By Alison Stateman
Music, magic, and sheer delight awaited fans at the Disney Entertainment Showcase at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event on Friday night. Fans were treated to a cavalcade of announcements and exclusive reveals about some of its most beloved brands and franchises, including updates about highly anticipated films and series such as Walt Disney Animation’s Zootopia 2, Disney and Pixar’s Toy Story 5, Disney’s Snow White, and Marvel Studios’ Captain America: Brave New World.
The crowd was primed for the evening with a preshow hosted by CoryLive with The Dueling DJs, DJ SP and DJ Keybo and hype crew, Skye Isaac and Sasha B, before Disney CEO Bob Iger took the stage to thunderous applause.
“Thank you for your warm welcome,” said Iger, while placing a hand over his heart in acknowledgment of the crowd’s enthusiastic greeting. “This is the first time in five years that I’ve been to D23, and over the years I’ve witnessed the special connection Disney has with its fans. Your passion drives us—and there’s nothing we love more than to surprise you and fill your hearts with joy and wonder. We know when we do that, we’ve done our job.”
Surprises and star power aplenty followed Iger’s greeting.
What follows are some of the biggest announcements, updates, and reveals from Disney Entertainment’s event on Friday at the Honda Center as well as show highlights from the evening:
Moana 2
Before getting to the major announcements, the Disney Entertainment Showcase opened with singing, dancing, and Dwayne Johnson hyping the crowd. All of it was to drum up excitement for one of the most anticipated films of the year, Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Moana 2.
Auliʻi Cravalho—the voice of Moana—performed the brand-new song from the film “We’re Back” alongside dancers and a band while Johnson, the voice of demigod Maui, did a call and response with the audience that shook the walls of the Honda Center. The film—which opens in theaters on November 27—debuted a new trailer and poster that celebrated one of Disney’s most popular and growing franchises.
The original Moana grossed nearly $700 million in 2016 before becoming a fan-favorite hit on Disney+.
Frozen 3
With more than $2.7 billion earned at the global box office, a significant product line, and countless renditions of “Let It Go,” one of the most popular cultural franchises of the past decade is Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Frozen.
And soon there will be even more from Anna, Elsa, and Olaf to keep the franchise warm in the hearts of fans of all ages everywhere when Frozen 3 debuts in 2027.
Jennifer Lee—Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios—showed off enchanting concept art from production designer Brittney Lee, which drew appreciative gasps from fans, as well as a logo for the new film.
Incredibles 3
Pete Docter—Pixar’s Chief Creative Officer—had a lot to be joyful about thanks to the recent successes and the future of the animation studios on Friday night.
“I’m D23-delighted to be here,” said Docter, before thanking fans for their support of Inside Out 2—which became the highest-grossing animated film of all time this summer. He also offered up updates about series such as 2024’s Win or Lose, the studio’s very first original long form series, and films like 2025’s Elio and 2026’s Toy Story 5. Additionally, Docter announced a new series coming to Disney+ in 2025, Dream Productions, based on the world of Inside Out, and a new feature film set for release in Spring 2026 called Hoppers.
However, one of the biggest surprises of the night was the announcement that Incredibles 3 is officially in the works, to which the crowd erupted in applause. Oscar®-winning filmmaker Brad Bird is currently developing the film.
The superhero series is one of the most popular and critically acclaimed franchises in all of animation with the first two films bringing in nearly $2 billion, collectively, and the original film winning the Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature.
Avatar: Fire And Ash
Disney Entertainment also shared a lot of news about its live-action slate of films… including one of the biggest film series in box office history: Avatar.
The science-fiction franchise had its stars—including Zoë Saldaña and Sam Worthington—and director and soon-to-be Disney Legend James Cameron in attendance to talk about the next film in the series, which debuts in theaters on December 19, 2025. The 20th Century Studios film also revealed concept art from the upcoming third installment, as well as its new title, Avatar: Fire And Ash.
Other Avatar sequels are set to be released in 2029 and 2031.
The Mandalorian & Grogu
Friday night’s event also featured everyone’s favorite bounty hunter and apprentice from the Star Wars galaxy.
Director Jon Favreau and producer Dave Filoni showed off new footage from the upcoming film, The Mandalorian & Grogu, to cheers and excitement inside the Honda Center.
The film—which hits theaters in 2026—is the first starring the characters from the hit Disney+ show. It’s also the first Star Wars film in theaters since 2019’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Daredevil: Born Again
Marvel Television’s Daredevil: Born Again, which launches on Disney+ in March 2025, brought out the cast of the street-level Super Hero series, including Charlie Cox, Vincent D’Onofrio, Deborah Ann Woll, Elden Henson, and Jon Bernthal
The series catches up with Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer with heightened abilities, and his nemesis, Wilson Fisk, who’s pursuing his own political endeavors in New York. The cast shared footage from the new series with D23 attendees.
TRON: Ares
The next film in the TRON series hit the stage in style on Friday night as star Jared Leto showed up on an iconic Lightcycle, alongside fellow cast members Jeff Bridges, Greta Lee, and Evan Peters.
The cast shared details about their characters and gave an in-room-only early look. The presentation then used red lasers to announce big news: the film’s music will be done by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross of Nine Inch Nails.
TRON: Ares—which is directed by Joachim Rønning and slated for theatrical release on October 10, 2025—follows a highly sophisticated Program, Ares, who is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission, marking humankind’s first encounter with A.I. beings.
Mufasa: The Lion King
To close out Disney Entertainment Showcase, Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King brought out Lebo M., who contributes to the film’s music, performing the iconic “Nants’ Ingonyama” alongside a full choir.
The film—which hits theaters on December 20—is directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Barry Jenkins and will explore the story of how Mufasa became one of the greatest kings of the Pride Lands.
Jenkins welcomed to the stage Mufasa songwriter Lin-Manuel Miranda in his first-ever D23 appearance. Together, they offered a special look at a sequence from the film featuring a new song, “I Always Wanted a Brother.” Jenkins was then joined by cast members Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, Theo Somolu, Braelyn Rankins, and Anika Noni Rose.
The crowd was also treated to the newest trailer for the film before it’s official release on Saturday.
The prequel continues the tradition of the original 1994 movie—which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year—and follows the cinematic style of 2019’s The Lion King, which made $1.6 billion at the global box office. The innovative approach blends live-action filmmaking techniques with photoreal computer-generated imagery.
In addition to the announcements and fan reveals, the audience was dazzled by an array of performances, including from Disney on Broadway’s hit productions such as Frozen, during which white-snow-like confetti drifted on the audience from the rafters during a stirring rendition of “Let It Go” by West End star Samantha Barks (who’ll soon be seen in a filmed version of Frozen the Musical on Disney+); additionally, a first look was revealed for their newest show in development The Greatest Showman. And fans of the hit Disney+ film Descendants: The Rise of Red were treated to a medley of songs performed by the cast following an introduction by the Queen of Hearts herself, Rita Ora, bedecked in a floor-length red gown. And there was some literal magic to boot, when famed magician David Blaine led the audience through an elaborate card trick with a specialty card deck provided at the top of the evening. This followed an official first look at his jaw-dropping series David Blaine: Do Not Attempt from Nat Geo.
Fans leaving the three-plus-hour show were abuzz with excitement about the Disney magic they witnessed—and for what’s to come.