(part 6 of 6) 2016 to 2026
Below is a checklist of every animated feature released theatrically in the United States, in order of release, from 2016 to 2025, followed by information on 2026 releases (and beyond) as known. This page is continously updated with new information on a regular basis!
2016
509. NORM OF THE NORTH (1/15/16) Lionsgate. D: Trevor Wall. When a real estate development invades his Arctic home, Norm and his three lemming friends head to New York City, where Norm becomes the mascot of the corporation in an attempt to bring it down from the inside and protect his homeland.
510. MONSTER HUNT (1/22/16) Film Rise. D: Raman Hui. (Live action/Animation) In an ancient world where monsters rule the land while humans keep to their own kingdom, a baby monster, Wuba, is born to a human father and monster queen.
511. KUNG FU PANDA 3 (1/29/16) Dreamworks/20th Century-Fox. D: Jennifer Yuh Nelson; Co-Director: Allesandro Carloni. Continuing his “legendary adventures of awesomeness”, Po must face two hugely epic, but different threats: one supernatural and the other a little closer to his home. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $143,528,619
512. SNOWTIME (2/19/16) Shout Factory. D: Jean-François Pouliot. When winter break arrives, a boy and his friends are joined by the new girl in town for a prolonged snowball fight.
Zootopia
514. ZOOTOPIA (3/4/16) Disney. D: Byron Howard, Rich Moore. In a city of anthropomorphic animals, a rookie bunny cop and a cynical con artist fox must work together to uncover a conspiracy. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $341,268,248
515. RACHET AND CLANK (4/29/16) Focus Features. D: Jerrica Vleland, Kevin Munroe. When the galaxy comes under the threat of a nefarious space captain, a mechanic and his newfound robot ally join an elite squad of combatants to save the universe.
516. THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE (5/20/16) Sony. D: Clay Kaytis, Fergal Reilly. When an island populated by happy, flightless birds is visited by mysterious green piggies, it’s up to three unlikely outcasts to figure out what the pigs are up to. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $107,509,366
517. TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: OUT OF THE SHADOWS (6/3/16) Paramount. D: Dave Green. After facing Shredder, who has joined forces with a mad scientist and his henchmen to take over the world, the Turtles must confront an even greater nemesis: the notorious Krang. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $82,051,601
518. FINDING DORY (6/17/16) Disney/Pixar. D: Andrew Stanton, Angus MacLane. The friendly but forgetful blue tang fish begins a search for her long-lost parents. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $486,295,561
519. THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS (7/8/16) Universal (Illumination). D: Chris Renaud, Yarrow Cheney. The quiet life of a terrier named Max is upended when his owner takes in Duke, a stray whom Max instantly dislikes.
520. PHANTOM BOY (7/15/16) GKIDS. D: Jean-Loup Felicioli, Alain Gagnol. A super-powered boy helps a wheelchair-bound policeman in his attempt to bring down a mob kingpin.
521. ICE AGE: COLLISION COURSE (7/22/16) 20th Century-Fox. D: Mike Thurmeier. Manny, Diego, and Sid join up with Buck to fend off a meteor strike that would destroy the world. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $64,063,008
522. THE LITTLE PRINCE (8/5/16) Netflix. D: Mark Osborne. A little girl lives in a very grown-up world with her mother, who tries to prepare her for it. Her neighbor, the Aviator, introduces the girl to the extraordinary world of the Little Prince.
523. SAUSAGE PARTY (8/12/16) Sony. Sony. D: Greg Tiernan, Conrad Vernon. A sausage strives to discover the truth about his existence. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $97,685,686
Kubo and The Two Strings
525. SPACE DOGS: ADVENTURE TO THE MOON Epic Pictures Group. (8/26/16) D: Mike Disa. A canine teenage astronaut is determined to find his missing astronaut father. Stowing away on a rocket to the moon he is reunited with his mom, a macho monkey and a baby alien.
526. THE WILD LIFE Lionsgate. (9/9/16) D: Vincent Kesteloot, Ben Stassen. A daring parrot recounts how Robinson Crusoe came to be stranded on a tropical island.
527. STORKS (9/23/16) Warner Bros. D: Nicholas Stoller, Doug Sweetland. Storks have moved on from delivering babies to packages. But when an order for a baby appears, the best delivery stork must scramble to fix the error by delivering the baby. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $72,679,278
528. LONG WAY NORTH (9/30/16) Shout Factory. D: Rémi Chayé. In 1882, a young Russian aristocrat goes on an epic adventure to find out what happened to her grandfather and save her family’s reputation.
529. MISS HOKUSAI (10/14/16) GKids. (anime) D: Keiichi Hara. The life and works of Japanese artist and painter Katsushika Hokusai, as seen through the eyes of his daughter.
530. TROLLS (11/4/16) Dreamworks – 20th Century-Fox. D: Mike Mitchell, Walt Dorhn. After the Bergens invade Troll Village, Poppy, the happiest Troll ever born, and the curmudgeonly Branch set off on a journey to rescue her friends. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $153,707,064
531. MY LIFE AS A ZUCCHINI (11/11/16) GKids. D: Claude Barras. (submitted by Switzerland as its official nominee for Best Foreign Film, 2016) Zucchini is an intriguing nickname for a 9-year-old boy who, after his mother disappears, is befriended by a police officer who accompanies him to his new foster home.
The Red Turtle
533. MOANA (11/23/16) Disney. D: Ron Clements, John Musker. When a terrible curse incurred by Maui reaches an impetuous Chieftain’s daughter’s island, she answers the Ocean’s call to seek out the demigod to set things right. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $248,757,044
534. YOUR NAME (12/2/16) Funimation. D: Makoto Shinka. Two high school kids who’ve never met – city boy Taki and country girl Mitsuha – are united through their dreams.
535. NERDLAND (12/16/16) Samuel Goldwyn. D: Chris Prynowski. Two best friends, whose dreams of super-stardom have fizzled, decide to do whatever they can to become famous before they reach being 30.
536. SING (12/21/16) Universal (Illumination). D: Garth Jennings, Christophe Lourdelet. A koala named Buster Moon has one final chance to restore his theater to its former glory by producing the world’s greatest singing competition. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $270,448,425
NOTES: Limited-release theatricals (movies going Direct-to-Video (DVD, VOD but getting a theatrical billboard) began this year with theatrical showings of YELLOW DAY, a faith-based live action/animation feature, directed by Carl Lauten, which opened in L.A. on January 8th 2016 via the Alabama-based Idyllic Entertainment Group. Funimation released the anime feature THE EMPIRE OF CORPSES, directed by Ryoutarou Makihara, for two days on April 19th and 20th. Momentum Pictures released the Korean produced BLING!, directed by Kyung Ho Lee and Wonjae Lee, to select theaters on May 6th. Aniplex America released anime feature CLASSMATES (Doukyusei) by Shoko Nakamaura on May 6th. Funimation released the anime feature HARMONY, directed by Michael Arias and Takashi Nakamura, animated by Studio 4°C and based the novel of the same name by Project Itoh, for two days on May 17th and 18th. Shout Factory released the Russian made QUACKERZ, directed by Viktor Lakisov, on June 3rd. NUTS, a documentary by Penny Lane, that uses much animation to illustrate its true story, had its theatrical premiere in New York on June 22nd. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and Fathom Events partnered to give BATMAN: THE KILLING JOKE, a special one-night big screen release on Monday, July 25th in select cinemas across the country. Shout! Factory Kids released the CGI Australian feature BLINKY BILL: THE MOVIE on October 7th in Los Angeles. Barajoun Entertainment released BILAL: A NEW BREED OF HERO in Los Angeles on October 7th. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and Fathom Events partnered to give BATMAN: RETURN OF THE CAPED CRUSADERS, a special one-night big screen release on Monday, October 10th in select cinemas across the country. Animated documentary 25 APRIL, directed by Leanne Pooley, opened theatrically in LA for an Oscar qualifying run on October 21st.
2017
The Boss Baby
538. THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE (2/10/17) Warner Bros. D: Chris McCay. If Bruce Wayne wants to save the city of Gotham, he might have to learn to drop the lone vigilante thing, try to work with others, and maybe- just maybe- lighten up. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $175,750,384
539. ROCK DOG (2/26/17) Summit. D: Ash Brannon. When a radio falls out of the sky and into the hands of a Tibetan Mastiff, he decides to leave his home to pursue his dream of becoming a musician, which causes a series of unfortunate events.
540. THE BOSS BABY (3/31/17) Dreamworks-20th Century Fox. D: Tom McGrath. A suit- wearing baby who carries a briefcase teams up with his 7 year old brother to thwart the plot of the dastardly CEO of Puppy Co. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $175,003,033
541. SMURFS: THE LOST VILLAGE (4/7/17) Sony. D: Kelly Asbury. A mysterious map sends Smurfette and her friends on a thrilling race the discover the biggest secret in all of Smurf history. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $45,020,282
542. MY ENTIRE HIGH SCHOOL SINKING INTO THE SEA (4/14/17) GKids. D: Dash Shaw
543. SPARK: A SPACE TAIL (4/14/17) Open Road. D: Aaron Woodley. A teenage monkey named Spark embarks on a mission with his friends to regain Planet Bana.
Captain Underpants
545. CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS (6/2/17) Dreamworks. D: David Soren. Imaginative pranksters George and Harold hypnotize their principal into believing he is the overly enthusiastic, dimwitted superhero named Captain Underpants. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $73,921,000
546. CARS 3 (6/16/17) Disney-Pixar. D: Brian Fee. Finding himself pushed out of the sport he loves, Lightning McQueen sets out to show the new generation of blazing-fast cars that he’s still the best. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $152,901,115
547. DESPICABLE ME 3 (6/30/17) Universal (Illumination). D: Kyle Balda, Pierre Coffin, Eric Guillon. Gru’s long-lost, charming, cheerful, and more successful twin brother, Dru, wants to team up for one final criminal heist. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $264,624,300
548. THE GIRL WITHOUT HANDS (7/21/17) GKids. D: Sébastien Laudenbach. A miller sells his daughter to the devil during hard times. Because of her purity, she escapes- however, she is deprived of her hands. She meets the goddess of water, a gardener, and the prince in his castle before embarking on a long journey.
