D23 Brazil kicked off today with the first major panel of the weekend, titled “Disney Studios Day 1: Walt Disney Animation, Pixar, Disney Live Action and 20th Century Animation.” Hosts Caról Moreíra and Otaviano Costa kicked off the festivities with Disney’s live-action slate, starting with Mufasa: The Lion King. To kick things off, Carlos Junior (aka Ca Ju) was joined by a troupe of singers for a rousing rendition of “Circle of Life” in Portuguese.
Director Barry Jenkins made an in-person visit to the event to explain why this story was so important for him to tell. “Mufasa is such a powerful character, a great king. For 25, 30 years, people have thought of him as someone born into royalty, born special. I come from a place in the U.S. that you could call the favela of America, so I’ve always identified with characters who come from humble beginnings but still achieve greatness. I felt that my background aligned with Mufasa’s story.”
Jenkins also touched on the fact that the prequel to The Lion King is a musical, with songs penned by Lin-Manuel Miranda in collaboration with Lebo M. “I’ve never made a musical before, so when Lin came on, I told him, ‘You show me where music fits into this movie.’ We also discussed the importance of Lebo M., whose voice is The Lion King. He sings the opening in all the films, representing the voice of Africa. Lin understood this deeply, and we brought Lebo and a choir from South Africa to capture that energy. Lin brought all the passion he’s shown in his other works to this film. Mufasa: The Lion King roars into theaters on December 20th.
Next up, Stitch caused a little chaos in a video that found Experiment 626 sneaking into the Transamérica Expo Center and getting into trouble backstage. It was essentially the same clip they played at D23 in Anaheim earlier this year, with Honda Center signage and an establishing shot changed, as well as the footage being dubbed in Portuguese. Disney’s live-action adaptation of Lilo & Stitch comes to theaters on May 22nd.
One of the most popular cosplays at the event is Snow White, specifically the upcoming live-action version (a standee photo op on the show floor had a long line all day). Star Rachel Zigler greeted the crowd through a pre-recorded video introduction, which fed into a new trailer for the film that hasn’t yet been released elsewhere. Snow White comes to theaters on March 20th.
D23 Brazil Snow White Footage Description:
- The film features scenes of young Snow White and her father, the King, before his death.
- Gal Gadot’s costume as the Evil Queen appears to be heavily inspired by early concept art from the 1937 animated feature, with a taller crown silhouette than the one fans are used to from the first Disney Villain.
- The prince, Jonathan (Andrew Burnap), seems to be a foe of the Evil Queen before Snow White is forced to flee the castle. A clip showed the Evil Queen having him escorted to the dungeon by guards, with Snow protesting her stepmother’s decision.
- “Mirror, Mirror on the Wall.” In a sequence where the Evil Queen summons her prismatic servant, it was revealed that the production design stayed very close to the theater mask face used in the animated classic.
- “Bring back her heart in this.” The Evil Queen’s keepsake box looks almost exactly like the one in the 1937 film, except this one is painted solid white, save for the heart-shaped clasp.
- Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (La La Land, The Greatest Showman) have contributed new songs for the film, and the footage included snippets of one called “Waiting on a Wish.” Sung by Rachel Zigler, she appeared to be singing the song from the castle, implying that it has replaced “I’m Wishing/One Song” in the film.
- Footage of the dwarfs in the mine features them riding mine carts on a winding path that looked like a roller coaster. It felt like a nod to the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train attraction at Walt Disney World and Shanghai Disney.
- Lastly, we saw the Wicked Witch arrive at the Dwarf’s cottage. Unlike in the animated film, not even the ravishes of time could destroy Gal Gadot’s beauty as the Evil Queen.
Tron: Ares was next to have its moment in the spotlight, with star Jared Leto preparing a video greeting to his Brazilian fans. D23 Brazil attendees got to see the same extended trailer that played at D23 in Anaheim in August, which is different from the trailer currently available to the public. The biggest highlight is seeing Jeff Bridges back in the game grid. The film will upload to theaters in October 10th, 2025.
