2020 is shaping up to be a solid year for feature films across the board, but don’t sleep on the animated movie slate. The calendar year has a lot to offer, whether you’re looking for big-budget franchise films, animated adaptations of your favorite TV characters or video games, a pair of Pixar flicks, or some incredible films from overseas, be it Japanese anime or new works from acclaimed animation studios. There’s quite a few titles to keep track of, so we’ve put them all here for you in one convenient location.
But rather than just give you a list of movies, we’ve also curated that list with the few that we’re most excited for over the next few months. We’re not only giving you a heads up on when these movies are due to hit theaters, but also a bit about the story, the talented team behind the scenes, and why we’re curious to check them out. Enjoy!
Just so you have them all in one handy place, here’s a list of animated movies due out in theaters this year:
Major Releases:
*Expect some of these titles to change dates
And for the weebs out there, here are some anime feature film releases (in Japan) to keep an eye out for:
Release Date TBD:
Bigfoot Superstar
Release Date:TBD
I genuinely can’t even adequately describe how tickled I am by the premise ofBigfoot Superstar, the sequel to the 2017 Belgian-French featureSon of Bigfoot(pictured above). Teenager Adam—the titular son of the actual mythic Bigfoot from the first film—has decided to use the superpowers granted to him as a member of the Bigfoot family to rocket to international stardom, a station he plans to use to protect the environment. Delightful. Just all-around delightful.Son of Bigfootco-directorsBen Stassen(Fly Me to the Moon) andJérémie Degruson(Thunder and the House of Magic) will return for the sequel, directing a script by duoBob BarlenandCal Brunker(Escape from Planet Earth). –Vinnie Mancuso
Wolfwalkers
Wolfwalkersis the next big title from acclaimed Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon. The production house, responsible for incredibly artistic and unique moviesThe Secret of Kells,Song of the Sea, andThe Breadwinner, will be teaming up with AppleTV+ for distribution of the new movie, so we don’t quite have a release date or clear picture of how that rollout is going to work.
What wedoknow is that two-time Oscar-nomineeTomm Mooreis teaming up with the studio’s artist/art directorRoss Stewartto direct from a story they wrote together;Will Collins(Song of the Sea) handled screenplay duties. The story follows a young hunter-in-training named Robyn who travels to Ireland with her father to wipe out wolves once and for all. But a friendship forged when Robyn saves the wild native girl Mebh leads her to discover the Wolfwalkers … and put her in the crosshairs of her very own father.
Honestly, whatever Cartoon Saloon comes out with, we’re excited to see it. We just hope this one makes its 2020 release.- Dave Trumbore
Sonic the Hedgehog
Release Date:February 14th
I’m not sure why we bothered with the “animated” qualifier, becauseSonic the Hedgehogis easily my most anticipated film of the year in any genre or medium. I literally cannot wait to see this movie for free on streaming in five months or so. The movie was famously delayed for several months to redesign the titular hedgehog with an attitude after the initial trailer was met with a nuclear fan reaction over Sonic’s stygian design. And while the hedgehog himself admittedly looks much better, Sonic wasn’t the only problem with that first trailer. The movie around him looks like a derivative children’s adventure comedy from the mid ‘80s, likeE.T.if E.T. told jokes and befriended an adult man, and also wasn’t a very good movie. That said,Jim Carreyseems to be having a lot of fun as the preening mad scientist Dr. Robotnick, and I do think there’s fun to be had with the fish-out-of-water premise. Why this wasn’t a fully-animated film set in the world ofSonic the Hedgehogis beyond me, but then I wouldn’t get to see Carrey with a crazy Wario mustache, and I don’t want to live in that world.- Tom Reimann
Release Date:March 6th
Onwardmarks a new original story from the fine folks at Pixar animation (specifically directorDan Scanlon), and the trailers thus far have teased an exciting blend of fantasy and deep-rooted emotion. The story takes place in a fantastical world that’s also a little mundane—there are unicorns, but they’re regular ol’ pests who rummage through people’s garbage. The heart of the story is two brothers—Chris Prattplays the oldest, andTom Hollandplays the younger of the two. Holland’s character never met their father, who died before he was old enough to interact, so the two conjure a spell that will bring their dad back for one day. The only problem is the spell half-works—they brought back his legs, but nothing else. The clock is ticking on them to fix the spell before time runs out, but instead of the world or some metropolis being at stake, it’s the chance for a young boy to finally meet his father. If that doesn’t bring on the waterworks, I’m not sure what will. –Adam Chitwood
Trolls World Tour
Release Date:April 17th
Trollsis one of those brazen IP plays that worked a lot better than it should have. Though it didn’t accomplish the innovative and heartfelt heights ofThe LEGO Movie, the 2016 film similarly built a charming feature film on the backbone of… a popular toy. In this case, the ugly-cute Troll Dolls that littered countless childhood bedrooms and (again, like LEGOs) threatened unsuspecting under soles for decades. Like the namesake toys,Trollswas soft and silly but still, an energetic and vibrant burst of positive energy.