549. THE EMOJI MOVIE (7/28/17) 86 mins. Sony. D: Tony Leondis. Gene, a multi- expressional emoji, sets out on a journey to become a normal emoji. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $86,089,513
550. BLAZING SAMURAI (8/4/17) Open Road. D: Chris Bailey, Mark Koetsier. *On August 7, 2020, Align has taken control of the film.*
551. IN THIS CORNER OF THE WORLD (8/11/17) Shout! Factory/Funimation. D: Sunao Katabuch. Set in Hiroshima in the age of World War II, an eighteen-year-old girl gets married and now has to prepare food for her family despite rationing and a lack of supplies. As she struggles with the daily loss of life’s amenities she still has to maintain the will to live.
552. THE NUT JOB 2: NUTTY BY NATURE (8/11/17) D: Cal Brunker. In a follow up from the first film, Surly and his friends must stop the Oakton City mayor from destroying their home to make room for a dysfunctional amusement park.
553. LEAP! (8/25/17) The Weinstein Company. D: Eric Summer, Éric Warin. An orphan girl wishes to become a ballerina, and flees her home in rural Brittany for Paris. Passing for someone else, she rises to the position of pupil in the Grand Opera house. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $24,702,560
554. NAPPING PRINCESS (9/8/17) GKids. D: Kenji Kamiyama. In the near future, a high school senior realizes that events in her every day life begin to parallel events in her dreams.
555. THE LEGO NINJAGO MOVIE (9/22/17) Warner Bros. D: Charlie Bean. After being shunned by all for being the son of an evil warlord, a teenager sets out to defeat him with the help of his fellow ninjas. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $59,281,555
556. LOVING VINCENT (09/22/17) Good Deed Entertainment. D: Dorota Kobiela, Hugh Welchman. In this story told through oil painted animation, a young man comes to the last hometown of painter Vincent van Gogh to deliver the troubled artist’s final letter and ends up investigating his final days there.
557. WINDOW HORSES (09/29/17) National Film Board of Canada. D: Ann Marie Fleming. A young Canadian poet with Chinese and Persian parents travels to Iran to perform at a poetry festival.
558. MY LITTLE PONY THE MOVIE (10/6/17) The Weinstein Company. D: Jayson Thiessen. The Mane 6 embark on an unforgettable journey beyond Equestria after a dark force conquers Canterlot. Here they meet new friends and exciting challenges on a quest to use the magic of friendship to save their homeland. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $21,885,107
559. THE STAR (11/10/17) Columbia Pictures. D: Timothy Reckart. A small but brave donkey and his animal friends become the unsung heroes of the first Christmas. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $40,896,334
560. THE BREADWINNER Gkids. (11/17/17). D: Nora Twomey. In 2001, Afghanistan is under the control of the Taliban. When her father is captured, a determined young girl disguises herself as a boy in order to provide for her family.
Coco
562. BIRDBOY: THE FORGOTTEN CHILDREN (12/15/17). Gkids. D: Alberto Vázquez and Pedro Rivero. Three children leave their homes in search of a better life.
563. FERDINAND (12/15/17) 20th Century-Fox (Blue Sky). D: Carlos Saldanha. After Ferdinand, a friendly bull with a kind heart, is mistaken for a dangerous beast, he is captured and taken from his home. Set on returning home to his family, he rallies a misfit team on the ultimate adventure. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $84,410,380
NOTES: 2017 Limited-release theatricals (movies going Direct-to-Video (DVD, VOD but getting a theatrical billboard) began this year with ONE PIECE FILM: GOLD, directed by Hiroaki Miyamoto, on January 10th via Funimation. Studio Ghibli’s 1993 TV movie OCEAN WAVES, directed by Tomomi Mochizuki, got a U.S. theatrical release via Gkids on January 13th. Similarly, the 1993 anime feature SAILOR MOON R THE MOVIE, directed by Kunihiko Ikuhara, was also a limited U.S. release by Eleven Arts on the same date, January 13th (in Los Angeles at the Theater in the Ace Hotel). Denmark’s 2010 feature THE TROUBLE WITH TERKEL was given a token theatrical run in several U.S. cities on February 3rd, via Indican Pictures. BUNYAN AND BABE, directed by Tony Bancroft and Jim Rygiel, was given a limited NY/LA theatrical release by Cinedigm on February 3rd. Fathom Events, ELEVEN ARTS, and Aniplex held a one night theatrical for SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE: ORDINAL SCALE, directed by Tomohiko Itō, on March 9th. Viva Pictures opened Spanish family film OZZY, directed by Alberto Rodríguez and Nacho La Casa, on April 21st. GKids and Fathom Events did a one-day 350 theatre nationwide release of MUNE: GUARDIAN OF THE MOON, Directed by Benoît Philippon and Alexandre Heboyan, on Saturday, August 12th. Warner Bros. and Fathom Events presented a one-night nationwide cinema screening of BATMAN AND HARLEY QUINN on August 14th. Lionsgate theatrically released DEEP, directed by Julio Soto Gurpide, on August 25th. Viva Pictures released the Mexican made TOP CAT BEGINS, directed by Andrés Couturier, on September 29th. Fathom Events released the anime feature NO GAME NO LIFE ZERO, directed by Ishizuka Atsuko, for nationwide theatre screenings on October 5th and 8th. Eleven Arts released A SILENT VOICE: THE MOVIE (directed by Naoka Yamada) on October 20th. Fathom Events released POKEMON THE MOVIE: I CHOOSE YOU, directed by Kunihiko Yuyamait, on November 5th. And finally, Lionsgate released the Chinese produced HEDGEHOGS (directed by Jianming Huang) on December 15th.
IN ADDITION: The following features were given a token theatrical run in Los Angeles to qualify for a 2017 Oscar nomination: CINDERELLA THE CAT (Italian, directed by Directors: Ivan Cappiello, Dario Sansone, Marino Guarnieri and Alessandro Rak), ETHEL AND ERNEST (British, Directed by Roger Mainwood), MARY AND THE WITCHES FLOWER (Japanese anime, directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi), and MOOMINS AND THE WINTER WONDERLAND (Finland, directed by Jakub Wronski and Ira Carpelan).
2018
564. MARY AND THE WITCHES FLOWER (1/18/18) GKIDS. D: Hiromasa Yonebayashi. Based on “The Little Broomstick” by Mary Stewart, a peculiar flower gifts a girl with magic powers.
Early Man
566. BILAL: A NEW BREED OF HERO (2/2/18) Vertical Entertainment. D: Khurram H. Alavi, Ayman Jamal. A thousand years ago, one boy who dreams of becoming a great warrior is abducted with his sister and taken to a land far away from home. Cast into a world where greed and injustice rule over all, Bilal finds the courage to raise his voice and make a change. Inspired by true events, this is a story of a true hero who earned his remembrance in time and history.
567. PETER RABBIT (2/9/18) Warner Bros. D: Will Gluck. In this feature adaptation of Beatrix Potter’s classic story, a rebellious rabbit tries to sneak into a farmer’s vegetable garden. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $115,253,424
568. TEHRAN TABOO (2/14/18) Kino-Lorber. D: Ali Soozandeh. (NY release date) In a desperate pursuit of freedom and happiness, four young people from Tehran, Iran are forced to break the taboos of a restrictive, Islamic society.
569. EARLY MAN (2/16/18) Lionsgate. D: Nick Park. Set during prehistoric times, Early Man follows the story of Dug, along with sidekick Hognob as they unite his tribe against a mighty enemy Lord Nooth and his Bronze Age City to save their home. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $8,267,544
570. THE BIG BAD FOX AND OTHER TALES (2/23/18) GKids. D: Patrick Imbert, Benjamin Renner. Whoever said that the countryside is calm and peaceful is mistaken. In it we find especially disturbed animals- a Fox that thinks it’s a chicken, a Rabbit that acts like a stork, and a Duck who wants to replace Father Christmas. If you want to take a vacation, skip this place.
571. SHERLOCK GNOMES (3/23/18) Paramount. D: John Stevenson. Gnomeo and Juliet, two garden gnomes, recruit renowned detective Sherlock Gnomes to investigate the mysterious disappearances of other garden gnomes. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $43,242,871
572. ISLE OF DOGS (3/23/16) Fox Searchlight. D: Wes Anderson. Set in Japan, Isle of Dogs follows a boy’s odyssey in search of his lost dog. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $32,015,231
573. BIG FISH & BEGONIA (4/6/18) Shout Factory. D: Xuan Liang and Chun Zhang. A 16- year-old girl travels to the human world in the form of a dolphin and forms a connection with a human boy.
574. DUCK DUCK GOOSE (4/20/18) Open Road Films. D: Christopher Jenkins. A bachelor goose must form a bond with two lost ducklings as they journey south.
575. THE INCREDIBLES 2 (6/15/18) Disney-Pixar. D: Brad Bird. The Parr family faces a new mission which involves a change in the family dynamic: Bob Parr (Mr. Incredible) must manage the house while his wife Helen (Elastigirl) goes out to save the world. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $608,581,744
576. HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3: SUMMER VACATION (7/13/18) Columbia. D: Genndy Tarakovsky. Count Dracula and his friends take part in a cruise for sea-loving monsters, unaware that their boat is being commandeered by the monster-hating Van Helsing family. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $167,510,016
577. TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES (7/27/18) Warner Bros. D: Aaron Horvath, Peter Rida Michail. A villain’s diabolical plan to take over the world sidetracks five teenage superheroes who dream of Hollywood stardom. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $29,790,236
Ralph Breaks The Internet
579. FIREWORKS (9/23/18) GKIds. D: Nobuyuki Takeuchi. Schoolchildren Norimichi, Yûsuke and Jun’ichi want to know if fireworks look round or flat from the side. They make a plan to find the answer at a fireworks display, while Nazuna schemes to run away with Norimichi or Yûsuke, whoever wins at the pool.
