2021 was great for animated movies and reaffirmed the idea that there is somewhat of a modern renaissance in the animation industry that’s been growing over the last decade or so. Disney in particular had a successful 2021, with Raya and the Last Dragon, Encanto, and its Pixar offering Luca all receiving critical acclaim (and winning the Oscar for Encanto). Elsewhere, Netflix flexed its animation muscles with The Mitchells vs. The Machines, and 20th Century Studios delivered the biggest and most pleasant surprise with Ron’s Gone Wrong, a charming and family-friendly satirical take on the role Big Tech giants play in our society.
Updated August 30, 2022: This article has been updated to reflect changes to the 2022 film schedule, with Mario and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse delayed to 2023. As September approaches, let's look back at the most anticipated films that have come out, and the many exciting releases still to come.
2022 has turned out to be an even bigger year for fans of animated movies, with the added bonus of having more of the movies opening at movie theaters around the country than last year due to the easing of COVID-related restrictions (although there will be a few notable exceptions). From spinoffs of Pixar classics to dark stop-motion features, here are the most anticipated animated movies of 2022.
Turning Red (March 11, 2022)
Disney and Pixar’s coming-of-age fantasy comedy film Turning Red centers around Meilin "Mei" Lee, a confident 13-year-old Chinese-Canadian as she tries to navigate the chaos of adolescence. The nightmare of puberty and high school family drama is stressful enough, but to top it off, when Mei gets over-stressed or excited, she transforms into a giant red panda. A brilliantly creative exploration of puberty that's delivered with heaps of heart and humor, Turning Red is a new addition to Pixar’s immaculate track record.
Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (March 18, 2022)
Jujutsu Kaisen 0 was released in Japan last year as the highest-earning movie in the country for 2021, but it got a worldwide release in 2022. The film was universally praised, with a 98% on Rotten Tomatoes and a nearly $200 million box office gross. The movie is directed by Sunghoo Park and served as a prequel to the popular anime series. The plot centers on student Yuta Okkotsu as he enrolls in Jujutsu High. Now controlling the extremely powerful spirit of his childhood friend, he will need to learn to control this cursed energy.
The Bad Guys (April 22, 2022)
The Bad Guys was a celebrated crime comedy from DreamWorks about a gang of nefarious anthropomorphic criminals who now have to walk the line and turn their lives around to avoid prison. Will it be that simple for Mr. Wolf, Mr. Piranha, Mr. Snake, Mr. Shark, and Ms. Tarantula? The movie has a similar twist on the heist genre that Shrek did on fairy tales and what Kung Fu Panda did for the kung fu genre, and featured an incredible voice acting cast including Marc Maron, Sam Rockwell, Craig Robinson, and Awkwafina among others.
The Bob's Burgers Movie (May 27, 2022)
Based on the long-running Emmy-winning series, 20th Century have decided to play with the formula a little here and add a more musical element to The Bob’s Burgers movie adaptation. If you're not familiar with Bob's Burgers, the movie's difficult to describe; it's an animated musical-comedy-mystery-adventure that's just a little more mature than family-friendly but still fun for kids. The plot revolves around the Belcher kids as they try to solve a mystery that could save the restaurant after a ruptured water main creates an enormous sinkhole right in front of Bob's restaurant, blocking the entrance indefinitely. To most people, it turned out to be much more than just a long episode of Bob's Burgers.
South Park: The Streaming Wars Pt. 1 & 2 (June 1/July 13, 2022)
The extent to which this can be considered a feature film is debatable, although when combined the two parts of this special creates a feature-length runtime. On August 5, 2021, it was announced that 14 new original movies based on the series were green-lit at Paramount+, Parker and Stone would later state that the projects would not be feature films, and that it was ViacomCBS who decided to advertise them as movies. Fast-forward a few months, and they released South Park: Post Covid and South Park: Post Covid: The Return of Covid which fell somewhere between being movies and being specials.
Either way, they were both enjoyable as hell, and the good news is that fans of the irreverent comedy series got a two-part animated story, The Streaming Wars, over the summer. Filled with funny moments but surprisingly complicated, The Streaming Wars was a clever double entendre of a title referring to both the artistic catastrophe that is 'the streaming wars' between platforms and services, and the very true fact that the Colorado River is running out of water, America is running dry, and climate change will kill us all. Typical South Park fun, and very well done.
Lightyear (June 17, 2022)
Toy Story is one of the most beloved Pixar animated movies of all time and Buzz Lightyear is one of the most beloved animated characters. From his introduction to the world as a misguided toy under the belief he was the actual space explorer his toy was based on, to the inspirational and integral part of the gang of toys, Buzz Lightyear has special place in many people’s hearts. It seemed to be only natural, though, that people would be champing at the bit to discover the origin story for the titular character, but that wasn't the case.
