Disney’s Bergman, introducing him as “my twin.”
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