580. SMALLFOOT (9/28/18) Warner Bros. D: Karey Kirkpatrick, Jason Reisig. A Yeti is convinced that the elusive creatures referred to as “humans” really do exist. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $83,240,103
581. MFKZ (10/11/18) GKids. D: Guillaume “Run” Renard, Shoujirou Nishimi. In Dark Meat City, a young man develops supernatural powers after an otherwise uneventful scooter accident.
582. THE GRINCH (11/9/18) Universal. D: Peter Candeland, Yarrow Cheney, Matthew O’Callaghan. The grumpy Grinch (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch) plots to ruin Christmas for the village of Whoville. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $271,227,781
583. RUBEN BRANT, COLLECTOR (11/16/18) Sony Pictures Classics. D: Milorad Krstić. Four expert thieves attempt to steal every famous artwork that is haunting their mutual psychotherapist. A detective attempts to find out who the “Collector” is.
584. MIRAI (11/16/18) GKids. D: Mamoru Hosoda. A young boy encounters a magical garden which enables him to travel through time and meet his relatives from different eras, with guidance by his younger sister from the future.
585. RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET: WRECK-IT RALPH 2 (11/21/18) Disney. D: Phil Johnston, Rich Moore. In a follow up to the events of “Wreck-It Ralph,” friends Ralph and Vanellope discover a wi-fi router in their arcade, which leads them into a new adventure. Total U.S. Box office Gross: $201,091,711
Spider-Man Into The Spiderverse
587. SPIDERMAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE (12/14/18) Columbia. D: Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman. Miles Morales, a teenager from Brooklyn, becomes the Spider- Man of his universe, and must join with five additional spider-powered individuals from other dimensions to stop a threat for all realities. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $190,241,310
NOTES: 2018 Limited-release theatricals (movies going Direct-to-Video (DVD, VOD but getting a theatrical billboard) began this year with a pair of anime via Fathom Events – DIGIMON ADVENTURE TRI: LOSS, directed by Keitarou Motonaga on February 1st; then MAZINGER Z: INFINITY, directed by Junji Shimizu, on February 10th. Direct TV released MONSTER FAMILY (directed by Holger Tappe) to theaters on February 9th. Viva Pictures put nWave’s SON OF BIGFOOT (directed by Jeremy Degruson and Ben Stassen) in theaters date and date with digital streaming May 4th. Shout Factory screened THE BOXCAR CHILDREN-SURPRISE ISLAND (directed by Dan Chuba) in theaters on May 8th. Viva Pictures put LUIS AND THE ALIENS (directed by Christoph and Wolfgang Lauenstein and Sean McCormack) in theaters on August 17th. Blue Fox Entertainment released A WIZARD’S TALE (Directed by Andrés Couturier, based on the DePatie-Freleng TV series “Here Comes The Grump”) on September 14th. Eleven Arts released the anime feature THE LAWS OF THE UNIVERSE PART 1 (directed by Isamu Imakake) on October 12th. Viva Pictures will release THE LEGEND OF HALLOWAIIAN, directed by Sean Patrick O’Reilly on October 18th. LIYANA, a live action/animation documentary via Abramorama, directed by Amanda Koppa and Aaron Kopp, opened in LA on October 19th. Naoko Yamada’s anime feature LIZ AND THE BLUEBIRD opened November 9th in LA for an Oscar qualifying run. Screen Media opened Canada’s ELLIOT THE LITTLEST REINDEER (directed by Jennifer Westcott) on November 30th.
2019
588. DRAGONBALL SUPER: BROLY (1/16/19) Funamation. D: Tatsuya Nagamine. Goku and Vegeta encounter Broly, a Saiyan warrior unlike any fighter they’ve faced before. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $30,712,119
589. THE LEGO MOVIE: THE SECOND PART (2/8/18) Warner Bros. D: Mike Mitchell, Trisha Gum. Five years have passed since everything was awesome, and the citizens are now facing a new threat: Lego Duplo invaders from outer space, wrecking everything faster than they can rebuild. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $105,806,508
590. HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD (2/22/19) Dreamworks (Universal). D: Dean DeBlois. When Hiccup discovers Toothless isn’t the only Night Fury, he must find “The Hidden World”, a secret Dragon Utopia, before a hired tyrant named Grimmel does. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $160,799,505
Missing Link
592. MISSING LINK (4/12/19) Laika. D: Chris Butler. Mr. Link recruits explorer Sir Lionel Frost to help find his long-lost relatives in the fabled valley of Shangri-La. Along with adventurer Adelina Fortnight, this trio of explorers travel the world to help their new friend. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $16,649,539
593. PENGUIN HIGHWAY (4/12/19) Eleven Arts. D: Hiroyasu Ishida. A fourth-grader, Aoyama-kun, investigates the mysterious reason behind the sudden appearance of penguins in his village, which is somehow related to a power from a young woman working at a dental clinic.
594. FUNAN (4/26/19) GKids. D: Denis Do. The survival and the struggle of a young mother during the Khmer Rouge revolution, to find her 4-year-old son, torn from his family by the regime.
595. UGLY DOLLS (5/3/19) STX Films. D: Kelly Asbury. An animated adventure that takes place in Uglyville, in which the free-spirited UglyDolls learn what it means to be different, struggle with a desire to be loved, and ultimately realize that who you truly are is what matters most. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $20,150,241
596. THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS 2 (6/7/19) Illumination (Universal). D: Chris Renaud. Max the terrier encounters canine-intolerant cows, hostile foxes and a scary turkey when he visits the countryside. Luckily for Max, he soon catches a break when he meets Rooster, a gruff farm dog who tries to cure the lovable pooch of his neuroses. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $368,384,330
597. TOY STORY 4 (6/21/19) Pixar (Disney). D: Josh Cooley. Woody, Buzz, and the rest of the gang embark on a road trip with a new toy called “Forky”. An unexpected reunion occurs, and friends both old and new learn how big the world can be for a toy. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: 434,038,008
598. THE LION KING (7/19/19) Disney. D: Jon Favreau. NOTE: The studio marketed this film as a ‘live action’ remake. A young lion prince named Simba and his father are targeted by his bitter uncle, causing Simba to flee his kingdom only to learn the true meaning of responsibility and bravery. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $543,638,043
599. THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE 2 (8/16/19) Sony. D: Thurop Van Orman, John Rice. The flightless birds and scheming green pigs take their feud to the next level. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $41,667,116
600. ANOTHER DAY OF LIFE (9/13/19) GKids. D: Raúl De La Fuente, Damian Nenow. A gripping story of a three-month-long journey that renowned Polish reporter Ryszard Kapuscinski took across Angola, ravaged by a war in which the front lines shifted like a kaleidoscope, from one day to the next.
601. PROMARE (9/20/19) GKids. D: Hiroyuki Imaishi. A futuristic firefighting mecha service is created to protect the world.
602. ABOMINABLE (9/27/19) Dreamworks/Pearl. D: Jill Culton, Todd Wilderman. Three teens help a Yeti return to his family while avoiding a wealthy man and a zoologist who want him for their own motives. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $60,716,390
Addams Family
604. ARCTIC DOGS (11/8/19) Entertainment Studios. D: Aaron Woodley. An Arctic fox works in the mailroom of a package delivery service, but would rather be doing the deliveries. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $5,801,249
605. KLAUS (11/8/19) Netflix. D: Sergio Pablos. When Smeerensburg’s new postman, Jesper, befriends toymaker Klaus, their gifts and unlikely friendship return laughter to Smeerensburg. *Released on Netflix*
606. I LOST MY BODY (11/15/19) Netflix. D: Jeremy Clapin. A story of Naoufel, a young man who is in love with Gabrielle. In another part of town, a severed hand escapes from a dissection lab, determined to find its body again. *Released Domestically on Netflix*
607. WHITE SNAKE (11/15/19) GKids. D: Amp Wong & Zhao Ji. A love story between a snake spirit and a snake hunter.
608. FROZEN 2 (11/22/19) Disney. D: Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee. Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, Olaf and Sven embark on journey to an enchanted forrest. They seek to discover the origin of Elsa’s powers and save their kingdom, which leads to a journey of self discovery. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $477,373,578
609. PLAYMOBIL THE MOVIE (12/6/19) STX Films. D: Lino DiSalvo. Animated feature film inspired by the Playmobil brand toys.
610. SPIES IN DISGUISE (12/27/19) Blue Sky (20th Century-Fox/Disney) D: Nick Bruno, Troy Quane. When the world’s best super spy Lance Sterling is turned into a pigeon, he must work with his nerdy tech officer to save the world. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $66,757,013
NOTES: 2019 Limited-release theatricals (movies going Direct-to-Video (DVD, VOD but getting a theatrical billboard) began with the German TALL TALES (aka “Tall Tales from the Magical Garden of Antoon Krings” or “Drôles de petites bêtes”), directed by Arnaud Bouron and Antoon Krings, opened January 11th in Los Angeles via Direct TV. Fathom Events released Masayuki Kojima’s anime feature MADE IN ABYSS: JOURNEY’S END on March 25th. James Young Entertainment released CHANCE, directed by Kenny Roy, on April 5th. GKids released Studio Madhouse’s OKKO’S INN, directed by Kitaro Kosaka, on April 26th. Funimation screened CODE GEASS: LELOUCH OF THE RE;SURRECTION, directed by Gorou Taniguchi, in theaters May 5th. GKIDS released Salvador Simó’s BUNUEL IN THE LABYRINTH OF THE TURTLES on August 16th in Los Angeles. Chengdu Coco Cartoon (Beijing Enlight Pictures) released the Chinese NE-ZHA directed by Yang Yu (aka Jiao Zi) on August 29th. Shout Factory released an English dub of the Italian CINDERELLA AND THE SECRET PRINCE, directed by Lynne Southerland and Paulette Victor-Lifton, theatrically in Los Angeles on October 11th. Hoorakhsh Studios opened Ashkan Rahgozar’s THE LAST FICTION in Los Angeles on October 18th. Funimation released Takashi Otsuka’s ONE PIECE: STAMPEDE on October 24th. More titles, dates and information to come.
