It’s been almost four years since we last saw Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven in “Frozen 2” – aka the highest-grossing animated movie ever. Now, we’ve got an update for plans for “Frozen 3,” straight from Disney Animation chief creative officer Jennifer Lee, who co-directed the first two “Frozen” films.
“Every morning last week they carved out space for me to work with the creative team on [“Frozen 3″], and I am blown away and I am so excited,” she said during a conversation at BFI London Film Festival on Oct. 5, per Variety. “I don’t know what I’m doing on it yet – I’m not doing nothing – except doing what I do now, which is we work on every project as as team and I’m in there with creative. But with ‘Frozen,’ just a little bit more.”
As for the inspiration for the third installment, she said, “Our philosophy is this, and it won’t change: If there is more story to tell, the filmmakers have to drive it. And I’ll say with ‘Frozen,’ Marc Smith, who was our director of story on ‘Frozen 2,’ came with an incredible idea for more ‘Frozen,’ and it’s worth it.”
Back in February, Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed that a “Frozen” sequel was in the works. At the time, he also announced “Toy Story” and “Zootopia” sequels and said, “We’ll have more to share about these productions soon, but this is a great example of how we’re leaning into our unrivaled brands and franchises,” per Deadline.
The Frozen cast has also had a lot of fun through the years joking around about a possible continuation. Idina Menzel, who voices Elsa, addressed the sequel rumors during an appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” in September 2022. Fallon told her that when her costar Kristen Bell, who voices Anna, appeared on the show, she “unofficially” announced “Frozen 3.” When Fallon asked Menzel about it, she said, “I can unofficially claim with no backing that there’ll be a ‘Frozen 4’ and ‘5.’” She added later, “I love it because I’d like to pay my son’s college.”
So what do we actually know about the future of the Frozen franchise?? We’ve rounded up everything we know so far about “Frozen 3.”
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Will There Be a "Frozen 3"?
Iger confirmed that a new “Frozen” sequel was in the works earlier this year. Lee’s comments on Oct. 5 confirm that the film is in the development stage, which means it could still be quite a long way off.
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What Will "Frozen 3" Be About?
What the plot of the new movie will be remains a mystery, though perhaps “Frozen 2” has some clues. “I mean, nothing ever closes the door,” codirector and writer Chris Buck told Insider when “Frozen 2” came out in 2019. “As we say in our lives, ‘never say never.’ But for us, that’s what got us figuring out what the story [of ‘Frozen 2’] would be a few years ago. What if we could tell one complete story? A lot of things in ‘Frozen 2’ answer some of the questions in ‘Frozen,’ or questions you didn’t know about.”
The end of “Frozen 2” saw some major changes in Arendelle, with Elsa becoming the “fifth spirit” tying together the magical and human worlds. As she spends more time with the Northuldra people, Anna takes over as Queen of Arendelle, with Kristoff (and Olaf and Sven!) by her side. A potential third movie could explore any (or all) of this, from the new challenges facing Anna as Queen to more magical mayhem that sends Elsa back to Arendelle for aid.
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Who Will Be in the "Frozen 3" Cast?
Both Bell and Menzel have said that they’d be excited to reprise their roles as Anna and Elsa in a third Frozen movie. Meanwhile, costar Jonathan Groff (Kristoff) has been a little more noncommittal but still enthusiastic. On an appearance on “The Tonight Show,” he raved about two of his recent star-making projects.
“I feel like, even though those projects seem very different, ‘Frozen’ and ‘Mindhunter,’ I feel like a third ‘Frozen’ and a third season of ‘Mindhunter’ are equally possible,” he teased in April 2022, as reported by CinemaBlend.
Actor Josh Gad, who voices Olaf, has also been vocal about his excitement for a new film. When Iger announced a sequel was in the works, Gad tweeted the news and wrote, “Excited to head back… into the Unknown.”