Picking up where the first film left off,Trolls World TourfindsAnna KendrickandJustin Timberlakereturning as Poppy and Branch, who are exploring new worlds of Trolldom after they discovered they were one of six Troll tribes from different lands, each with their own culture and music. But when they meet a clan of hard rock Trolls who want to destroy all music but Rock ‘n Roll (including standout newcomersRachel BloomandOzzy Osbourne), they have to unify the rest of the Troll lands to save their jaunty tunes. Thefirst trailerspromise more dazzling all-the-colors-of-the-rainbow animation and no doubt another uplifting story about acceptance, both of yourself and others. –Haleigh Foutch
Release Date:May 5th
Confession: I do not likeScooby-Doo. It doesn’t make any sense, given how many things about the property I love. Mysteries? Detectives? Spooky stuff? Groups of found families? Saturday morning cartoons? The intersection between silly comedy and gentle horror? The revelation of real identities via removing masks?! Good doggos?!?!Scooby-Doowas made for me, daddy. And yet, neither any single episode of any single cartoon spin-off, nor either of theRaja Gosnelllive-action feature films ever worked for me. Why? I guess that’s a mystery not even the Mystery Machine could ever solve. And yet, a bigger one lurks on the horizon: Why, as an on-the-record non-fan ofScooby Doo, am I so excited forScoob!? It could be in part because of its obvious heart. The film alternates between two moments in time: The present day Mystery Inc. crew (featuring a star-studded cast ofZac Efronas Fred,Will Forteas Shaggy,Gina Rodriguezas Velma, andAmanda Seyfriedas Daphne), and the formative years when a younger Shaggy first met Scooby-Doo. Ubiquitous voice actorFrank Welkervoices the title role in both timelines, and watching his trademark gruff “r-forward” voice coming out of a little doggo is surprisingly touching – not to mention the fact that, according to the trailer, his and Shaggy’s meeting came from standing up to a bully (a surefire way to warm my heart). It could also be because of the contemporary sense of humor:Kelly Fremon Craig’s screenplay is on full display in the trailer, full of witticisms and character games that really tickle me. Finally, it could be because the central mystery this go-around centers not just around a genuine threat that feels hard to explain with a mask (people are trying to summon the friggin’ mythological dog Cerberus!), but around a series of goofy cameos as Hanna Barbera cartoons (Jason Isaacsas Dick Dastardly is something I need in my life immediately). Ultimately, I don’t fully know whyScoob!speaks to me so. But you best believe I’ma get myself some Scooby snacks and check it out opening weekend. -Gregory Lawrence
Release Date:June 19th
Here’s how to get me excited about a movie: Promise performers accurately playing the instruments they’re supposed to be playing. It is such a pet peeve of mine to see a close-up of an actor’s face playing an instrument, be like “Looks fine!”, wait for the camera to pan down, and instantly realize they are absolutelynotplaying that instrument – whether they’re not playing any actual guitar chord, are clumsily flopping their hands on a piano, or smacking a crash cymbal behind a drum kit when there is clearly no crash cymbal hit happening. But if even in your trailer I can tell the performers at least convinced us enough to fake playing the instrument accurately, ooh do I get excited. This is a trick that’s worked on me in both live action works likeLa La Landand animated works likeCoco. And wouldn’t ya know it, Pixar hath struck again withSoul.
