MOVIE REVIEW: Zootopia 2 is an animal buddy cop blast

So after nine whole years, Disney is finally releasing a sequel to the billion-dollar hit Zootopia with… Zootopia 2. Not very creative title-wise, but it does perfectly sum up what this is. In a story that takes place around not long after the end of the original film super earnest rookie cop Judy Hoops (Ginnifer Goodwin), the first bunny police officer of the Zootopia PD and her now-police partner Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman), the sly fox who helped her uncover the Mayor’s conspiracy in the first movie are now the problem police duo in the ZPD.

Playing like great buddy cop movies since the 1980s, Hopps’ desire to solve crimes means they don’t always follow the orders of Chief Bogo (Idris Elba). One such event, which takes place during an important case, causes the kind of damage you’d see in a Lethal Weapon movie, leading our duo to be suspended and forced into “partner therapy.” There was one clue that Hopps won’t let go; it leads to the Lynxley family, the founding family of Zootopia, and exposes why snakes and reptiles aren’t welcome in Zootopia.

The animation in this film is dense and full, with so many things happening on screen at once that it can be hard to keep track of while you’re watching. The jokes come just as fast as the sights, in ways that feel more like classic Warner Bros. cartoons than the usual Disney fare. Zootopia 2 also feels familiar in the sense that this big animal city (and world) could remind you of Duckburg and other Disney Afternoon fare. In some senses, it is targeted at those who grew up on those shows, while still being great fun for children. It really shows off a wide variety of ways of taking characteristics of animals and stuff you’d see in nature shows and movies.

Goodwin and Bateman are perfect here. It’s like there was no break; the two are at ease and get to bring some new stuff to their characters. Judy gets to be way more funny, and Nick more vulnerable. New characters like Nibbles Maplestick, voiced by Fortune Feimster, a conspiracy theorist Beaver YouTuber, are some of the funniest characters in the movie. Ke Huy Quan‘s Gary De’Snake is a pit viper whose voice you can easily recognize; Gary is a super nice, loving character that — when you see him on screen — you instantly know this movie is about how this movie is working in familiar ground as the first.

I feel some of what the film is trying to say is a bit more muddied than the last film, which might be a good thing, as views on that one have soured a bit over time. Still, the core partnership of Judy and Nick is perfect, and delivered excellently by the vocal performances and the animators involved.

The antagonists being terrible rich people doesn’t hurt much to make this enjoyable either, especially in this climate. The Lynxleys will give you strong Succession vibes, especially from David Strathairn‘s Milton Lynxley, who has a lot of Logan Roy in his performance. Andy Sanberg is good as Pawbert Lynxley, being the goofy lynx who befriends Judy. Patrick Warburton as Mayor Brian Winddancer is perfect, the familiar voice for this action mayor star turned Mayor will steal every scene he’s in. The character also has more depth than you’d expect.

There are so many voice cameos in this film that the credits will make you want to watch it again just to catch those more carefully. Overall, though, Zootopia 2 is a hilarious movie. It’s clearly made for general audiences with jokes for kids and jokes that adults and even hipper adults at some points, that never leaves anyone lost. The story moves along at a great pace, and it is also a very good cop movie. With how successful I expect this movie to be over the holiday season, I hope they can at least get another one out by 2030 because they definitely have a lot more in the tank with the Zootopia world.