Frozen II (2019)
- Many of the practical effects used in the climax were achieved without any CGI.
- Jennifer Lee, Chris Buck originally wanted a completely different ending for the film, but test audiences preferred the one we see today.
- The original script for Frozen II was written over a decade before production finally began in 2019.
Frozen II is a 2019 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee. The sequel follows Elsa as she is called by a mysterious voice to the enchanted forest north of Arendelle, where she discovers the truth about her magical powers' origin and her parents' fate. Accompanied by Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven, Elsa must calm the elemental spirits of the forest and right a wrong committed by her grandfather decades ago that threatens to destroy Arendelle.
Frozen II was a significantly more ambitious and thematically complex film than its predecessor, exploring colonialism, environmental destruction, and the moral responsibility to confront one's ancestors' sins โ heady territory for a family animated film. The musical numbers, again by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, included "Into the Unknown," performed by Idina Menzel, which was positioned as a successor to "Let It Go" though it achieved a more measured cultural impact. "Show Yourself," Elsa's emotional climax revealing her true identity, was considered by many fans to be the stronger song. The animation represented a quantum leap over the original, with photorealistic water, ice, and atmospheric effects that were among the most technically impressive in animation history.
Frozen II earned $1.45 billion worldwide, surpassing the original to become the highest-grossing animated film of all time at that point.
