Frozen 3 is on for 2027, and it’s throwing back to... Sleeping Beauty?

Early in 2023, when The Walt Disney Company was reeling from a string of whiffs — and the box-office trip-ups of The Marvels and Wish were still on the horizon — CEO Bob Iger took the mic at an earnings call and said you can bet your ass we’re making a Frozen 3. OK, not an exact quote. He was a bit more formal about it. But still: Disney was going back to the Arendelle well for a surefire hit. Now we have confirmation: Announced out of the D23 Expo, Frozen 3 is officially in the works and on the release calendar for 2027. And it’s being developed as a two-part story, with Frozen 4 also in the works. Concept art for the movie looks like the finished product could be a major departure for the icy blue tones of the past. In fact, it looks like a cel straight out of 1959’s Sleeping Beauty. [Media: https://x.com/GermainLussier/status/1822108118597447718] In 2013, the first Frozen became an an instant phenomenon for Walt Disney Animation, spawning shorts, theme park attractions, and a Broadway musical. A sequel wasn’t necessarily given — Disney has traditionally left “part 2” business to its home video studios — but in the current blockbuster environment, also felt inevitable. It only took Disney two years to put Frozen II on the calendar in 2019, alongside a banner year which included Avengers: Endgame and Toy Story 4. There’s been little word on Frozen III since the sequel, and the D23 presentation was light on plot details. But a striking bit of art gives the film promise in a sea of sequels, while a release date years away means the team of artists behind it won’t have to crunch to get it done. Frozen II which was a notoriously challenging production. The threequel could be something special, if Disney lets it happen.