Disney’s D23 fan convention reveals Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar news and more

If you’re hankering for Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar news, then prepare to have your mind blown.

Samuel L. Jackson in Secret Invasion. Picture: Marvel

Disney’s fan extravaganza was held over the weekend and, as usual, it did not disappoint when it comes to a bevy of new announcements and trailers for Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar and more.

Secret Invasion

Samuel L. Jackson leads this Disney+ show as Nick Fury, the mostest spy in all spydom. The first trailer was revealed, giving fans a proper look at the thriller series which co-stars Ben Mendelsohn, Cobie Smulders, Olivia Colman and Emilia Clarke. It has paranoid vibes – and you’re bound to be too given it’s a story about a factional of alien shapeshifters infiltrating Earth. Who can you trust after that?

Ironheart

Black Panther director Ryan Coogler was on stage to offer a glimpse of streaming series Ironheart, which is set after Wakanda Forever. Title character Riri Williams will make her onscreen debut in the Black Panther sequel before spinning off into her own Disney+ show. Fans in the room saw a clip of Riri (Dominique Thorne) and a villain (Anthony Ramos) discussing the theft of materials from a MIT lab. Ironheart is due for release in 2023.

Armour Wars

Don Cheadle, aka Rhodey 2.0, was there to reveal that the War Machine-focused streaming series will be six parts with filming to start next year. And we now know the timeline too – it takes place after Secret Invasion.

Fantastic Four

Marvel boss Kevin Feige confirmed Matt Shakman would direct the upcoming Fantastic Four movie. Shakman is best known in the Marvel Cinematic Universe for helming WandaVision. Spider-Man’s Jon Watts was previously attached but he dropped out of the production some time ago.

Thunderbolts

If you’ve been wondering who the Thunderbolts will be, wonder no longer. A team-up of superheroes adjacent to the Avengers, the morally grey Thunderbolts will consist of Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Allegra de Fontaine, Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes, Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova, David Harbour’s Red Guardian, Hannah John-Kamen’s Ghost, Olga Kurylenko’s Taskmaster and Wyatt Russell as US Agent. The film will be in cinemas in July, 2024.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina in Black Widow. Picture: Marvel

Captain America: New World Order

Tim Blake Nelson is coming back to the MCU in Captain America: New World Order, after last appearing in The Incredible Hulk in 2008. He will join Carl Lumby, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas and, of course, Anthony Mackie. Mackie’s Sam Wilson is now the fully fledged Captain America after the events of Falcon and Winter Soldier. Julius Onah is directing from a script by Malcolm Spellman and Dalan Mussan.

The Marvels

With the first trailer – not yet released online – scored to the Beastie Boys’ Intergalactic Planetary, it’s obvious The Marvels has high ambitions. Brie Larson, Iman Vellani and Teyonah Parris took to the stage to show off the first look, which contextualises the body swaps that happened at the end of Ms Marvel. It seems the three superheroes’ powers are linked, leading to the creation of a superteam.

Loki S2

Production is underway for the second season of Loki, and it’ll pick up after the world-shifting events of the first series. What fans glimpsed inside the room featured Loki returning to the offices of Time Variance Authority, now dirty and unkempt rather than the modernist design paradise of the original timeline, while Sylvie is London with a heap of other Loki variants.

Loki’s second season is in production now.

Echo

An official trailer was released inside the room, and it was said to include shots of Echo a lot of arse, as well as footage of Native American peoples before ending with the return of Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin/Wilson Fisk – except now he has an eyepatch. Echo was first introduced as a character in last year’s Hawkeye and is the second deaf character in the MCU following Lauren Ridloff’s Makkari in Eternals. The series features a raft of indigenous actors including Alaqua Cox and Zahn McClarnon.

Andor

The Rogue One spin-off prequel is only a week-and-a-half away but there’s no harm in giving fans one last tantalising tease. The origin story for Cassian Andor is set five years before Rogue One and stars Diego Luna, Stellan Skarsgard, Adria Arjona, Fiona Shaw and Forest Whitaker. It revealed the final Andor trailer.

The Mandalorian S3

The teaser trailer for the third season of The Mandalorian is finally out, showcasing the further adventures of Mando and Grogu in a galaxy far, far away. Pedro Pascal sauntered on stage, as did Katee Sackhoff, Amy Sedaris and Giancarlo Esposito. The new episodes will debut in 2023.