This wasn't exactly what Lightyear delivered, with Chris Evans voicing the Buzz Lightyear who exists in the fictional movies within the Toy Story universe, the media that the Buzz Lightyear action figure was based on. Despite its great voice cast (including Keke Palmer and Taika Waititi) and the numerous, fun sci-fi movie references, the film barely made back its ridiculous budget ($200 million) and was avoided by some people for the inclusion of a gay kiss. Regardless of what someone thinks of the film, the ultimate results seem disappointing.
Minions: The Rise of Gru (July 1, 2022)
At one point, the little mischievous Minions characters were absolutely everywhere, and while their popularity seems to have waned a little over the last year, Minions: The Rise of Gru might be what it takes to bring the critters back into the world’s collective consciousness. The story follows the lovable yet despicable Gru (voiced again by Steve Carell) as he navigates his way in the world of super villains, with a little help from his minions. Sporting an all-star voice cast including RZA, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Lucy Lawless, Dolph Lundgren, Danny Trejo, Russell Brand, Julie Andrews, and Alan Arkin, there were plenty of reasons to be excited about this one, and this film recently passed $500 million at the box office as of writing.
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero (August 19, 2022)
After 20 official films, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, will be the first ever to be produced mainly using 3D animation. While the announcement may have divided some fans of the popular Japanese franchise, there’s still a real sense of anticipation and excitement within the community regarding this upcoming fantasy adventure film. This time around the ‘Red Ribbon Army’ is back, and stronger than ever.
Wendell and Wild (October 28, 2022)
Wendell and Wild is an upcoming stop-motion animated dark fantasy comedy horror film from the twisted minds of Henry Selick (his first feature film since Coraline), Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, and Clay McLeod Chapman. The movie will also star Key and Peele as the titular demons. The animated film is premiering at TIFF, and is a highly anticipated Netflix release that will follow the demon brothers Wendell and Wild as they use a child to lead them out of their underworld, until they must face their arch-nemesis, the demon-dusting nun Sister Helly, and her two acolytes, the goth teens Kat and Raoul.
My Father's Dragon (November 4, 2022)
Coming to Netflix in November, My Father's Dragon is an adaptation of the 1948 book of the same name that sees a young boy save a captured dragon. The film features voice performances from the great young child actors Jacob Tremblay (Room) and Gaten Matarazzo (Stranger Things), along with a stellar suppporting cast (Judy Greer, Dianne Wiest, Chris O'Dowd, Alan Cumming, Whoopi Goldberg, Ian McShane, and more).
My Father's Dragon is a collaboration between Netflix and Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon; the studio's last film was the Academy Award-nominated Wolfwalkers, and My Father's Dragon is helmed by Nora Twomey, who directed the Academy Award-nominated animated films The Breadwinner and The Secret of Kells, so this movie has a lot of creative talent behind it.
Strange World (November 23, 2022)
The latest film from Walt Disney Animation Studio, Strange World follows the Clades family, a legendary family of explorers on a mission to a mysterious planet inhabited by surreal lifeforms. The movie is helmed by Big Hero 6 director Don Hall and has a voice cast that includes Jake Gyllenhall, Gabrielle Union, Lucy Liu, Jaboukie Young-White, and Dennis Quaid. In contrast to Pixar Animation's Lightyear which draws inspiration from the science fiction of the 70s and 80s, Strange World is more inspired by pulp science fiction stories of the 40s and 50s.
Walt Disney Animation's last attempts in science fiction adventure were box office disappointments like Treasure Planet and Atlantis: The Lost Empire, yet the studio is hoping the Thanksgiving weekend that worked wonders for Frozen, Encanto, and Moana will boost this film over the holiday season.
Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio (December 9, 2022)
Director Guillermo del Toro will be delivering his take on the iconic Pinocchio story in the form of a stop-motion feature as well. If his previous work is anything to go by, it’s bound to be dark, atmospheric, and full of emotion. Co-directed with Mark Gustafson, the duo has enlisted the likes of Ewan McGregor, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Christoph Waltz, and Tilda Swinton to lend their voices to the project.
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (December 21, 2022)
Always one of the most popular characters in the immensely successful Shrek series and for 500 years, Puss in Boots, voiced by Antonio Banderas, eventually became the star of his own spin-off movie Puss in Boots in 2011, which became a box office hit in its own right. Well, since then it seems he has been a busy little kitty and has now burned through eight of his nine lives. Puss in Boots: The Last Wish sees Puss set out on an epic journey to find the mythical Last Wish and restore his nine lives.
Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again (TBC, 2022)
Based on the popular Night at the Museum franchise in which a museum night watchman Larry, played by Ben Stiller, ends up in all sorts of shenanigans as all the exhibits magically come to life after dark. Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again will be the first animated entry into the franchise and will focus on Larry’s son as he hesitantly follows in his father’s footsteps at the museum. Fan-favorites Owen Wilson, Steve Coogan, and Ricky Gervais will be returning to lend their voices to the project while David Hornsby will be taking over from the late Robin Williams to voice Theodore Roosevelt. Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again will be a Disney+ exclusive.