It’s not scheduled for release until March 4, 2016, but Walt Disney Animation Studios is giving us a sneak peek at the upcoming animated feature Zootopia via a preview piece in today’s USA Today.
Co-directed by Wreck-It Ralph‘s Rich Moore and Tangled‘s Byron Howard, they offer the first look at the “sly con-artist fox” known as Nick Wilde (voiced by Jason Bateman) and “idealistic rookie rabbit cop” Judy Hopps, voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin, star of ABC’s “Once Upon a Time.”
The story involves these two characters who don’t get along at first but must work together when Nick needs Judy’s help getting out of a jam as she’s trying to crack a big case. Moore describes the film as the story of “two animals who would naturally never hang out or like one another in the beginning, but over the course of the movie develop a relationship and become friends.” So apparently, it’s a buddy comedy via anthrapamorphic Disney cartoon characters.
Moore tells them that they cast Bateman to bring a “funny yet heartfelt side” to Nick while Goodwin brings a “very centered sweetness, tremendous heart and a great sense of humor” to her character, describing her as a cross between “Pollyanna and Furiosa” from Mad Max: Fury Road.
Bateman adds that Nick is a “crafty, sarcastic schemer” while Goodwin describes how her character sometimes gets unhinged and is often underestimated. “She gets hoppity emotionally,” she said. “People mistake kindness for naivete or stupidity, and she is a good girl through and through. But she’s not a dumb bunny.”
Apparently, the filmmakers spent months doing behavorial research on animals, including an African safari, to create some of the movie’s environments, which include Tundratown, Sahara Square, and Judy’s farmland home of Bunny Burrows, which she leaves to become a big-city police officer.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R): Judy Hopps, Nick Wilde. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured: Judy Hopps. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R): Judy, Bonnie, and Stu Hopps. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – RAINFOREST DISTRICT. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R): Judy Hopps, Nick Wilde. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – TRAIN STATION. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R): Nick Wilde, Judy Hopps, Mr. Big. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R): Judy Hopps & Clawhauser. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R): Assistant Mayor Bellwether & Mrs. Otterton. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R): Nick Wilde, Judy Hopps, Mr. Big. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R) Mayor Lionheart, Assistant Mayor Bellwether. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured: Judy Hopps. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R): Nick Wilde, Judy Hopps. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured (L-R): Chief Bogo, Judy Hopps. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured: Gazelle. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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RELUCTANT PARTNER -- Fast-talking, con-artist fox Nick Wilde is not really interested in helping rookie officer Judy Hopps crack her first case. Directed by Byron Howard and Rich Moore, and produced by Clark Spencer, Walt Disney Animation Studios' "Zootopia" opens in theaters on March 4, 2016. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured: Judy Hopps. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – Pictured: Chief Bogo. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – TUNDRATOWN. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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A WORLD FOR BIG AND SMALL — Walt Disney Animation Studios' "Zootopia" features a vast world where humans never existed. With advanced transportation systems that accommodate mammals of all shapes and sizes, the modern mammal metropolis was built by animals for animals. Directed by Byron Howard and Rich Moore, and produced by Clark Spencer, "Zootopia" opens in U.S. theaters on March 4, 2016. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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MR. BIG — The most fearsome crime boss in Tundratown, Mr. Big commands respect—and when he feels disrespected, bad things happen. A small mammal with a big personality, Mr. Big is voiced by Maurice La Marche. Walt Disney Animation Studios' "Zootopia" opens in U.S. theaters on March 4, 2016. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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A NEW VIEW — Unlikely partners Judy Hopps, Zootopia's first bunny cop, and Nick Wilde, a con-artist fox, find themselves riding high above the modern mammal metropolis while working together to solve a mystery. Featuring the voices of Ginnifer Goodwin as Judy Hopps and Jason Bateman as Nick Wilde, Walt Disney Animation Studios' "Zootopia" opens in U.S. theaters on March 4, 2016. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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SUPERSTAR — Revered worldwide by herds of fans, Zootopia's biggest pop star Gazelle is a socially conscious celebrity with equal parts talent and heart. Shakira lends her Grammy®-winning voice to the phenom. Walt Disney Animation Studios' "Zootopia" opens in U.S. theaters on March 4, 2016. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – ASSISTANT MAYOR BELLWETHER, a sweet sheep with a little voice and a lot of wool, who constantly finds herself under foot of the larger-than-life Mayor Lionheart. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – (Left) BONNIE HOPPS, mother of Judy—and her 275 brothers and sisters. Mrs. Hopps loves and supports her daughter, but is a hare nervous about Judy moving to Zootopia to become a big-city police officer. (Right) Judy's father, STU HOPPS, a carrot farmer from Bunnyburrow. Along with Mrs. Hopps, he is worried about Judy moving to Zootopia and the untrustworthy big-city mammals who live there—especially foxes. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – CHIEF BOGO, head of the Zootopia Police Department. A tough cape buffalo with 2,000 lbs of attitude, Bogo is reluctant to add Judy Hopps, Zootopia’s first bunny cop, to his squad of hardened rhinos, elephants and hippos. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – The Zootopia Police Department’s most charming cheetah, BENJAMIN CLAWHAUSER. Clawhauser loves two things: pop star Gazelle and donuts. From his reception desk, he greets everyone with a warm smile and a helpful paw—covered in sprinkles. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – DUKE WEASELTON, a small-time weasel crook with a big-time weasel mouth, who tries to give Judy the slip during a police chase. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – FINNICK, a fennec fox with a big chip on his adorable shoulder. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – FLASH, the fastest sloth working at the DMV—the Department of Mammal Vehicles. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – JUDY HOPPS, an optimistic bunny who’s new to Zootopia’s police department. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – MAYOR LEODORE LIONHEART, the noble leader of Zootopia, who coined the city’s mantra that Judy Hopps lives by: “In Zootopia, anyone can be anything." ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – MRS. OTTERTON, a desperate otter who turns to Officer Judy Hopps for help in solving her husband’s mysterious disappearance. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – NICK WILDE, the scamming fox who Judy reluctantly teams up with to crack her first case. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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ZOOTOPIA – YAX THE YAK, the most enlightened, laid-back bovine in Zootopia. When Judy Hopps is on a case, Yax is full of revealing insights. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
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