From the early days of Walt Disney in the 1930s to the current-day blockbusters, animated movies continue to be a big draw for movie-goers worldwide, and a successful franchise can mean big bucks for a studio. Toy Story, South Park, Shrek / Puss In Boots, and Despicable Me / Minions are some of the well-known animated franchises set to release new movie installments over the next 12 months.
Unfortunately, studios have often focused on quantity over quality and have rushed sequels, spin-offs, and reboots to market without paying any mind to script quality. For every high-quality Toy Story 3 and Shrek 2, there are a load of The Land Before Time XIIIs and Pocahontas 2s, as outlined by Screen Rant. To save yourself from being consumed by the hundreds of questionable movies lurking out there in toon-land, we've put together the list below to allow you to explore 10 of the very best animated sequels ever made.
10 An American Tail: Fievel Goes West
During the 80s, American animator and film director Don Bluth posed a genuine threat to Disney. Disney was experiencing a lull in creativity, while Bluth, a former employee at Disney, had branched out and worked on a number of stone-cold classics including An American Tail, The Land Before Time, All Dogs go to Heaven, and The Secret of NIMH. However, that all changed at the turn of the decade. After the huge hit that was The Little Mermaid, Disney experienced a magnificent renaissance that saw them put out hit after hit in the 90s; meanwhile, Bluth’s output became less frequent, and studios began to churn out poor quality cash-grab sequels based on his works of the previous decade.
One of the sequels, however, An American Tail: Fievel Goes West, wasn’t a complete mess. In fact, it was a thoroughly entertaining and engaging animated Western. Following Fievel Mousekewitz and his family of Jewish-Ukrainian mice who emigrate to the Wild West, it is full of adventure and excitement ,and thanks to its vivid and rich animation and solid voice performances, it easily deserves a spot on a list of top animated sequels.
9 Wreck It Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks the Internet
Ralph Breaks the Internet is an interesting movie for several reasons. Despite numerous traditionally animated straight-to-video sequels and multiple Pixar sequels, this was the first computer animated sequel to be put out under the Walt Disney Animation Studios banner and the first sequel from the studio to be created by the original film's writing, directing, and producing team. The decision paid off, and the audience is treated to a movie more grandiose and daring than the original, dealing in a number of thought-provoking aspects of modern life. Wreck It Ralph 2 is a clever and witty satire that keeps the heart pumping the entire runtime.
8 The Rescuers Down Under
It may have seemed an odd choice for Disney to release a sequel to its 1977 minor hit The Rescuers more than a decade later. It’s even stranger when you learn that The Rescuers Down Under was the first animated film sequel theatrically released by the studio. It would appear the rest of the world thought it a bit odd, and being released on the same day as the blockbuster mega hit Home Alone, it’s not surprising it wasn’t a huge hit at the box office. It was, however, a hit with critics and those who did go and see it. Stunning animation paired with a real sense of adventure make for fine viewing for anyone willing to give this hidden gem a watch.
7 How to Train Your Dragon 3: The Hidden World
The first How to Train Your Dragon was a visually stunning fantasy film set in a mythical Viking world in which one young misfit goes against the grain after discovering that dragons needn’t be man's mortal enemy. This movie really had it all; top-notch animation, thrilling action sequences, humor, heart, the perfect music score, and a solid voice cast. While the second film was certainly anything but a disappointment, it was How to Train Your Dragon 3: The Hidden World that really recaptured everything that made the first so special, but on an even grander scale with a new and exciting premise involving the search for a hidden dragon utopia.
6 Toy Story 3
Toy Story 3 delivers exactly what you want from a Toy Story movie. It’s got the brilliant ensemble voice cast, the stunning computer-generated animation, the Randy Newman Score and a bunch of lovable (and not so loveable) toys getting into all kinds of shenanigans. This time around, the toys end up at a nursery daycare center where not everything is quite as it seems. Not only is the movie one of the funniest animations of all time, it’s also one of the most emotional, tugging on those heart strings as only Disney and Pixar know how.
5 Despicable Me 2
The Despicable Me franchise is one of the most surprising success stories of recent times. Acting as the first release for the newly founded Illumination Entertainment studio, Despicable Me caught the imagination of what seemed like every child across the globe. (Especially the ubiquitous mischievous little minions.) While the franchise has gone on to become the most successful animated franchise of all time, Despicable Me 2 is still the finest entry. It managed to further develop the characters introduced in the first movie before they went on to outstay their welcome.
4 Incredibles 2
One of the rare examples of a movie, animated or otherwise, that arguably supersedes the original. There’s no denying that Pixar choosing to enter into the superhero genre with a movie — which acts just as much as a sharp satire of sitcom like suburban life as it does an homage to the great comic book heroes of Marvel and DC that have come before them — was a stroke of genius. Incredibles 2 focused its attention on what made the original so enjoyable. There was more time spent on focusing on the heroes’ home lives and more Jack Jack, this combined with the improvement in technology, resulting in sharper animation, makes it one of the greatest superhero movies of all time.
3 Shrek 2
When Shrek was released in 2001, it became a huge international hit, appealing to adults and children alike, cleverly blending playful characters and fairy-tale tropes with some hidden mature humor and parodies thrown in for the adults. The animation was beautiful, and the voice cast was stellar. A sequel was inevitable, but to keep it fresh, DreamWorks decided to throw in a few new characters, the most notable being Puss in Boots. Voiced by Antonio Banderas, Puss quickly became a fan favorite. He was inspired by the title character of the fairy tale "Puss in Boots," but clearly based on Banderas’ own portrayal of Zorro, from The Mask of Zorro, released 6 years prior. While maybe not quite as ground-breaking as the original Shrek, Shrek 2 went onto become a huge hit at the box office, breaking numerous records at the time.
2 Finding Dory
This is one of Disney’s most charming and visually appealing movies ever made. Like many on this list, it had a heck of a lot to live up to. Without completely re-treading the same waters, Finding Dory expanded on its predecessor by further developing fan favorite characters, as well adding in a host of new ones. When describing Finding Dory, most will think of the word funny or humorous — and it's true; there is humor and wit in abundance — but it’s also one of Pixar’s most poignant movies, and that’s saying a lot. You’d be hard pushed to find anyone who can sit through it without shedding at least a tear or two. This thought-provoking, tale of friendship and perseverance is nothing short of genius.
1 Toy Story 2
Choosing the best Toy Story is tough as each one is fantastic and a masterpiece in its own right. Seeing as this list is about sequels, we can start by removing the ground-breaking original. While the third movie certainly deserves a mention (see No. 6) The second has got to be the finest Toy Story sequel and arguably the greatest animated sequel ever made. With an ultra-rare 100% approval rating on review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, it is hard to deny Toy Story 2’s brilliance. There are the stellar voice performances from the likes of Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Don Rickles, Wallace Shawn, and Jim Varney, and the Randy Newman-led soundtrack. There’s the story which deals with themes of isolation and rejection, loneliness and loyalty, and then there’s the humor, action and adventure. Slightly darker in tone, but no less playful, Toy Story 2 manages to delve deeper into the characters we’d fallen in love with from our time spent with them in the original and added an exciting new chapter to the franchise.