ALSO NOTE: Warner Bros. released the live action/animation hybrid DETECTIVE PIKACHU, directed by Rob Letterman, on May 10th. Paramount Pictures’ moved their live-action/CGI hybrid SONIC THE HEDGEHOG to 2020. Disney will release a live action/CG hybrid of THE CALL OF THE WILD (directed by Chris Sanders) on February 21st 2020. FARMAGEDDON: A SHAUN THE SHEEP MOVIE will be released in 2020 via Netflix.
2020
611. WEATHERING WITH YOU (1/17/20) GKids. D: Makoto Shinkai. A high-school boy who has run away to Tokyo befriends a girl who appears to be able to manipulate the weather.
612. A SHAUN THE SHEEP MOVIE: FARMAGEDDON (2/14/20) Netflix. D: Will Becher, Richard Phelan. When an alien with amazing powers crash-lands near Mossy Bottom Farm, Shaun the Sheep goes on a mission to shepherd the intergalactic visitor home before a sinister organization can capture her.
613. ONWARD (3/6/20) Pixar (Disney). D: Dan Scanlon. Two teenage elven brothers embark on a magical quest to bring their late father back for one day. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $61,555,145
614. TROLLS: WORLD TOUR (4/10/20) Dreamworks (Universal). D: Walt Dohrn. (direct to VOD) When the Queen of the Hard Rock Trolls tries to take over all the Troll kingdoms, Queen Poppy and her friends try different ways to save all the Trolls.
615. THE WILLOUGHBYS (4/22/20) Netflix. D: Kris Pearn (direct to streaming). Neglected by their parents, four old-fashioned siblings venture out into the modern world with their new nanny.
616. SCOOB! (5/15/20) Warner Bros. D: Tony Cervone (direct to VOD) Scooby and the gang face their most challenging mystery yet: a plot to unleash the ghost dog Cerberus into the world. As they race to stop this dogpocalypse, the gang learns that Scooby has an epic destiny greater than anyone imagined.
617. THE SPONGEBOB MOVIE: SPONGE ON THE RUN (8/14/20) Paramount. D: Tim Hill. After SpongeBob’s beloved pet snail is abducted, he and his best friend Patrick embark on an epic journey to the lost Atlantic City to bring Gary home. Opened wide in Canada, with limited theatrical showings in US. Subsequently released on Paramount+ in March 2021.
618. OVER THE MOON (10/28/20) Pearl (Netflix). D: Glen Keene. An adventurous girl builds a rocket ship to meet a mythical goddess on the moon. *Released on Netflix*
619. WOLFWALKERS (11/13/20) Cartoon Saloon (Apple Original). D: Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart. A young apprentice hunter and her father journey to Ireland to help wipe out the last wolf pack. But everything changes when she befriends a free-spirited girl from a mysterious tribe rumored to transform into wolves by night.
620. THE CROODS: A NEW AGE (11/25/20) Dreamworks (Universal). D: Joel Crawford. The prehistoric Croods family are challenged by a rival family- the Bettermans- who claim to be superior and more evolved. Total U.S. Box Office Gross: $39,937,125
621. SOUL (12/25/20) Pixar (Disney). D: Pete Docter. (released direct to Disney+). After landing the gig of his dreams, a New York jazz pianist named Joe suddenly finds himself trapped in a strange, cosmic land between Earth and the afterlife.
2020 LIMITED RELEASE THEATRICALS (movies going Direct-to-Video – for DVD or Streaming, but getting a limited theatrical billboard): Eleven Arts released Keiichi Hara’s THE WONDERLAND on February 6th (in Los Angeles). Funimation released Kenji Nagasaki’s MY HERO ACADEMIA: HEROES RISING on February 26th. Bron Animation’s HENCHMEN (directed by Adam Wood) comes out October 9th in Virtual Cinemas, Digital and On Demand. Gkids will release the CGI feature LUPIN III: THE FIRST (directed by Takashi Yamazaki) on October 18th. Universal will release BOBBLEHEADS: THE MOVIE (directed by Kirk Wise) December 8th via DVD. ON-GAKU: OUR SOUND (directed by Kenji Iwaisawa) was released by GKids on December 11th.
HYBRID FILMS: Paramount Pictures’ live-action/CGI hybrid SONIC THE HEDGEHOG opened on Feb. 14th, 2020. Disney’s live action/CG hybrid THE CALL OF THE WILD (directed by Chris Sanders) opened on February 21st 2020.
QUALIFIYING FOR ACADEMY AWARDS 2020: Normally an animated feature must play in a theater in Los Angeles to qualify for Oscar consideration. This year, due the pandemic, rules were softened to allow more entries with less restrictive qualifying obligations. The following titles made the cut this year, without a US theatrical release or public showing in Los Angeles county.
ACCIDENTAL LUXURIANCE OF THE TRANSLUCENT WATERY BLUES D: Dalibor Baric (Croatia)
BOMBAY ROSE D: Gitanjali Rao (India)
CALAMITY D: Rémi Chayé (France)
DEMON SLAYER: INFINITY TRAIN D: Haruo Sotozaki (Japanese)
DREAMBUILDERS D: Kim Hagen Jensen, Tonni Zinck (Danish)
EARWIG AND THE WITCH D: Goro Miyazaki (Japan)
KILL IT OR LEAVE THIS TOWN D: Mariusz Wilczynski (Polish)
LUPIN III: THE FIRST D: Takashi Yamazaki (Japan)
MOSLEY D: Kirby Atkins (New Zealand)
MY FAVORITE WAR D: Ilze Burkovska Jacobsen (Latvia/Russia)
THE NOSE OR THE CONSPIRACY OF MAVERICKS D: Andrey Khrzhanovskiy (Russia)
NO. 7 CHERRY LANE D: Yonfan (China)
ON-GAKU: OUR SOUND D: Kenji Iwaisawa (Japan)
RED SHOES AND THE SEVEN DWARFS D: Sung-ho Hong, Moo-Hyun Jang, Young Sik Uhm (China)
RIDE YOUR WAVE D: Masaaki Yuasa (Japan)
TERRA WILLY D: Eric Tosti (France)
A WHISKER AWAY D: Jun’ichi Satô, Tomotaka Shibayama (Japanese/Netflix)
2021
622. EARWIG AND THE WITCH (2/3/21) GKIDS. D: Goro Miyazaki. Adopted against her will, Earwig must learn to use magic to escape her witch captors.
623. TOM & JERRY (3/5/21) Warner Bros. D: Tim Story. Hijinks ensue as Jerry the mouse steals a bride’s ring, and Tom the cat is hired to get it back, all before the wedding takes place the next day.
624. RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON (3/12/21) Disney. D: Don Hall and Carlos López Estrada. The chiefdoms in Kumandra have fought for power since the dragons disappeared 500 years ago, and now a scheme to steal the last dragon’s gem threatens the entire realm.
625. DEMON SLAYER THE MOVIE: MUGEN TRAIN (4/23/21) Aniplex America. D: Haruo Sotozaki. Tanjiro Kamado and his friends help powerful demon slayer Kyojuro Rengoku track down the source of a string of murders, all leading back to the mysterious Mugen Train.
626. THE MITCHELLS VS. THE MACHINES (4/30/21) Netflix. (Sony Pictures Animation) D: Mike Rianda, Jeff Rowe. Katie Mitchell’s love of film-making clashes with her father’s technophobia, and the family’s attempt at a bonding road trip only ends up leaving them as the last hope for humanity against a horde of rogue robots.
627. SPIRIT UNTAMED (6/4/21) Dreamworks/Universal D: Elaine Bogan. Lucky meets a prideful stallion she’s determined to befriend, and despite her mother’s death while riding one, sets out to save him from his abusive wranglers.
628. WISH DRAGON (6/11/21) Sony Pictures Animation (on Netflix). D: Chris Applehans. Granted 3 wishes from a dragon in a teapot, Din attempts to reconnect with his childhood friend while her father Mr. Wang vies to steal the teapot for himself.
629. PETER RABBIT 2: THE RUNAWAY (6/18/21) Columbia Pictures. D: Will Gluck (a hybrid film; live action and animation) Peter’s friend Bea starts working with a publishing company to create stories about their prior adventures, but the edits suggested by the publisher would paint him in a villainous light, leading to discontent and miscommunication in their happily ever after.
630. LUCA (6/18/21) Disney/Pixar. D: Enrico Casarosa testing out this other font color to see if it helps. Luca yearns for more than just his simple, underwater fish ranching life, and so he teams up with fellow kid Alberto to sneak onto land and find out what it’s like to live with humans.
631. AMERICA: THE MOTION PICTURE (6/30/21) Netflix. D: Matt Thompson. Founding Fathers George Washington and Sam Adams team up against the traitorous and lycanthropic Founder Benedict Arnold, using the power of chainsaws, beer, and a silver bullet to defeat the British armies.
632. THE BOSS BABY: FAMILY BUSINESS (7/2/21) Dreamworks/Universal. D: Tom McGrath. A new baby from Baby Co. appears in Ted’s family, and reveals a new mission requiring the use of an anti-aging formula to stop the apocalyptic “B-Day.”
633. SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY (7/16/21) Warner Bros. D: Malcolm D. Lee. Following an argument, a rogue AI manipulates LeBron James’ son Dominic to trap LeBron in a basketball simulation, where the Looney Tunes assemble as his unlikely allies.
