Six months ago, Frozen 2 seemed inevitable, but there was no news. Now, today, well… Frozen 2 seems inevitable, but there is no news. Nearly a year after the first movie came out and became the biggest animated movie ever, Disney has yet to announce a sequel—and for admirable reasons, too. It's letting the creators take their time with this one. But don’t worry—there’s lots of other Frozen stuff coming out, from the next season of “Once Upon a Time” to the new short film to the Broadway show. But those are all appetizers for the inevitable main course.
Frozen 2 News
Frozen 2, surprisingly enough, simply isn’t the priority for Disney right now. Remember that Frozen made about one and a quarter billion dollars. But Disney, unlike so many of its competitors, knows something about golden geese: You don’t milk them. Because they’re geese, not cows. You give them time to develop, don’t rush them, and then, when you’re ready… okay, the metaphor falls apart at that point. But rushing Frozen 2 out the door in a single year would only kill the series before its time. Most of the classic Disney movies of the ‘90s—Lion King, Aladdin, Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast—never had theatrical sequels at all, and probably never will.
That may not be the case for Frozen. The market is different now. But Disney doesn’t need to rush Frozen 2, just like it didn’t need to rush a sequel to Aladdin to keep generating revenue from it. The ancillary materials will keep Frozen alive for years. DVDs and merchandise are just the beginning; there’s also that Broadway show, and video games, and that short film, and so much else. Disney CEO Bob Iger understands that he can wait until the filmmakers want to make Frozen 2. When Disney is ready to create a story as compelling as the first one, it’ll surely have carte blanche to do so. But until then, what’s the rush?
I know we all want Frozen 2 right the heck now, but really, we’ll be better off leaving the filmmakers to take their time. And it’s not like Disney is leaving us totally high and dry: We’re getting Frozen Fever in the spring. That short film will be a little lighter and goofier, a tale of Anna’s birthday party and various hi jinks that ensue. And there’s going to be a crossover with “Once Upon A Time” next season, too, as teased by the end of the last one. And the Broadway show will be an inevitable hit for many years to come. But Disney wants Frozen 2 to be just as good as the original, and for that it have to wait until director Jennifer Lee and her team are good and ready to make another, however long that may be.