20th Century Studios will present more at the second studio showcase of D23 Brazil, but 20th Century Stuios Animation got to make an animated announcement – Ice Age 6. In a short animated tease, Scrat is still trying to get around with a giant acorn, only now he has a baby who is about the same size as Scrat’s favorite snack. The film will find voice actors Ray Romano, Queen Latifah and John Leguizamo reprising their roles alongside Denis Leary and Simon Pegg.
Caról and Otaviano then passed over hosting duties. Jonas Rivera, executive vice president of Pixar Animation Studios, began the Pixar portion of the presentation by talking about an original piece of Disney art in his collection, a watercolor painted by legendary artist Mary Blair when she was in Brazil on Disney’s South America trip, which yielded projects like Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros. He gave a special thank you to Pixar fans in Brazil for making Inside Out 2 the highest grosing film of all time in their country. The Brazilian voice cast produced a special thank you video for the fans. Characters from Inside Out will next be seen in the Disney+ original series Dream Productions, set in the dream studio within Riley’s mind. D23 Brazil attendees were the first to see the debut episode, which will stream globally on December 11th. The episode was dubbed in Portuguese, but from what I could tell, the series will retain the franchise’s hilarious brand of humor while also touching on some heartfelt themes as the directors of Riley’s dreams take inspiration from the things that happened to her that day. There are also lots of fun jokes for film buffs, including directors who specialize in genres and one who exclusively shoots day dreams, which are treated like reality TV to these dream makers.
Also coming to Disney+ from Pixar is Win or Lose, with Rivera highlighting that it’s Pixar’s first all-original series. Attendees got to see a clip from the series in Portuguese, but the rest of the world will have to wait until February 19th.
Pixar’s next theatrical release is an original film, Elio, and Jonas Rivera joined the audience for the world premiere of the new trailer, which he hadn’t seen yet. The trailer was dubbed in Portuguese and was set to “Such Great Heights” by The Postal Service. Compared to the previous teaser trailer, the aliens Elio encountered seemed a lot less organized and more laid back. One scene showed him lounging with them on hover chairs drinking a purple confection that looked like boba tea.
First announced at D23 in August, Rivera shared the same footage from Hoppers with the D23 Brazil crowd. The film tells the story of Mabel, a girl obsessed with animals who takes part in an experiment that transfers her consciousness into a life-like robotic beaver. The animation style feels akin to Turning Red, with a look that feels like a cross between Pixar and Studio Ghibli. The film hops into theaters in Spring of 2026.
Looking even further ahead, Rivera teased Toy Story 5 and Incredibles 3. The same concept art for the fifth installment of the Toy Story saga that was shown at D23 in August was presented, along with the description that Buzz, Woody, and all their pals are faced with a new threat in Bonnie’s life – the latest screen-based tech gadget. Toy Story 5 is scheduled for release on June 19th, 2026.
As for Incredibles 3, there wasn’t much news to share. The film is still early in its development, so all he could really say is that the Parr family will be back. They’re still early in the story development process.
The presentation closed with the studio that started it all, Walt Disney Animation Studios. Jared Bush, chief creative officer, began his presentation by talking about how he started at Disney as a co-writer and co-director on the first Zootopia, and how fun it has been getting to go back there in Zootopia 2. The big announcement, made by Shakira herself (in a pre-recorded video greeting) is that Gazelle is returning with an all-new song and new outfit. Bush also showed the same clip that was seen at D23 in Anaheim, featuring Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps visiting Marsh Market on a new case that introduces them to a snake named Gary and a beaver named Nibbles. Zootopia 2 comes to theaters next November
The next Disney film on the release schedule, Moana 2, closed out the presentation. D23 Brazil attendees got to see the beginning of the film, from Moana’s epic return to the screen through the end of the opoening song, “We’re Back,” that brings her home to Motu Nui.
Prior to the presentation, Walt Disney Records released the first single from Moana 2, a ballad called “Beyond.” The presentation closed with a live performance by Brazilian singer/songwriter Any Gabrielly, who provides the voice of Moana in the Portuguese dub.
It’s going to be an exciting year for families at the movies thanks to Disney’s live-action and animation slate. Tomorrow, D23 Brazil will be showcasing projects from Disney’s studios that aim at a slightly older audience, including 20th Century Studios, Lucasfilm, and Marvel. Stay tuned.