Details about new movies, including the title of the third episode of Avatar, an addition to the Star Wars franchise and a sequel to Freaky Friday, were announced at a huge Disney fan event.
The film Avatar had the highest grosses PHOTO: archive
Director James Cameron told an audience of 12,000 people that “Avatar: Fire and“, “it won’t be what you expect”while the American actor Jon Favreau presented a new Star Wars film called The Mandalorian And Grogu, with Pedro Pascal, writes bbc.com.
The sci-fi epic, which is scheduled for release on December 19, 2025, follows 2009’s Avatar and its sequel Avatar: The Way Of Water, which was released in 2022.
“The new movie isn’t what you expect, but it’s definitely what you want“Cameron told the audience.
He said he was “too soon“ to share images but let the public look at “cool concept art“which featured the characters in the sky and surrounded by fire.
“There are new cultures and settings and creatures, and new biomes“he said.
“You will see much more of Pandora, the planet, that you have never seen before“.
Lohan and Curtis were greeted with a standing ovation at the eighth annual D23 event, which takes place August 9-11 at the Anaheim Convention Center in California.
Curtis described Freakier Friday – about a mother and daughter who switch bodies thanks to a magical Chinese cookie – as
“more fun and emotional” than their 2003 film.
“We’ve kept in touch over the years and we’re very close so I feel like we’re picking up where we left off which is really nice“, Lohan said.
Oscar winner Curtis told the audience: “We love these characters, we love each other, we love you and you love us and the movie and the story and what it means to you – that’s why we’re here“.
The two have confirmed that One Tree Hill’s Chad Michael Murray and NCIS actor Mark Harmon are reprising their roles in the sequel.
The audience was shown a trio of photos from the new film, including an image of Curtis wearing a silver hairdo as he drives Lohan around in a convertible.
In the new film, Anna Coleman, Lohan’s character, has a daughter of her own.
Freaky Friday, based on a 1972 novel by Mary Rodgers, was also made into a film in 1976, starring Jodie Foster and Barbara Harris.
As for the new Star Wars movie, The Mandalorian, executive producer Dave Filoni has said that production has begun “a few weeks ago“ and is due for release in May 2026.
“We’re putting Star Wars back on the big screen“said Filoni.
The announcement came after Pixar chief creative officer Pete Docter announced that The Incredibles 3 was also in the works.
He confirmed that Brad Bird, the writer and director behind the first two films, is back for the beloved undercover super family’s next adventure.
Frozen director Jennifer Lee also appeared to confirm that two more movies will be added to the Frozen franchise.
“Coming out of Frozen 2, we still have some questions… Now you see why it will take two movies to answer them“she teased.
Lee shared a first look at concept art for Frozen 3, which is slated for a 2027 release.
Fans were also treated to a teaser of a new song for the upcoming Lion King prequel titled I Always Wanted a Brother.
Lin-Manuel Miranda – creator of the hit musical Hamilton – composed the music for Mufasa: The Lion King, and said it was “a great joy” to work with the film’s Oscar-winning director Barry Jenkins.
Also at the event, Toy Story star Tom Hanks joined a panel of creators from the original film, including Pete Docter, currently chief creative officer at animation studio Pixar.
Since the film’s original release in November 1995, Toy Story has become a celebrated franchise, with three sequels and a fourth slated for 2026.
Hanks plays Woody, the cowboy toy character.