634. TROLLHUNTERS: RISE OF THE TITANS (7/30/21) Netflix (Dreamworks). D: Johane Matte, Francisco Ruiz Velasco, Andrew L. Schmidt. The Arcane Order threatens to remake the world anew, as Jim Lake and fellow heroes prepare to defend the Trollmarket’s Heartstone and solve the mysterious ‘ninth configuration.
635. THE LOUD HOUSE MOVIE (7/30/21) Netflix (Dreamworks). D: Dave Needham. As the only son of a large family, Lincoln feels stuck in his many sisters’ shadows, and eagerly jumps on their unexpected Scottish royal heritage to try and prove himself worthy, aiming to become the Duke of Loch Loud.
636. PAW PATROL: THE MOVIE (8/20/21) Paramount. D: Cal Brunker. As their greatest rival and mayor, Humdinger creates chaos in Adventure City, and it’s up to the Paw Patrol and a new friendly face to save the day.
637. VIVO (9/17/21) Sony Pictures Animation (on Netflix). D: Kirk DeMicco and co-directed by Brandon Jeffords. A kinkajou with a passion for music sets out on a fantastical quest to give an old friend a love song, fulfilling his destiny.
638. THE ADDAMS FAMILY 2 (10/8/21) MGM/UA. D: Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon. When the Addams children seem to be growing distant, Gomez Addams rounds everyone up for a road trip in hopes of reconnecting the family.
639. RON’S GONE WRONG (10/22/21) 20th Century/Disney/Locksmith. D: J.P. Vine and Octavio E. Rodriguez. Barney, an average schoolboy struggling to fit in, makes friends with the defective robot Ron, and together they learn about the true meaning of friendship.
640. ENCANTO (11/24/21) Disney. D: Byron Howard and Jared Bush and co-directed by Charise Castro Smith. The Madrigals are a multigenerational Columbian family living in the magical Encanto, and all children but one, Mirabel, have been blessed with a gift.
641. SING 2 (12/22/21) Illumination/Universal D: Garth Jennings. For his next show’s opening, Buster Moon and the gang seek to recruit Clay Calloway, a retired rockstar and bitter recluse.
642. Rumble (12/15/21) Paramount. Directed by Hamish Grieve. Premiered on Dec. 15, 2021 on Paramount +. Monsters rule the wrestling scene, and monster wrestling enthusiast Winnie teams up with underdog Rayburn Jr. to win the world championship and save them from their debt.
PLEASE NOTE: The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run was actually given a soft release last year (8/14/2020) but made its streaming debut via Paramount+ on March 4th 2021
LIMITED RELEASES or TV FEATURES: Shout Factory released The Legend of Hei, directed by MTJJ Mutou, on April 9th; Netflix released Titmouse’s Arlo the Alligator Boy directed by Ryan Crego on April 16th; Shout Factory will release The Prince’s Voyage, directed by Jean-François Laguionie and Xavier Picard, on May 18th. Pantelion Films released the Mexican CG feature, Un Rescate de Huevitos, directed by Gabriel Riva Palacio Alatriste and Rodolfo Riva Palacio Alatriste, in US cinemas on August 27th. And finally, Reel FX’s Back to the Outback directed by Clare Knight and Harry Cripps, will be released December 10th on Netflix.
QUALIFIYING FOR ACADEMY AWARDS 2021: Normally an animated feature must play in a theater in Los Angeles to qualify for Oscar consideration. This year, once again due the pandemic, rules were softened to allow more entries with less restrictive qualifying obligations. The following additional features made the cut this year, without a US theatrical release or public showing in Los Angeles county.
The Ape Star Director: Linda Hambäck (Sweden)
Belle Director: Mamoru Hosoda (Japan)
Bob Spit – We Do Not Like People Director: Cesar Cabral (Brazil)
Cryptozoo Director: Dash Shaw (U.S.)
Flee Director: Jonas Poher Rasmussen (Denmark)
Fortune Favors Lady Nikuko Director: Ayumu Watanabe (Japan)
Josee, the Tiger and the Fish Director: Isshin Inudô (Japan)
The Laws of the Universe – The Age of Elohim Director: Isamu Imakake (Japan)
My Sunny Maad Director: Michaela Pavlátová (Czech Republic)
Pompo the Cinephile Director: Takayuki Hirao (Japan)
Poupelle of Chimney Town Director: Yusuke Hirota (Japan)
The Spine of Night Directors: Philip Gelatt and Morgan Galen King (US)
The Summit of the Gods Director: Patrick Imbert (France)
2022
643. Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (1/15/22) Sony Pictures Animation/Prime Video. D: Jennifer Kluska and Derek Drymon. Drac and Johnny seem to have settled their differences, but a supposed monster-only law pushes Johnny to transform into a monster, accidentally transforming Drac into a human too.
644. The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild (1/28/22) 20th Century/Disney+. D: John C. Donkin. Crash and Eddie stumble upon a hidden world of dinosaurs, where their old friend Buck warns them of a tyrant coming into power.
645. Catwoman: Hunted (2/8/22) Warner Bros. Animation. D: Shinsuke Terasawa. An unapologetic super-burglar finds herself a wanted target of the dangerous Minerva, and teams up with Batwoman in exchange for amnesty for her crimes.
646. Luck (2/25/22) Apple Original Films/Skydance Animation. D: Peggy Holmes. Perpetually run down on her luck, an orphan named Sam is gifted a lucky penny only to lose it, and the black cat who gave it to her is at risk of being banished from the Land of Luck.
647. Turning Red (3/11/22) Disney/Pixar. D: Domee Shi. (Direct to Disney+) Mai Lee never used to think about boys, but inexplicable emotions are rising to the surface, along with an inherited ability to uncontrollably turn into a red panda.
648. Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (3/18/22) Crunchyroll. D: Seong-Hu Park. Following the death of his childhood friend Rika, her protective spirit violently guards Yuta, and the strength of their bond lands them in the crosshairs of powerful cursed spirits.
649. Apollo 10 ½: A Space Age Adventure Netflix/Minnow Mountain/Submarine. D: Richard Linklater. A 10 ½ year old boy is taken on a fanciful adventure to become an astronaut, set as an imaginary piece regaling the first launch of Apollo 11 in the 1960s.
650. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (4/8/22) Paramount Pictures. D: Jeff Fowler. Dr. Robotnik tricks Knuckles into teaming up to steal the Master Emerald, while Tails helps his idol Sonic find it.
651. The Bad Guys (4/22/22) DreamWorks/Universal. D: Pierre Perife. A team of fiendish thieves is captured after a failed heist and forced into unwilling rehabilitation, but their leader Wolf finds he may actually want to turn good.
652. Charlotte (4/22/22) Good Deed Entertainment. D: Tahir Rana and Éric Warin. Based on the autobiography Life? or Theater? made by Charlotte Salomon, a German-Jewish artist living under the Nazi regime, as she finds love and struggles with freedom and oppression.
653. Pompo The Cinephile (4/29/22) GKIDS. D: Takayuki Hirao. Genius film producer Pompo only makes B-rated trashy films, but offers her assistant Gene the chance to debut as a director on her latest script.
654. The Bob’s Burgers Movie (5/27/22) 20th Century/Bento Box. D: Loren Bouchard. Belcher’s summer plans are hijacked by a sinkhole at the entrance of Bob’s Burgers, forcing Bob and Linda to focus on keeping their business afloat, while the kids are left with a mystery they must solve in order to save the restaurant.
655. Lightyear (6/17/22) Disney/Pixar. D: Angus MacLane. Buzz Lightyear’s latest mission yields unidentified life on T’kani Prime, the “Zurg,” which proves a formidable foe as Buzz faces off against them through time.
656. Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (6/24/22) A24 Releasing. D: Dean Fleischer-Camp. A talking seashell lives in Dean’s Airbnb, and with Dean’s help becomes a media sensation in the hopes of finding his family.
657. Minions: The Rise of Gru (7/1/22) Universal/Illumination. D: Kyla Balda, Brad Ableson, Jonathan del Val. A young and inexperienced Gru is captured after his Minions fail him, and as they fight to redeem themselves, Gru bonds with his fellow villain captor.
658. The Sea Beast (7/8/22) Netflix. D: Chris Williams. The renowned sea hunters aboard the Inevitable have kept the world safe from great and terrible monsters, but a young stowaway suspects there’s a hidden truth beneath the surface.
659. The Deer King (7/13/22) GKids. D: Masashi Ando. Anime. The deadly Black Wolf Fever resurfaces again, and though Van survives an infected bite, he must protect the young girl he rescued and escape the national disaster.
660. Paws Of Fury: The Legend Of Hank (7/15/22) Paramount Pictures (Nickelodeon Movies). D: Rob Minkoff, Mark Koetsier, Chris Bailey. A dog’s dreams of becoming a samurai are given hope, and simultaneously set to fail, as a noble’s schemes leave Hank to take the fall against an overwhelming horde of bandits.
661. DC League of Super-Pets (7/29/22) Warner Animation Group/DC Ent. D: Jared Stern. With the Man of Steel and Justice League kidnapped, it’s up to Krypto the Super-Dog to wrangle together a team of animals with newly awakened abilities to save the day.
662. Inu-Oh (8/12/22) GKids. D: Masaaki Yuasa. In a tale weaving the lives of both a blind biwa player and a deformed, cursed son, their performances reveal the truth behind the murders and cover-ups of the restless spirits following them.
663. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero (8/19/22) Crunchyroll/Toei Animation. D: Tetsuro Kodama. Goku’s old enemies, the Red Ribbon Army, have resurfaced with a new pair of androids created by the reluctantly recruited grandson of Dr. Gedo.
664. Eternal Spring (10/14/22) Lofty Sky Pictures. D: Jason Loftus. Followers of Falun Gong in China protest against persecution in 2002, leading to crackdowns and raids, and while Daxiong manages to flee the country, he cannot help but blame the protestors, but then he meets the only one to escape.
666. Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile (11/18/22) Columbia/Sony. D: Will Speck and Josh Gordon. Lyle the crocodile was born with a talent for singing, but without the courage to perform, he leaves his friend Hector as a liar.
