On Thursday (10th December), Disney held its Investor Day which detailed the corporation's plans for the next couple of years. This meant announcements for upcoming television and film projects, including from television networks like Hulu, FX, ESPN and National Geographic, and media franchises including Pixar, Star Wars, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
So here's a round-up of some of the big news from the event!
DISNEY ANIMATION STUDIOS & PIXAR
Raya And The Last Dragon - Disney's 59th feature (with Kelly Marie Tran and Awkwafina voices the title roles) will hit cinemas (where possible) on March 5th 2021, but will also premiere on Disney+ on the same day (as Mulan did earlier in the summer)
Iwájú - Disney Animations will be collaborating with Pan-African entertainment company Kugali to create an all-new, science fiction series set in a futuristic version of Lagos coming to Disney+ in 2022.
Encanto - Directed by Byron Howard and Jared Bush, Encanto is about a magical family from Colombia who llive in a magical home. Lin-Manuel Miranda has written the music for this film.
Luca - Coming after Soul (which hits Disney+ on Christmas Day), Pixar's next feature film is Luca. Set in Italy, the film is all about two best friends- Luca and Alberto- celebrating an unforgettable summer. It will hit cinemas in June 2021.
Turning Red - Domee Shi (who directed the Oscar-winning animated short Bao) directs Turning Red. Teenager Mei experiences all of the awkwardness of being a teenager, with an added twist: when she gets too excited, she transforms into a giant red panda. It comes to cinemas on March 11th 2022.Lightyear - Now here's an interesting one. On June 17th 2022, we'll get to see the definitive story of the original Buzz Lightyear (the space ranger who inspired the action figure in the Toy Story films). And here's another interesting one: Buzz will be voiced by Chris Evans!
DISNEY STUDIOS
The cast of the live-action version of The Little Mermaid has been confirmed, directed by Rob Marshall (Chicago, Into The Woods):
Also announced was Hocus Pocus 2, directed by Adam Shankman, and a remake of Three Men And A Baby with Zac Efron in the lead.
Night At The Museum is coming to Disney+ in 2021 in a new animated feature
Jungle Cruise, with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Emily Blunt, Jack Whitehall and Paul Giamatti, will still be hitting cinemas in July 2021.
A live-action version of Pinocchio, starring Tom Hanks and directed by Robert Zemeckis, has been announced, as has a version of Peter Pan with Jude Law as Captain Hook.
A sequel to 2007's Enchanted- called Disenchanted- will stream exclusively on Disney+ with Amy Adams returning to play Giselle; Sister Act 3 is also in the works with Whoopi Goldberg producing and starring.
STAR WARS
A huge slate of Star Wars TV shows was announced during the event, which will all premiere on Disney+
Rangers Of The New Republic and Ahsoka are two new original series set within the timeline of The Mandalorian; Rosario Dawson, who plays Ahsoka Tano in The Mandalorian, will reprise her role.
In 2022, there will be an original series based around the character of Cassian Andor- who appeared in Rogue One- with Diego Luna returning to the role (and acting as an executive producer). It will run for 12 episodes. Fiona Shaw, Denise Gough, and Kyle Soller are joining the cast, as well as Genevieve O’Reilly as rebel leader Mon Mothma.
Ewan McGregor's long-mooted Obi-Wan Kenobi spin-off is definitely happening... with Hayden Christensen returning to play Darth Vader opposite him. Set 10 years after the events of Revenge Of The Sith, it's a project that has a lot of people excited.
A few new animated series and features were announced, including The Bad Batch, Visions (a series of shorts that show the Star Wars galaxy through Japanese anime creators), and A Droid Story (where a new hero will get guided by R2-D2 and C-3PO).
A Lando Calrissian spinoff was also announced, as was The Acolyte which is billed as "a mystery-thriller that will take viewers into a galaxy of shadowy secrets and emerging dark-side powers in the final days of the High Republic era"
Disney also confirmed the Star Wars feature to be directed by Taika Waititi, whilst Patty Jenkins (Wonder Woman) will direct Star Wars: Rogue Squadron.
MARVEL STUDIOS
Kevin Feige ended the four-hour event with a bumper load of news regarding Marvel's upcoming slate of television and films.
Starting with the television programmes:
WandaVision - Starring Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany, this series starts streaming from January 15th 2021 on Disney+
The Falcon And The Winter Soldier - Starring Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan, this six-part series starts streaming from March 19th 2021
Loki - Starring Tom Hiddleston, this crime caper will be released on Disney+ in May 2021
What If...? - The 10-part animated series, which explores what would happen if major moments in the Marvel timeline happened differently (for example, if Peggy Carter had received the Super Soldier Serum instead of Steve Rogers, or if T'Challa had been found by Yondu instead of Star-Lord), hits Disney+ in Summer 2021. Jeffrey Wright plays the Watcher who narrates the show.
