Hoppers (2026) Disney/Sci-Fi-Comedy-Adventure RT: 104 minutes Rated PG (action/peril, some scary images, mild language) Director: Daniel Chong Screenplay: Jesse Andrews Music: Mark Mothersbaugh Cinematography: Jeremy Lasky and Ian Megibben Release date: March 6, 2026 (US) Cast: Piper Curda, Bobby Moynihan, Jon Hamm, Kathy Najimy, Dave Franco, Eduardo Franco, Aparna Nancherla, Tom Law, Sam Richardson, Melissa Villasenor, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Steve Purcell, Ego Nwodim, Nichole Sakura, Meryl Streep, Karen Huie, Vanessa Bayer, Demetri Martin, Joe Spano.
Rating: *** ½
I’ve been saying for years that Pixar isn’t even trying anymore with lackluster efforts like Onward, Elemental and Elio not to mention all the cash-grab sequels (Cars 3, Inside Out 2) made for the sole purpose of emptying parents’ wallets. The only really good one they’ve made in the past five years is Turning Red and Disney didn’t even have enough confidence in it to give it a theatrical release sending it straight to its streaming platform. It’s a far cry from the days of Toy Story, Monsters Inc. and Finding Nemo.
I wasn’t expecting much from Pixar’s latest Hoppers so it came as a sweet surprise that I actually enjoyed it. It wasn’t the forced kind of enjoyment one typically lends to some movies because they don’t want to come off as a grouch. It was genuine. It has plenty of heart to go along with all the cute animal action. It has a spunky heroine at its center, one with good intentions and character flaws in equal measures. It’s also crystal clear on its pro-environment/anti-development stance. If the movie hits, it might just inspire a whole new generation of protestors. Hey, it’s never too early to teach youngsters to stand up for what they believe in.
The plot centers on Mabel (Curda, Youth & Consequences), a college student and environmental activist fighting the good fight against a greedy, glad-handing politician (Hamm, Mad Men) looking to destroy the glade where she bonded with her now-deceased grandmother over their mutual appreciation for nature. He wants to build a freeway to make life a little easier for the human residents of Beaverton. Mabel isn’t having any of it. She’s determined to stop him.
Mabel needs to lure beavers back to the glade so they can make it habitable for wildlife once again. This is when she stumbles across a secret project overseen by one of her professors (Najimy, Hocus Pocus), a new technology called “Hoopers”. Essentially, it transfers human consciousness to a robotic animal which allows for observation of animal behavior without being detected. It also allows for communication with all types of critters (e.g. mammals, fish, birds, insects, etc.). Seeing an opportunity to save her beloved glade, Mabel hops into a robotic beaver and heads out into the wild to rally the animals to her cause.
Before she can do anything, Mabel has to learn all about “Pond Rules”, the guidelines all animals live by. She gets a crash course from King George (Moynahan, SNL), a beaver monarch who wears a tiny crown. The rules include Don’t Be a Stranger, Everybody Must Eat and We’re All in This Together. She becomes friends with George and they work together to save the glade from the evil humans. Naturally, things don’t go smoothly. They run into a few problems.
Hoppers is directed by relative newcomer Daniel Chong, story artist (Bolt, Inside Out) and member of Pixar’s senior creative team (Turning Red, Inside Out 2). His only other directorial credit is something called We Bare Bears: The Movie based on a Cartoon Network series I’ve never heard of until right now. He does a decent job with Hoppers. It moves along a nice clip. It tells a compelling albeit familiar story about a plucky heroine standing up for what she believes in. Mabel is a total bad ass, but she often lets anger cloud her judgment which impairs her ability to find solutions. She has to learn how to keep her emotions in check.
Mabel, a Japanese-American teen, is one of the more interesting Disney heroines in a while. She’s very much the fearless rebel with her thrift store chic wardrobe and skateboard (most likely the cause of the cast she’s wearing on her wrist). And you have to love a girl who kicks off her shoes the minute she walks through her door. The two different color socks is a nice detail. She’s the kind of cool girl I would have loved to hang out with when I was in college. Curda does a great job voicing Mabel. You can hear the passion in her voice as she tries to save the glade and her confusion over whether to come clean with George about who she really is (NOT a beaver). I don’t know if Mabel will reach the popularity level of Disney princesses, but she should.
The voice talents on hand in Hoppers is pretty sweet. They managed to get Meryl Streep to voice a minor character. MERYL STREEP! Now that’s cool. The cast also includes Dave Franco (Now You See Me) as a treacherous butterfly, Vanessa Bayer (SNL) as a shark assassin, Melissa Villasenor (SNL) as a bear and the late Isiah Whitlock Jr. (The Wire) as a goose. Hamm hams it up nicely as the main bad guy, a smiling mayor who can’t see the forest for the trees. He doesn’t understand that he too is part of a bigger picture that includes animals and nature. Moynahan projects wisdom and uncertainty as the king of the beavers. It’s a fun cast and they’re having a blast.
The computer animation in Hoppers is top-tier stuff. It’s colorful and vibrant. It’s sure to keep the kiddos eyes on the screen the whole. The little ones at the showing I attended loved it. The end credits music got a bunch of kids dancing and hopping to the music. It was a hop! The adults will enjoy it too. It’s painless which is more than I can say about some kid’s movies. That is a HUGE plus. I truly hope this one hits. It’s that great.