667. My Father’s Dragon (10/8/22) Netflix/Cartoon Saloon. D: Cartoon Saloon’s Nora Twomey. Hard times fall on Elmer’s family, but a local talking cat knows the way to an island with a real live dragon that may be able to help.
668. Pinocchio (12/9/22) Netflix/The Jim Henson Co./ShadowMachine. D: Guillermo del Toro. Carved from the tree above Gepetto’s son’s grave, Pinocchio faces hardship after hardship and defies death to learn what it means to be loved.
669. Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie (8/5/22) Paramount Animation/Netflix. D: Andy Suriano, Ant Ward. A stranger from the future arrives to warn the turtles of an impending alien threat, the Krang, which defeated their future counterparts and will defeat them again if they don’t stop its return.
671. Strange World (11/23/22) Disney. D: Don Hall, Qui Nguyen. A family of explorers stumbles upon a unique power source in the mountains they were attempting to cross, but when that power source begins to wane, it’ll take all of them together to find the truth outside of Avalonia.
672. Wendell and Wild (10/28/22) Netflix/Monkeypaw/Gotham Group. D: Henry Selick. Gifted with precognition, Kat gains the attention of demon brothers Wendell and Wild, and while contracted in exchange for her parents’ revival, she endeavours to unveil the conspiracy behind the murder of her school principal.
673. Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (12/25/22) DreamWorks/Universal. D: Joel Crawford. Puss’s nine lives have gone by in a flash of showy chauvinism, but with a magical wish he could avoid his problems and lengthen his life, getting out of the kitty retirement home and back to what he’s meant to do.
2022 LIMITED RELEASE FEATURES (movies going Direct-to-Physical-Media or Streaming – some getting a limited theatrical billboard): GKids released PANDA! GO PANDA! (1972) directed by Isao Takahata, to theaters in NY and LA on May 13th. Disney released CHIP N’ DALE RESCUE RANGERS, directed by Akiva Schaffer, on Disney+ on May 20th. Fathom Events released GKIds FORTUNE FAVORS LADY NIKUKO, directed by Ayumu Watanabe, on June 2nd. Shudder (an AMC Network) is releasing MAD GOD, a stop motion feature directed by Phil Tippett, on June 16th. Shout Factory released GULLIVER RETURNS, produced by Ukraine’s 95 Animation Studio and directed by Ilya Maksimov and Tony Bonilla on July 26th. Gravitas Ventures released something somewhat animated (filtered?) called CANVAS (directed by Ryan Guiterman) on Video on Demand on August 9th.
ADDITIONAL FEATURES QUALIFIED FOR AN ACADEMY AWARD: CHARLOTTE, DRIFTING HOME, GOODBYE DON GLEES!, LAMYA’S POEM, LITTLE NICHOLAS HAPPY AS CAN BE, NEW GODS: YANG JIAN, OINK, and RUN TIGER RUN.
2023
674. NEW GODS: YANG JIAN (1/20/23) GKids. D: Ji Zhao. Formerly a powerful god, now barely making it by as a bounty hunter, Yang Jian is hired to find his own long-lost nephew, and finds the consequences of his past along the way.
675. THE AMAZING MAURICE (2/3/23) Viva. D: Toby Genkel, Florian Westermann. Maurice and his gang of rats have a money-making scheme to take advantage of anyone, but the next town they visit has no rats at all, as something has gone horribly wrong.
676. ART COLLEGE 1994 (2/24/23) Memento International. D: Liu Jian. A group of art students struggle to reconcile traditional and modern art, and strive to find their place in the world.
677. THE MAGICIAN’S ELEPHANT (3/17/23) Netflix. D: Wendy Rogers. An elephant is inexplicably summoned during a magic performance, and Peter’s fortune to “follow the magician’s elephant” could not be more clear; If he wants to find his long-lost sister he’ll have to follow his fortune to the end.
678. THE SUPER MARIO BROS. MOVIE (4/5/23) Universal Pictures/. D: Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic. A Warp Pipe under Brooklyn pulls brothers Mario and Luigi into another world where king Bowser is threatening to destroy the Mushroom Kingdom if Princess Peach refuses to marry him.
679. SUZUME (4/14/23) Crunchyroll. D: Makoto Shinkai. Some abandoned doors around Japan are linked to an otherworldly worm that will cause disaster if released, and high schooler Suzume Iwato may end up being the key to preventing it.
680. RALLY ROAD RACERS (5/12/23) Viva Kids. D: Ross Venokur. Zhi’s childhood idol Archie Vainglorious won’t listen to reason or stop the plans to demolish Zhi’s home village, but he’s egotistical enough to be challenged in the Silk Road race.
681. SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE (6/2/23) Sony Pictures Releasing. D: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson. The Multiverse faces a new threat as Miles Morales meets Spider-Society, but the Spiders clash with Miles on how to keep their worlds safe and what it means to be a hero.
682. ELEMENTAL (6/16/23) Walt Disney Pictures/Pixar Animation Studios. D: Peter Sohn. In a city inhabited with elemental people, Ember’s family restaurant is at risk of being shut down, but Wade Ripple, the official reporting their faulty plumbing, may be able to help avert the report and save the entire fire element district.
683. NIMONA (6/23/23) Netflix. D: Nick Bruno, Troy Quane. Ballister is framed for the murder of the queen, and as he goes on the run as a wanted man, the helpful henchman Nimona appears to assist in his “villainous plans.”
684. RUBY GILLMAN, TEENAGE KRAKEN (6/30/23) Universal Pictures. D: Kirk DeMicco. An aquatic destiny awaits Ruby Gillman as she discovers her royal kraken heritage awaiting beneath the waves, from schoolgirl to heir of the legendary Trident of Oceanus.
685. TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLE: MUTANT MAYHEM (8/2/23) Paramount Pictures. D: Jeff Rowe. Being outcasts seems to be the Turtles’ only fate, but when Superfly starts causing havoc around New York with an army of fellow mutants, it’s their chance to prove themselves to humanity.
686. THE MONKEY KING (8/18/23) Netflix. D: Anthony Stacchi. A retelling of the famous Sun Wukong’s origins, as a monkey born from a stone on a mountain and greedy for immortality.
687. BABY SHARK’S BIG MOVIE (9/8/23) Paramount Pictures/Nickelodeon. D: Director. Baby Shark’s family moves out to the big city, forcing Baby Shark to say goodbye to his best friend, while the evil idol singer Stariana wants to steal his musical talent.
688. SULTANA’S DREAM (9/24/23) Filmin. D: Isabel Herguera. Inés travels on a self-searching journey, learning about Sultana’s Dream and its author who created a utopian ‘Ladyland’ for women to be free of oppression.
689. PAW PATROL: THE MIGHTY MOVIE (9/29/23) Paramount/Nickelodeon. D: Cal Brunker. A meteor crash lands on Earth with shards that give the Paw Patrol powers, turning them into the superpowered Mighty Pups to face against a mad scientist intent on taking their powers for herself.
690. THE CANTERVILLE GHOST (10/20/23) Shout! Studios/Blue Fox Entertainment. D: Kim Burdon, Robert Chandler. Virginia’s none too pleased with her family’s sudden move, so she teams up with the 300 year old ghost haunting the manor to try and scare her family into a new home.
691. TROLLS BAND TOGETHER (11/17/23) DreamWorks Animation. D: Walt Dohrn. The royal wedding is crashed after Branch’s long lost brother John Dory suddenly appears, and on Poppy’s insistence, they’ll have to team up to get the Bro-Zone band back together.
692. LEO (11/21/23) Netflix. D: Robert Smigel, Robert Marianetti, David Wachtenheim. An elderly tuatara named Leo yearns to escape his caged class pet life and experience the wild before passing on, but as part of a school assignment he’s sent home with each student and ends up imparting them his wisdom.
693. WISH (11/22/23) Disney. D: Fawn Veerasunthorn, Chris Buck. The magical king of Rosas uses his wish-granting powers for only a fraction of the many he could help, so his apprentice Asha takes matters into her own hands.
694. THEY SHOT THE PIANO PLAYER (11/24/23) Sony Pictures Classics. D: Javier Mariscal, Fernando Trueba. A journalist investigates the bossa nova movement and the disappearance of the legendary Brazilian piano player Tenório Jr.
695. THE BOY AND THE HERON (12/8/23) GKIDS. D: Hayao Miyazaki. A strange world lies ahead for Mahito Maki in his search for his missing stepmother, guided by a mysterious talking heron.
696. CHICKEN RUN: DAWN OF THE NUGGET (12/15/23) Netflix/Aardman. D: Sam Fell. Ginger and her flock are living a safe and idyllic life on an island, but her child escapes to the mainland and uncovers the horrors of what humanity is plotting next.
697. MIGRATION (12/22/23) Illumination. D: Benjamin Renner. A family of mallard ducks attempt to migrate despite their overprotective father’s wishes, but end up lost, heading the wrong way through New York City.
2023 LIMITED RELEASE FEATURES (movies going Direct-to-Physical-Media or Streaming – some getting a limited theatrical billboard): Not sure if this even qualifies, but DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA -TO THE SWORDSMITH VILLAGE- was released on March 3 to theaters in North America, a theatrical event consisting of Episodes 10 and 11 of the series “Entertainment District Arc”. Gkids released UNICORN WARS, directed by Alberto Vázquez, digitally on March 10th. Zeitgeist Films theatrically released BLIND WILLOW SLEEPING WOMAN, directed by Pierre Foldes, on April 14th. Tubi premiered Bento Box’s PASTACOLYPSE, directed by Jason Shwartz, on June 21st; PSYCHO-PASS: PROVIDENCE, directed by Naoyoshi Shiotan, will be released on July 14th by Crunchyroll and Sony. GKids and Toei Animation will theatrically premiere THE FIRST SLAM DUNK, directed by Takehiko Inoue, in theaters July 28th; Venera Films will theatrically released AURORA’S SUNRISE, directed by Inna Sanakyan, on August 11th. Gkids releases ERNEST & CELESTINE: A TRIP TO GIBBERITIA (co-directed by Jean-Christophe Roger and Julien Chheng) to theaters in NY and LA on September 1st. Blue Fox Entertainment will release THE INVENTOR (directed by Jim Capobianco) theatrically on September 15th. Gkids is releasing anime feature BLUE GIANT (directed by Yuzuru Tachikawa) on October 8th. Viva Kids releases INSPECTOR SUN: CURSE OF THE BLACK WIDOW (directed by Julio Soto Gurpide) on October 27th. Samuel Goldwyn Films theatrically released the Build-A-Bear Production GLISTEN AND THE MERRY MISSION (directed by Cory Morrison) in Cinemark Theaters on November 3rd.