Ms. Marvel - This current iteration of Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan, a teenage Pakistani American from New Jersey, and one of the first Muslim characters to headline a Marvel comic) has only been in the comic books since 2014 but will be making her way to the small- and big- screens in 2021 and 2022. The Ms. Marvel TV show will air on Disney+ late 2021.
Hawkeye - Jeremy Renner will play Clint Barton/Hawkeye in this Disney+ original story, alongside Oscar-nominated actress Hailee Steinfeld as Kate Bishop. Alaqua Cox, Fra Free, and Vera Farmiga will also appear in the show, which does not have a release date as yet.
She-Hulk - Rumoured for a while, it's now been confirmed that Orphan Black's Tatiana Maslany will be bringing Jennifer Walters (a.k.a. She Hulk) to the small screen. Also, it's been confirmed that Tim Roth will return to the MCU for the first time since 2008's The Incredible Hulk to play Emil Blonsky/Abomination, and appearances from current Hulk Mark Ruffalo have also been announced.
Moon Knight - an original series featuring the detective character described as "a complex vigilante" (which is putting it mildly!) has been greenlit. No casting news or release date has been given, although Oscar Isaac has been attached to the role.
Secret Invasion - Samuel L. Jackson returns as Nick Fury whilst Ben Mendelsohn reprises his Captain Marvel role as the Skrull Talos for this series. No other information has been given so far.
Ironheart - An original series based on Riri Williams, a teenage engineering student who creates a suit of armour more advanced than Iron Man's, Dominique Thorne (If Beale Street Could Talk) will play the title role.
Armor Wars - Don Cheadle returns as James Rhodes/War Machine for a series which shows what happens if Stark technology falls into the wrong hands.
The Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special and I Am Groot - James Gunn returns to write and direct this 2022 holiday special (done on the set of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol.3), whilst an animated series of shorts featuring Baby Groot will also come to Disney+
MCU MOVIES
A lot of interesting news came out for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Confirmation has come that Black Widow will still be hitting cinemas in May 2021, and that Mahershala Ali will be playing Blade in a new film.
Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings - Production has wrapped on the film, which will be released on June 9th 2021. Several new cast members have been officially announced:
Doctor Who In The Multiverse Of Madness - Some familiar faces will be joining Benedict Cumberbatch's Sorcerer Supreme for this Sam Raimi-directed film. Benedict Wong (Wong), Rachel McAdams (Christine Palmer) and Chiwetel Ejiofor (Mordo) will be reprising their roles from the first Doctor Strange film, whilst newcomers to the cast include Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch and Xochitl Gomez as America Chavez. The film will reportedly link to both WandaVision and the third Sony/Marvel Spider-Man film (in which Cumberbatch will appear). March 25th 2022 is the given release date for this film at the moment.
Thor: Love And Thunder - Again, something that had been long-rumoured but now confirmed: Christian Bale will be joining the MCU! Bale will star opposite Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman as Gorr the God Butcher. The film is due in cinemas May 6th 2022.
Black Panther 2 - The sequel to the 2018 original will be written and directed by Ryan Coogler. Given the untimely passing of Chadwick Boseman earlier this year, the decision has been made not to recast the character of T'Challa. Instead the film will explore the world of Wakanda and the other characters. The film will hit the cinemas on July 8th 2022.
Captain Marvel 2 - Nia DaCosta (Top Boy, Candyman) takes the director's chair for the sequel to 2019's original. Brie Larson will once again take the role of Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel and will be joined by Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau, and Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel. The film is due on November 11th 2022.
Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania - Peyton Reed (Ant-Man) will direct this threequel, with Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas, and Michelle Pfeiffer all returning from Ant-Man And The Wasp. Kathryn Newton will join the cast as Cassie Lang, and Jonathan Majors as Kang The Conqueror.
Saving some of the biggest news til last, Jon Watts (Spider-Man: Homecoming, Spider-Man: Far From Home) will direct a new feature film bringing the Fantastic Four into the MCU.
OTHER NEWS
An Alien television series is in development at FX Networks, with Noah Hawley (showrunner of Fargo) as showrunner.
It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia has been renewed for four more seasons (up to Season 18) which will make it the longest-running live action sitcom in TV history
A Willow TV show, based on the 1988 fantasy action drama of the same name, is in the works and will premiere in 2022. Warwick Davis will reprise his role from the original film, and the pilot episode will be directed by Jon M. Chu (G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Crazy Rich Asians)
Pre-production has begun on the fifth Indiana Jones film. It'll be directed by James Mangold (Le Mans '66, Logan) and hit cinemas in July 2022.
So, there's a lot to look forward to in the next couple of years!