Ahsoka

The anticipated live-action Star Wars series revealed some first-look images to those in the D23 room with executive producers Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni and star Rosario Dawson on hand. The Jedi knight character made her debut on The Mandalorian and fans are champing for her stand-alone series, which will follow her adventures investigating an emerging threat.

Willow

The live-action fantasy sequel series to the 1988 movie of the same name revealed Christian Slater will join the cast alongside Warwick Davis, Tony Revolori and Amar Chadha-Patel. There was a new trailer for the title, which is about a group of heroes on a quest. The series will debut on Disney+ from November 30.

Indiana Jones

Disney wheeled out Harrison Ford and Phoebe Waller-Bridge, along with director James Mangold to promote the upcoming fifth Indiana Jones movie. There was a sizzle reel, which hasn’t made its way online, while Ford credited Waller-Bridge was one the reasons this new film is “so fantastic”. The film releases in June, 2023.

The Little Mermaid

The live action version of The Little Mermaid is tantalisingly close and Disney even released a teaser trailer feature a snippet from one of the original’s most famous songs, “Part of Your World”. Who are we kidding? All those songs are famous. All of them. There will be new songs penned by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Alan Menken while the cast includes Halle Bailey, Melissa McCarthy and Javier Bardem.

Hocus Pocus 2

A new trailer was revealed for the 29-years-in-the-making witchy sequel which will once again unleash Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy and Sarah Jessica Parker on Halloween. A new generation of kids will have to combat the mischievous spellcasters.

Haunted Mansion

Directed by Justin Simien (Dear White People) and starring scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis, D23 debuted a trailer but one which wasn’t later released online. Adapted from the Disneyland ride – which Simien said was his favourite attraction when he actually worked at the theme park – the movie also stars Owen Wilson, Lakeith Stanfield and Tiffany Haddish. The trailer revealed cameos from Winona Ryder, Hasan Minhaj and Dan Levy.

Mufasa: The Lion King

Those in the room at D23 had a sneak peek at Mufasa: The Lion King, a prequel-of-sorts that will explore Mufasa’s journey and how a young cub became the ruler of the pridelands, as told by Timon and Pumbaa in flashbacks. Moonlight filmmaker Barry Jenkins will direct.

Disenchanted

Picking up 15 years later, Disenchanted reunites Amy Adams, Patrick Dempsey, James Marsden and Idina Menzel, as Giselle and Robert seek their happily ever after in the suburbs. The first trailer was released and the movie will stream on Disney+ from November 24.

Snow White

More in the live-action stakes, the studio revealed the release date for the upcoming Snow White movie will be sometime in 2024. The film is to star Rachel Zegler (West Side Story) as Snow White and Gal Gadot as the evil Queen. Oscar-winning songwriters Pasek and Paul will compose new ditties.

Inside Out 2

It’s happening. An Inside Out sequel is finally coming, reuniting with a new teenage Riley. If you thought kids struggled to contain their emotions, now imagine the heightened experiences of a teenager. Inside Out 2 is due for release in late 2024.

Elemental

Inspired by the story of immigrants, the Pixar movie is set in a city where water, fire, land and air come together to live as a community – including the “fiery” Ember and the “go-with-the-flow” Wade. One guess as to what elements they represent.

Elio

A coming-of-age space adventure, Elio is an indoor kid. The 11-year-old dreamer has a hard time fitting in and prefers more artistic pursuits. His mum Olga runs a top secret military project trying to decode a message from outer space. But it’s Elio who makes first contact and is mistaken as an ambassador for Earth. It features the voice talents of America Ferrera and Yonas Kibreab.

Zootopia+

A sequel series to the popular movie, this six-episode anthology streaming series will plunge viewers back into the colourful world with even more colourful characters. Each episode will follow a different Zootopia resident and with punny titles such as “The Real Rodents of Rodentia” and “The Godfather of the Bride”, you know it’s going to be a little cheeky.

Wish

A feature-length movie, Wish is inspired by the dreamers in Disney’s animation legacy. The story is set in Rosas, the kingdom of wishes and is centred on a 17-year-old Asha who pleas for help to save her community. With guidance from Star, she may just do that. Ariana DeBose and Andy Tudyk will voice characters.

Originally published as Disney’s D23 fan convention reveals Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar news and more