The moment I sawJamie Foxx’s music teacher/aspiring jazz musician play piano, and saw how expertly his fingers struck those chords… yes, I know they’re not real fingers, and yes I know it’s the result of computer animators being absolute technical wizards, but dammit, it moves me in my heart, body, and you know I’m about to say soul. But then the film, just likeCocobefore, hits us with a left turn – Foxx’s music teacher/aspiring jazz musician, moments after securing the gig that could open everything for him, friggin’ falls into a sewer and dies! And his soul is accidentally transported into a training center for other, new souls, voiced by a bunch of ringers likeTina Fey(also a co-writer on the film). Can he help these nascent souls find their passions, get himself back to Earth in his own body, and get to the gig? I don’t know. But I do know that if Pixar combines their dexterity for emotional brutality with continuously accurate instrument playing,Soulwill never stop making me cry. -Gregory Lawrence
Bob’s Burgers: The Movie
Release Date:July 17th
We don’t really know much of anything about thisBob’s Burgersmovie, but 10 seasons and counting ofLoren Bouchard’s effortlessly charming animated Fox series have more than earned our trust. This show is consistently silly and sweet and nice, which goes a long way in this day and age. Bouchard has said the movie will be a musical, which is in line with the show’s penchant for musical numbers, and I’m eager to see what Bouchard does with an expanded budget and much longer running time.
Again, the level of quality thatBob’s Burgershas maintained for 10 seasons means there’s really no reason to be anything but psyched for their first feature film outing. –Adam Chitwood
The One and Only Ivan
Release Date:August 14th
Hopefully you’re full-on prepared to weep human tears over a silverback gorilla, because Disney is adaptingThe One and Only Ivaninto a feature film. Based on the Newberry Medal-winning book by prolific YA authorK.A. Applegate, the film follows the title primate—voiced by Oscar-winnerSam Rockwell—who lives in captivity in the Exit 8 Big Top Mall along with an elephant named Stella (Angelina Jolie) and stray dog named Bob (Danny DeVito). Tranquil mall-zoo life starts to change when Ivan is tasked with caring for a new, abused baby elephant named Ruby(Brooklynn Prince) and the custodian’s daughter, Julia (Ariana Greenblatt).
The book itself is delightful and poignant, and the fact it ended up in the hands of Disney means you know it’ll be a good old-fashioned feelings-fest. English theater director turned filmmakerThea Sharrock(Me Before You) is in the director’s chair on this one, with a script byMike White(School of Rock,Nacho Libre). Rounding out the genuinely kind of voice stacked cast isHelen Mirren,Bryan Cranston, andIndira Varma. -Vinnie Mancuso
The Mitchells vs. The Machines
Release Date:September 18th
Some of the 2010s best animation came from two independent groups:Phil LordandChristopher Miller(The Lego Movie,Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse, et al), and the creative team behindGravity Falls. So when you give me a movie likeThe Mitchells vs. The Machines, and tell me that Lord and Miller are producing it, andGravity FallsalumniJeff LoweandMike Riandaare writing and directing it together, I get very excited. These folks’ styles are marked by raucous senses of humor, a postmodern sense of joy, a refreshingly mature take on the emotional issues of children (both character and audience), and a gigantic dang heart.
On this topical-feeling team-up, the Mitchells are a dysfunctional family doing their best to get through a road trip. But then: Apocalypse! Specifically, in the form of all of our pieces of technological convenience deciding they’ve had enough and turning on us. Phones, self-driving cars, helpful robots – all of them are taking over, and it’s up to the Mitchells (alongside their undoubtedly adorable dog) to pull through, persevere, and just maybe, save the world. Additionally, the Mitchells will be joined by a couple of malfunctioning robots, inadvertent turncoats that just might be the keys to solutions we need. The flick seems to be keen on introducing concepts ofBlack Mirror-esque hard sci-fi to a younger audience, cut with a delightfully daffy sense of humor and relatable family drama. For all of this, and for the pedigree of talent involved, I am quite excited forThe Mitchells vs. The Machines. I just hope my iPhone doesn’t, like, zap me to death before it comes out. -Gregory Lawrence
