Disney Announces Zootopia 3 at D23, With Ke Huy Quan Joining the Franchise
Disney has announced that Zootopia 3 is in development, revealed onstage at the studio's D23 event in Anaheim on 15 August 2026. Ke Huy Quan and Ginnifer Goodwin appeared together to make the announcement, with Quan confirmed as joining the film (Deadline).
The news lands on the back of a formidable franchise run. Zootopia 2, directed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard, became the highest-grossing Hollywood animated film of all time, taking $1.8 billion at the global box office and earning an Academy Award nomination for best animated feature (Deadline). The original Zootopia, released in 2016, crossed $1 billion worldwide on its own.
That first film introduced the pairing at the franchise's centre: rabbit police officer Judy Hopps, voiced by Goodwin, and con-artist-turned-partner fox Nick Wilde, voiced by Jason Bateman. The world expanded beyond the features with Zootopia+, a spinoff series on Disney's streaming platform.
Zootopia 2 broadened the ensemble considerably. Fortune Feimster voiced Nibbles Maplestick, Andy Samberg played Pawbert Lynxley, David Strathairn took on Milton Lynxley, and Macaulay Culkin voiced Cattrick Lynxley. The cast also included Brenda Song as Kitt Lynxley, Quinta Brunson as Dr. Fuzzby, Robert Irwin as Robert Furwin, and Patrick Warburton as Brian Winddancer. Quan, an Oscar winner, joined that sequel as Gary De'Snake, a character introduced through the film's promotional rollout at Destination D23 in late 2025 and confirmed in cast materials ahead of the 26 November theatrical release (D23).
For fans, the third-film announcement means the animal metropolis is staying open for business. Quan's continued involvement, announced alongside Goodwin at D23, signals that at least one of the sequel's new faces is carrying forward into the next chapter. No release date, plot details, or further casting have been disclosed.
Disney's D23 events have served as the franchise's launchpad before. The studio used its Destination D23 gathering in August 2025 to share early news on Zootopia 2 alongside other titles including Hexed and Toy Story 5, before the film arrived in theatres that November (D23). The pattern is now repeating: a D23 stage, a returning star, and a franchise with a combined $2.8 billion and counting at the global box office.
