Film Review: ZOOTOPIA 2 (2025): Sequel to Beloved Animated Film is a Rip-Roaring Success with Lots of Humor and Action
Zootopia 2 Review
Zootopia 2 (2025) Film Review, a movie directed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard, written by Jared Bush and starring Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Ke Huy Quan, Fortune Feimster, Andy Samberg, David Stathairn, Idris Elba, Shakira, Patrick Warburton, Quinta Brunson, Danny Trejo, Nate Torrence, Bonnie Hunt, Don Lake, Michelle Gomez, David Fane, Joe Anoa’i and CM Punk.
Directors of Zootopia 2, Jared Bush and Byron Howard, wisely keep the action very humorous and light as air in the new sequel to the original hit animated film from 2016. Shakira’s back with a new song and the film lovingly uses “Cabbage Patch” (as in the old kids’ toys, the Cabbage Patch Kids) in a very funny way within the picture. Those two assets would automatically make me have a certain level of fondness for this film, but the movie also keeps the action lively with one wild antic after another which will please adult and kid audiences alike. Also on board is Ke Huy Quan as a snake called Gary De’Snake and if one wanted to see the Oscar winner for Everything Everywhere All at Once prove he’s no flash-in-the-pan success, Quan’s sweet and kind-hearted vocal work here is ample evidence.
As the film’s story begins, the pair of bunny and fox cops, Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin’s voice) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman’s voice), are on the beat again trying to stay one step ahead of the competition and crack another case by posing as parents to a small baby who they seem to be wheeling around in a carriage. When they blow their cover and are pursued around town, they’re reprimanded for their wild actions and sentenced to take therapy sessions in order to come to terms with their mistakes. Judy obviously doesn’t think she has a problem, but she kind of does. Nick lives in his bachelor pad, enjoying the life of Riley when he’s not working, but when they take on a suggested case, they will soon be pursued by the authorities after another major screw-up occurs. Well, sort of. In a funny scene, Judy’s parents text her when she and Nick wind up in hot water after attending a prestigious event. Those text exchanges are hysterically on-point.
That aforementioned event has Judy and Nick dressed to impress and they hide from the chief in command, Chief Bogo (Idris Elba), while sneaking into a party and trying to protect a book that will shed light on the goodness of snakes such as the one Ke Huy Quan voices who shows up at the party and crashes it. Judy does her ears all up nice and Nick looks suave, but they’re soon running around town trying to clear their names and help the snake reunite with his family.
Danny Trejo comes into the action as the voice of a hat-wearing reptile who reminds me of Johnny Depp’s Rango. Trejo gets some funny lines, and there’s another scene that is a spoof of Marlon Brando in The Godfather which will have the adults in the audience secretly chuckling in that moment or two that occurs with these particular characters. Other notable supporting players include Andy Samberg’s Pawbert Lynxly who may not be as sincere as he appears to be on the surface and Fortune Feimster’s Nibbles Maplestick who roughs out some difficult scenarios over the course of the movie.
Whenever Shakira is on-screen singing, the movie brightens up even more than it does during the scenes that Goodwin and Bateman charm through their terrific vocal character creations. Though one may suspect that the partnership between Judy and Nick will not be tarnished, a lot of the plot developments here separates our co-stars as they struggle to clear their names and help their new snake friend out along the way.
While Goodwin is super charming, the animation of Judy makes the character’s purple eyes light up the screen as Judy is full of the best intentions, some of which get her in more trouble than she bargained for. Bateman’s Nick is the quintessential cool fox who doesn’t get overwhelmed unless the situation absolutely calls for it. A jail break towards the end where some wickedly funny baddies escape sets the stage for another sequel that will have our two heroes, Judy and Nick, back in action again.
Zootopia 2 plays it safe, but it’s not easy to entertain an audience as well as this film ultimately does. Credit the sharp humor and fast-paced action which even brings back the sloth from the first movie to help save the day. That sloth from the DMV got a lot of laughs the first time out and by bringing him back again, the movie plays like gangbusters for its intended audience. If you didn’t see the first film, the movie works as a standalone as it gives viewers a brief recap of the first picture right at the start.
While Zootopia 2 isn’t quite as perfect as the first movie, it’s pretty darn close to it in terms of offering sheer entertainment value. There are so many surprises here that to reveal them simply wouldn’t be fair. It’s not right to disclose the meaning behind the “Cabbage Patch” reference either, but every time it comes up (and it comes up quite often), the viewer should enjoy the results immensely. Shakira sings again at the end, so stay put as the credits roll to hear the new song played earlier in the movie that will have audiences tapping their toes again.
Rating: 8/10
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