QUALIFIYING FOR AWARDS 2023: The following twelve additional titles qualified for an Oscar nomination with public showings in Los Angeles county.
The Amazing Maurice Directed by Toby Genkel and Florian Westermann (British)
Chang’an Directed by Junwei Xie and Jing Zou (China)
Deep Sea Directed by Xiaopeng Tian (China)
Lonely Castle in the Mirror Directed by Keiichi Hara and Takakazu Nagatomo (Japan)
Miraculous: Ladybug & Cat Noir, The Movie Directed by Jeremy Zag (French)
My Love Affair with Marriage Directed by Signe Baumane
The Peasants Directed by DK Welchman and Hugh Welchman (Polish)
Perlimps Directed by Alê Abreu (Brazil)
Robot Dreams Directed by Pablo Berger (Spain/France)
Suzume Directed by Makoto Shinkai (Japan)
Titina Directed by Kajsa Næss (Norway)
Warrior King Directed by Lu Qi (China)
The following twelve additional animated features qualified for an Annie Awards nomination with public showings in Los Angeles county.
The Concierge at Hokkyoku Department Store Directed by Yoshimi Itazu
Merry Little Batman Directed by Mike Roth
Feast of Amrita Directed by Saku Sakamoto
Four Souls of Coyote Directed by Áron Gauder
Opal Directed by Alain Bidard
Saleem Directed by Cynthia Madanat Sharaiha
The Inseparables Directed by Jérémie Degruson
The Tunnel of Summer Directed by Tomohisa Taguchi
Tsurune The Movie: The First Shot Directed by Takuya Yamamura
Under The Boardwalk Directed by David Soren
When Adam Changes Directed by Joël Vaudreuil
White Plastic Sky Directed by Tibor Bánóczki and Sarolta Szabó
2024
QUALIFIYING FOR AWARDS 2024: The following 31 titles (in Alphabetical Order) qualified for an Oscar nomination with public showings in Los Angeles county.
698. KUNG FU PANDA 4 (3/8/24) Universal Pictures. D: Mike Mitchell. Po must find a successor to become the new Dragon Warrior, all while a powerful sorcerer named The Chameleon intends to summon all of Po’s prior villains against him.
699. CAPTAIN AVISPA (4/1/24) Caribbean Films Distribution. D: Jean Gabriel Guerra, Jonnathan Melendez. Bees and wasps are uniting in peace, but Captain Avispa’s arch-nemesis schemes for control of the colonies.
700. CHICKEN FOR LINDA! (4/5/24) Dolce Vita Films/Miyu Productions. D: Sébastien Laudenbach, Chiara Malta. A widowed mother goes searching for the ingredients for her daughter’s favourite meal, just like her father used to make it, even though a general strike has closed stores and she has no idea how to cook.
701. MARS EXPRESS (5/3/24) Gebeka Films. D: Jérémie Périn. Androids are going missing on Mars, as activists jailbreak the artificial consciousnesses and the disappearances come under investigation by Aline and her android partner Carlos.
702. ROCKET CLUB ACROSS THE COSMOS (5/3/24) ICON Creative Studio. D: Steve Ball, Hailey Kathler, Shea Wageman. The Rocket Club’s simple mission to rescue a lovable alien ‘bunny’ is interrupted by their nemesis Calvin’s plans to freeze Earth and anyone standing in his way.
703. THELMA THE UNICORN (5/17/24) Netflix. D: Jared Hess, Lynn Wang. Thelma’s wish to become a music star is fulfilled when she’s transformed from a small-time pony to a majestical unicorn, but her newfound fame has a price.
704. THE GARFIELD MOVIE (5/24/24) Columbia Pictures. D: Mark Dindal. Garfield’s pampered life gets interrupted when his long-lost father Vic saves him and his friend Odie, but returning the favour may not be so simple.
705. INSIDE OUT 2 (6/14/24) Disney/Pixar. D: Kelsey Mann. Puberty strikes with brand new emotions for Riley’s inner self, as she tries to balance her friends and her goals, and her old emotions try to re-instate the peace that was shattered.
706. ULTRAMAN RISING (6/14/24) Netflix. D: Shannon Tindle. A star baseball player that has returned home is forced to become his city’s hero, Ultraman, when giant monsters take over the city.
707. DESPICABLE ME 4 (7/3/24) Universal Pictures. D: Chris Renaud. Gru’s family has expanded with a new baby boy that sternly dislikes him, and an old nemesis has broken out of prison intent on revenge.
708. THE IMAGINARY (7/5/24) Netflix. D: Yoshiyuki Momose. A young girl’s imaginary friend grapples with the reality of being forgotten, as his creator falls into a coma.
709. SIROCCO AND THE KINGDOM OF WINDS (8/11/24) Haut et Court. D: Benoît Chieux. Sisters Juliette and Carmen are whisked away into their favourite book, “The Kingdom of the Winds,” where their bodies become like cats and the warped kingdom is punished with storms by the mad sorcerer Sirocco.
710. TRANSFORMERS ONE (9/20/24) Paramount Pictures. D: Josh Cooley. The untold story from before Optimus Prime and Megatron became enemies, from lowly worker bots dreaming of exploring the surface, to saviours working together against an alien threat.
711. THE WILD ROBOT (9/27/24) Dreamworks. D: Chris Sanders. A shipwreck brings the helper robot Roz to an island devoid of human life, where she soon finds herself caring for the local wildlife and taking in an orphaned gosling.
712. PIECE BY PIECE (10/11/24) Universal Pictures. D: Morgan Neville. A biography stylizing the life of Pharrell Williams in Lego animation, detailing his childhood and relationship with music as a performer.
713. KENSUKE’S KINGDOM (10/18/24) Lupus Films. D: Neil Boyle, Kirk Hendry. After being swept overboard, Michael and his dog awaken on an island where a Japanese man named Kensuke lives in self-isolation, helping the duo survive, but reluctant to accept the world beyond.
714. MEMOIR OF A SNAIL (10/25/24) Arenamedia. D: Adam Elliot. A pair of twins become separated after the death of their father, in a memoir of Grace Pudel’s misfit childhood growing up under the eccentric and optimistic elderly woman Pinky.
715. HITPIG! (11/1/24) Aniventure/Cinesite. D: Cinzia Angelini, David Feiss. A million dollar reward awaits a bounty hunter pig, if he could just manage to capture his elephant target.
716. LOOK BACK (11/7/24) Studio Durian/Amazon MGM Studios. D: Kiyotaka Oshiyama. Two young girls Fujino and Kyomoto bond over their shared passion for creating manga despite their contrasting personalities, and their art brings them closer even when inexplicable events seek to keep them apart.
717. GHOST CAT ANZU (11/15/24) Producer. D: Yōko Kuno, Nobuhiro Yamashita. Young girl Karin is left alone at a shrine while her father tries to pay off his debts, but the local yokai present an opportunity to rescue her dead mother from the Land of the Dead.
718. FLOW (11/22/24) Janus Films, Slideshow. D: Gints Zilbalodis. A cat seeks refuge with other unlikely animals in a world submerged in a rapidly rising flood.
719. SPELLBOUND (11/22/24) Netflix. D: Vicky Jenson. Princess Ellian’s parents have been cursed to lose both their human forms and their memories of who they were, leaving their daughter to cover up the truth and find a way to restore their family.
720. MOANA 2 (11/27/24) Disney. D: David Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, Dana Ledoux Miller. As newly appointed master wayfinder, Moana assembles a crew with the demigod Maui in pursuit of both the lost island Motufetu, and the ultimate goal of uniting all the people of the ocean.
721. THAT CHRISTMAS (12/4/24) Netflix. D: Simon Otto. The worst blizzard in Wellington-on-Sea’s history interferes with the townsfolk’s plans this Christmas, as well as Santa’s.
722. BLACK BUTTERFLIES (12/5/24) Ikiru Films. D: David Baute. Three women from different ends of the Earth Tanit, Valeria, and Shaila have no choice but to emigrate for their survival due to the effects of global warming.
723. THE DAY THE EARTH BLEW UP: A LOONEY TUNES MOVIE (12/13/24) Ketchup Entertainment. D: Pete Browngardt. Daffy Duck and Porky Pig must learn to trust and rely on each other when an alien invasion threatens all life on Earth.
724. THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE WAR OF THE ROHIRRIM (12/13/24) Warner Bros. D: Kenji Kamiyama. 200 years before the War for the Rings, Hera refuses her hand in marriage and after the accidental death of Wulf’s father, war comes to Rohan and Hera makes a stand to fight for her king.
725. WALLACE & GROMIT: VENGEANCE MOST FOWL (12/18/24) Netflix. D: Nick Park. Gromit’s worry that Wallace relies too much on his inventions becomes warranted as Wallace’s latest intelligent gnome invention turns against them.
2025
This list includes all animated features that qualified for an Oscar nomination with public showings in Los Angeles county.
726. THE COLORS WITHIN (1/24/25) Science Saru. D: Naoko Yamada. Totsuko can see colourful auras around others, and after accidentally implying she can play piano to two of her classmates, they all wind up in a band together and learn about each other’s lives.
