Zootopia 2 is an madcap animated sequel that nicely serves as a follow-up to its highly enjoyable predecessor. It also does a fine job of aping the kinds of action sequels and buddy cop movies returning directors Jared Bush and Byron Howard are gleefully pulling from. Like a lot of action-comedy franchises, Zootopia 2 often feels like just another excuse to get the band back together for a good time, but when the results are this enjoyable and inventive, it’s easy to overlook things like plot holes and developments that don’t make a ton of sense. Being animated and set in a world populated entirely by talking animals doesn’t hurt in that respect, either.
The story from Bush picks up roughly a week after the events of the first film, with former meter-maid turned Zootopia Police Department’s first bunny police officer, Judy Hopps (voiced once again by Ginnifer Goodwin), and her new partner, reformed con artist fox Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman), finally joining the force properly. Judy’s overwhelming drive to prove herself in spite of being told to stay in her own lane frequently gets the duo into trouble. Judy’s desire (and failure) to impress comes on the heels of Zootopia’s centennial celebrations, where the powerful Lynxley family – led by gruff patriarch Milton (David Strathairn) – will be showcasing a precious family heirloom: a journal that contains the plans and patent for the city’s “weather walls,” which allows a variety of different animals that require different climates to live together in the same metropolis. The showcasing of the journal, however, has attracted the attention of a mysterious, larcenous pit viper (Ke Huy Quan), which is unusual since Zootopia hasn’t had any reptile sightings since the walls were built. Judy finds evidence that a snake is indeed afoot, and, much to Nick’s protestations, pursues her hunches. But when Judy and Nick are implicated in the eventual stealing of the notebook and the injury of a fellow officer, the partners are forced to go on the run in a bid to clear their names. Nick and Judy find help in the form of a conspiracy theory loving beaver podcaster (Fortune Feimster) and the black sheep of the powerful lynx family (Andy Samberg).
Zootopia 2 opens with a very brief recap of the previous film, which blends nicely into a narrative that hits the ground running and rarely slows down. There aren’t as many deep or moving character moments this time out, but the interplay between mismatched buddies Judy and Nick remains snappy, warm, and smartly realized. The repartee between Goodwin and Bateman is consistently amusing, and the performers’ comedic and dramatic sensibilities are well matched. They’re surrounded by a voice cast that’s stacked to capacity with noteworthy performers putting in great work, especially Strathairn, who rarely gets to voice a character that feels startlingly close to one he’s be tasked with playing in a live action film. Every cast member has their strengths put to great use, whether they play an integral role in the story or are just there to deliver a pun or well timed one liner.
The duo of Hopps and Wilde slots nicely into a long cinematic history of unlikely action movie duos, with Bush and Howard crafting set pieces that hearken back to familiar genre influences. A ludicrous shipyard sting operation recalls the similar opening to 22 Jump Street. An elaborate vehicle hopping chase has Fast and the Furious written all over it. The overall conspiracy plot and ensuing fish out of water narrative once Judy and Nick go on the lam gives off Beverly Hills Cop vibes. A bit with the villain wandering through a hedge maze offers a nice nod to The Shining. There’s even a familiar, but surprisingly intense “take the shot” sequence where someone is looking through the scope of a dart gun. If you’ve seen a buddy cop comedy before, you know precisely what you’re getting from Zootopia 2, but the outlandish setting and perspective shift adds a lot of novelty value.
Much like the first film, Zootopia 2 has put a lot of stock into creative set pieces, sight gags, world building, and clever dialogue, but less so into crafting a cohesive plot. While the film once again finds a way to mirror this animal society to the current moments with plot threads dealing with gentrification, prejudice, and pushing minority contributions to the margins of society, the film has more energy than it knows how to use it. The first film was memorably built around a big reveal, but one that was rather obvious to anyone who was paying attention (or had seen any number of other Disney animated films that used the same twist around that time). This time out, Zootopia 2 has better reveals, but the narrative itself is clunkier and the mystery slightly less appealing. When a character who one previously believed to have been harmed appears later on and just shrugs the whole thing off, it’s a good bet that something went amiss somewhere along the way and things had to be tinkered with throughout the production.
But that’s also not surprising for something that’s essentially a genre movie sequel. In terms of fun factor, Zootopia 2 rates highly. The animation is delightful, the story is a good gag delivery device, and the voice cast consistently elevates the material and shepherds it across some bumpy terrain. With the holiday season ramping up, Zootopia 2 is a safe, solid, and likeable bet that the whole family can enjoy with ease.
Zootopia 2 opens in theatres everywhere on Wednesday, November 26, 2025.
