Disney’s 2016 animated mega-hit Zootopia was all about an idealistic bunny and a crafty fox solving strife between predators and prey in a metropolis ruled by mammals. Its sequel, which hits theaters tomorrow, introduces a new element to the franchise’s ecosystem. With a snake character as the third protagonist, the Zootopia crew embarks on a journey into a strange aquatic netherworld—and discovers why we didn’t see any reptiles the first time around.

Disney is similarly looking to the wider world to make sure the sequel succeeds—putting a major focus on hooking international audiences.  

The first film ended up making more than US$1 billion globally—thanks in no small part to its international appeal. Zootopia made US$341 million domestically, versus US$683 million worldwide. (And notably, Zootopia 2 is tracking for a robust five-day domestic opening in the range of US$125 million or more.) 

The IP is especially popular in China, where the first film broke records and did a staggering US$236 million in ticket sales. And despite the country being a very uncertain market for Hollywood movies lately, Chinese audiences are apparently making an exception for Zootopia 2—more than two million moviegoers have expressed interest in seeing the sequel, according to the country’s Maoyan box-office platform. By comparison, that’s even higher than the region’s pre-release interest in Avengers: Endgame was.

A lot has changed in China in the past decade. Chinese audiences no longer need to rely on Western imports to get their big-budget family movie fix. Beijing Enlight’s kids pic Ne Zha 2 was 2025’s most successful movie globally. Looking to build early buzz in this key market for Zootopia 2, Disney partnered with Shanghai Animation Film Studio to create a series of shorts called A Day in the Life of Zootopia exclusively for Chinese social media and video platforms. 

When asked about why the franchise has such a huge following in China, the sequel’s producer Yvett Merino shared a theory. “I hear a lot of people [in China] could really relate to Judy Hopps coming from a small town and going to a big city,” Merino says. “She’s following her dreams and trying to figure it out, all while staying in touch with her family back home.”

And Disney ended up taking some cues from China that might make the sequel resonate there even more strongly. Co-director Jared Bush—who also co-wrote the original film and was promoted to chief creative officer at Disney Animation last fall—was inspired by visiting the popular Zootopia-themed land at Shanghai Disneyland after it opened in 2023. “There’s a sheep-shearing shop [in the park] that’s connected to a sweater shop next door. We didn’t have that in the first film, but it seems like such an obvious connection,” Merino says. “So we put that in the [sequel].”

A barbershop for sheep in Zootopia 2 was inspired by Shanghai Disneyland. (Disney Enterprises, Inc.)

On a more global scale, Disney has been very active on the licensing and marketing front in order to build an audience for the new film. Its consumer products division partnered with Fresh Del Monte Produce to distribute more than 500 million branded fruit stickers worldwide. Volkswagen, which rolled out a co-branded campaign commercial, also struck a deal to have a featured “Wolfswagen” in the sequel. And there’s a new campaign running from November to January at Singapore Zoo, where kids and families can join the Wild Patrol in a Zootopia 2 adventure to find the film’s new reptile protagonist, Gary De’Snake—portrayed by Oscar winner Ke Huy Quan.

But some of the studio’s buzziest marketing efforts have fallen into place by chance, Merino says. The latest example? Australian conservationist Robert Irwin danced to the song “Try Everything” from the Zootopia soundtrack during last month’s Disney-themed night on Dancing with the Stars. It was the perfect opportunity for Irwin to announce that he’d be voicing a koala bear character named Robert Furwin in the sequel. “We actually cast him before we knew he was in Dancing with the Stars,” Merino says. “Then lo and behold we found out, and [we knew we had] to tie it in.”

So what’s next for the franchise? With short-form content remaining a priority for the Disney Animation team—and considering its regional shorts strategy in China—could it expand with more bite-sized content similar to the Zootopia+ anthology shorts that were released globally on Disney+ in 2022?

“The Zootopia+ shorts were [an opportunity to] spend time with other characters and show what their lives are like outside of the movie,” Merino says. “Right now, we’re just focused on trying to finish and get this [sequel] out the door. But who knows? Maybe.”