727. DOG MAN (1/31/25) Dreamworks. D: Peter Hastings. After a life-threatening injury, a police officer and his companion dog are merged into Dog Man, who must come to terms with his new identity while stopping Petey the Cat’s evil plans.
728. LIVING LARGE (3/2/25) Aerofilms. D: Kristina Dufková. Ben Pipette struggles with his weight and how he’s perceived by classmates, especially as he falls in love and tries to go on a diet.
729. NIGHT OF THE ZOOPACALYPSE (3/7/25) Mac Guff/House Of Cool. D: Ricardo Curtis, Rodrigo Perez-Castro. A mysterious virus crash-lands into a zoo, turning an overly peaceful community into a terrible nightmare that Gracie’s Timber Wolf grandmother always warned her would come.
730. OLIVIA & LAS NUBES (4/6/25) Guasábara Cine/Historias de Bibi/Cine Chani. D: Tomás Pichardo Espaillat. A broken relationship hangs over Olivia’s head, and saturates her waking memories with a kaleidoscope of colourful impressions portraying every little moment she had shared with the ‘ghost’ under her bed.
731. COLORFUL STAGE! THE MOVIE: A MIKU WHO CAN’T SING (4/17/25) P.A Works. D: Hiroyuki Hata. Highschooler Ichika has the ability to enter “SEKAI,” a realm where emotions come to life through music, and as Miku struggles to connect with her audience, she turns to Ichika to help her find her voice.
732. LOST IN STARLIGHT (5/30/25) Netflix. D: Han Ji-won. A heartwarming romance forms between the astronaut Nan-young and the musician Jay, but the star-crossed lovers struggle to balance their career life and and relationship when Nan-young gets the opportunity to follow her dream and go to Mars.
733. DOG OF GOD (6/6/25) Tritone Studio. D: Raitis Ābele, Lauris Ābele. As a maid is accused of witchcraft and sent to trial in the Livonian village of Zaube, a man reveals himself to be a werewolf, forever changing life in the village as they know it.
734. DRAGON HEART: ADVENTURES BEYOND THIS WORLD (6/6/25) HS Pictures Studio. D: Isamu Imakake. A dragon comes to rescue Ryusuke and Tomomi after they’ve sunk to the bottom of a river and died, offering them a chance to live again if they can discover their purpose through exploring the spirit world.
735. ELIO (6/20/25) Disney/Pixar. D: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina. Elio, an imaginative, space obsessed kid, has his greatest wish come true when he’s abducted by aliens and taken on an adventure out of this world.
736. KPOP DEMON HUNTERS (6/20/25) Sony Pictures Animation. D: Maggie Kang, Chris Appelhans. Popstars by day and demon hunters by night, the Huntrix face their greatest threat in the form of a demon boy band.
737. ALL OPERATORS ARE CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE (7/14/25) Kaos. D: Dalibor Baric. Roman Novotny, a once established screenwriter, has fallen out of the limelight in the literary world and has no choice but to take on a “story creator” position at the experimental Simula Peninsula resort, where the guest’s everyday lives are determined by pre-written scripts.
738. OUT OF THE NEST (7/18/25) Riff Studio/Base FX. D: Jeff Schu, Andrew Gordon, Veerapatra Jinanavin, Arturo A. Hernandez . Arthur, a nervous and unsure goat delivery boy, is given the unexpected task of returning seven eggs to the Emperor and Empress before their coronation, but once the eggs hatch the feathered toddlers are anything but easy cargo.
739. MAHAVATAR NARSIMHA (8/1/25) Hombale Films. D: Ashwin Kumar. Prahlad, son of the demon king Hiranyakashipu, is born with the teachings of Vishnu and protected from his father’s rage, but until a way to kill the demon king is found, the people will never be safe.
740. THE BAD GUYS 2 (8/1/25) Dreamworks. D: Pierre Perifel. The Bad Guys are committed to being good after their recent reformation, but a run in with the Bad Girls leads them back into the crime scene with another high-risk heist.
741. BOYS GO TO JUPITER (8/8/25) Glanderco. D: Julian Glander. The teenage gig worker Billy has the ambitious goal of earning $5,000, but a certain gelatinous alien gets in the way.
742. FIXED (8/13/25) Sony Pictures Animation. D: Genndy Tartakovsky. Bull, the all-around good dog, discovers he’s going to be neutered the next day and makes the most of his last 24 hours alongside his buddies.
743. CHAO (8/15/25) Studio 4°C. D: Yasuhiro Aoki. In a world where humans and merpeople coexist, human engineer Stephen suddenly finds himself engaged to the mermaid Princess Chao, starting an unexpected and unconventional romance.
744. THE GLASSWORKER (8/15/25) Mano Animation Studios. D: Usman Riaz. Vincent Oliver, learning glassworking under his father, faces the devastation of war and heartbreak as he grows into a man.
745. LIGHT OF THE WORLD (9/5/25) Salvation Poem Project. D: Tom Bancroft, John J. Schafer. Follows Jesus’ life from ministry beginnings through crucifixion, resurrection, as seen through Apostle John’s eyes.
746. THE LEGEND OF HEI 2 (9/5/25) Hanmu Chunhua. D: MTJJ, Gu Jie. When the peace between spirits and humans is broken, it’s up to Hei and Luye, the last disciple of Wuxian, to repair it before the conspiracy theory destroys what Hei’s fought for.
747. DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA INFINITY CASTLE (9/12/25) Ufotable. D: Haruo Sotozaki. Tanjiro has fought tirelessly against the demons with his comrades, and now his journey brings him to the demon’s stronghold for the final battle.
748. GABBY’S DOLLHOUSE: THE MOVIE (9/26/25) Dreamworks Animation. D: Ryan Crego. Gabby’s dollhouse rolls away down the road while unpacking from their trip, and an evil cat lady purchases the set, stealing Gabby’s friends away unless she manages to get them back.
749. SCARLET (10/7/25) Studio Chizu. D: Mamoru Hosoda. The medieval princess Scarlet sets out to avenge her father’s death, only to become trapped in the Otherworld, where an idealistic man from the present shows her the possibility of a more forgiving future.
750. 100 METERS (10/10/25) GKIDS. D: Kenji Iwaisawa. The track star Togashi ends up having to train the transfer student Komiya that is full of passion but lacks proper technique, and through her drive and his lessons, Komiya is able to go head to head with him as a rival only a few years later.
751. THE TWITS (10/17/25) Netflix. D: Phil Johnston. Local villainous couple known as ‘the Twits’ cause chaos and devastation in the town of Triperot, but after ruining orphans Beesha and Bubsy’s chance to be adopted, they vie to get revenge on behalf of everyone the Twits have cruelly tormented.
752. CHAINSAW MAN – THE MOVIE: REZE ARC (10/24/25) Mappa. D: Tatsuya Yoshihara. The war among devils brings Denji to his most dangerous fight yet, while at the same time the mysterious Reze enters his life as a new love interest.
753. STITCH HEAD (10/29/25) Gringo Films/Aniventure/Fabrique d’Images. D: Steve Hudson. Isolated at the top of a hill, a mad scientist’s monstrous creations are ignored in favour of his next great undead awakening, and so the eldest creation, Stitch Head, tries on a new life as an attraction in Fulbert Freakfinder’s circus.
754. LITTLE AMÉLIE OR THE CHARACTER OF RAIN (10/31/25) Maybe Movies/Ikki Films. D: Maïlys Vallade/Liane-Cho Han. When little Amélie tastes chocolate for the first time, she awakes her endless curiosity that brings her closer to her family’s housekeeper and the reality behind her family’s life in post-war Japan.
755. A MAGNIFICENT LIFE (11/2/25) What The Prod/Mediawan. D: Sylvain Chomet. An animated biography following Pagnol, a French novelist, playwright, and filmmaker that became renowned in the art world during the 1930s to 1950s.
756. IN YOUR DREAMS (11/7/25) Netflix. D: Alex Woo, Erik Benson. Siblings Stevie and Elliot traverse through the dream world to get to the wish granting Sandman in hopes of saving their family.
757. ARCO (11/14/25) Remembers. D: Ugo Bienvenu, Gilles Cazaux. 10-year-old Arco is sent back to the dangerous year of 2075 where he meets another kid and her robot guardian, and together they team up to find his way home.
758. ZOOTOPIA 2 (11/26/25) Disney. D: Jared Bush, Byron Howard. The partnership of Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde is tested as their personalities clash on the job, chasing a slithering suspect at the heart of a conspiracy in Zootopia.
759. ENDLESS COOKIE (12/5/25) Scythia Films. D: Seth Scriver, Peter Scriver. Two half-brothers with a 16-year age gap run into conflicts with their relationship as one brother’s mother was indigenous while the other’s was white.
760. DAVID (12/19/25) 2521 Entertainment. D: Brent Dawes, Phil Cunningham. David and the Goliath retold, from humble beginnings as a simple shepherd to the newly risen king leading and protecting his people.
761. THE SPONGEBOB MOVIE: SEARCH FOR SQUAREPANTS (12/19/25) Paramount Pictures (Nickelodeon Movies) D: Derek Drymon. In an attempt to show off his bravery to Mr. Krabs, Spongebob winds up following the Flying Dutchman, the most dangerous and feared ghost pirate to ever roam the high seas.
Written, compiled and copyright (c) 2024 Jerry Beck (From a forthcoming book). Research Associate: Haylie Baker.
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Go to Jerry Beck’s CARTOON RESEARCH home page.
Jerry Beck is a writer, animation producer, college professor and author of more than 15 books on animation history. He is a former studio exec with Nickelodeon Movies and Disney, and has written for The Hollywood Reporter and Variety. He has curated cartoons for DVD and Blu-ray compilations and has lent his expertise to dozens of bonus documentaries and audio commentaries on such. Beck is currently on the faculty of CalArts in Valencia, UCLA in Westwood and Woodbury University in Burbank – teaching animation history. More about Jerry Beck [
