The very moment Disney’s Frozen stormed past the $1 billion milestone at the worldwide box office, any lingering doubts that a sequel would enter development were, er, let go after the studio announced that Frozen 2 would indeed go ahead earlier this year. Now, directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee have begun brainstorming ideas, hinting that we could see a different side to Elsa in the animated sequel.
From an isolated young recluse to a powerful, ice-cool older sister, the first film mapped out quite the emotional arc for the character, and it was during the Frozen Fever spinoff that we began to see the more playful side of everyone’s favorite ice queen. Looking further afield, Buck and Lee will be hoping to iterate on that sibling dynamic for Frozen 2, and here are some of the early ideas that the directing pair shared in an interview with Fandango.
[In Frozen] she had such a dramatic journey, and at the end she’s just starting to feel like she can open up and have some fun again. That’s what was really good about the short [Frozen Fever] – we could have fun with Elsa. And that personality … you will see in the next one.
As Frozen 2 is still incubating in the early stages of development, plot details are still few and far between. Mind you, though Elsa was the main talking point during the interview, Buck and Lee noted that Anna will still have a major role to play in the animated sequel, and it’s that sisterly love that will act as the crux of Disney’s follow-up. In a separate conversation with MTV, the pair celebrated the film’s compelling female leads.
We have two very strong female leads in Frozen. We will keep that going in the next one. We will tackle other issues that, I think, are out there today that boys and girls, men and women, are dealing with.
I think we’re very aware of what is happening in society. I don’t think any of us take [them] lightly, even though they can be very funny and entertaining, the messages that our movies have and the influence they can have on young people. When the kids [watch] them, they watch them over and over again, and if we don’t have a decent message in there, I think we’ve missed an opportunity.
Disney’s billion-dollar baby was considered special precisely because of its emotional depth, and we’re intrigued to see how the studio builds upon the original’s success when Frozen 2 slides into theaters – no release date to report yet, though.