‘Zootopia 2’ gets major cast update with Dwayne Johnson in the fold
Dwayne Johnson will link up with Disney again after being officially cast in 'Zootopia 2'. The 'Jumanji' star will voice the character Zeke as the film gears up for release on November 26. The sequel to the hit film comes nearly a decade after the first. The latest installment follows rabbit cop Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and her partner Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) as they investigate a new and dangerous case.
According to ScreenRant, Zeke is described as "an accident-prone dik-dik who meets with a musical mishap as a result of Judy and Nick’s high-speed pursuit gone awry." The upcoming film is directed by Byron Howard and Jared Bush. The latter has worked on marquee Disney movies — 'Encanto' and 'Moana' (which also had Johnson in the cast). Idris Elba voices ZPD's Chief Bogo, and rounding up the cast are Fortune Feimster as Nibbles, Ke Huy Quan as Gary, and Andy Samberg as Pawbert Lynxley.
'Zootopia 2's official synopsis reads, "In Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Zootopia 2,” detectives Judy Hopps (voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (voiced by Jason Bateman) find themselves on the twisting trail of a mysterious reptile who arrives in Zootopia and turns the mammal metropolis upside down. To crack the case, Judy and Nick must go undercover to unexpected new parts of town, where their growing partnership is tested like never before."
The first film was a commercial success, raking in over $1 billion, and becoming the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2016. This was followed by a television spin-off series, Zootopia+, which premiered in 2022. The movie boasts of a whopping 98% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Earlier, Bush spoke of the major challenge of the second feature. "Sequels are tricky. Audiences want familiarity but also expect growth. The key is making sure any evolution feels organic and integral to the story. You can’t just change a character’s design for the sake of change. People can sense when it’s unearned."
Johnson comes on the back of 'The Smashing Machine', which opened to mixed reviews. One of the major talking points was his stunning transformation as the protagonist, which left fans stunned. Speaking to Vanity Fair, he said, "You have to be willing to tap into all the stuff that you’ve gone through, and this was stuff that I had not explored on camera or otherwise,” Johnson says. “I’m not a big therapy person, even though I’m an advocate for whatever it is you need. I found it so scary, but also so nourishing and freeing. I ripped it open."
