Frozen 3 Update: Jared Bush on Songs, Story, and a New Villain Who May Be More Powerful Than Elsa

Disney is getting closer than ever to finally delivering on its trio of major animated sequel announcements from 2023. Toy Story 5 sent Jessie, Buzz, and Woody back into theaters and won over both critics and audiences with its emotional clash of toys and tech, earning $1.15 billion globally along the way. Before that, Zootopia 2 broke records as the second highest-grossing animated film of all time with an over $1.87 billion haul. Next on the docket is the long-awaited return to Arendelle with Frozen 3, which is now just over one year from entering the unknown all over again.

Details about Anna (Kristen Bell), Elsa (Idina Menzel), and Olaf's (Josh Gad) return to the big screen have mostly been encased in ice since Bob Iger first shared the news that another wintery adventure was in order. D23 in August finally revealed a few key plot points for the sequel as it further explores the princesses' expanded world, though. Namely, wedding bells will be ringing in the threequel as Anna and Kristoff's (Jonathan Groff) wedding gets underway and they set their honeymoon plans. Even the snowman Olaf has someone new in his life — a snowy girlfriend named Samantha. However, not all is well in Arendelle, with a new black-clad witch who figures to stand in the way of the sisters' happily ever after.

With the new film arriving around this time next year, Head of Disney Animation Jared Bush had much to share about where things were in production. He sat down with Collider's Steve Weintraub for a wide-ranging conversation at the SCAD Savannah Film Festival on not just the status of Frozen 3, but its sequel, Frozen 4, and, of course, the songs. "Well, Frozen 3 is out in one year," he confirmed. "I will say, very exciting. Right now, literally as we speak, Kristen [Anderson-Lopez] and Bobby Lopez are working on one of the movie's most emotional songs right now. They are about five songs in."

'Frozen 3' Features a "Very Special" Story, a Powerful New Villain, and Fresh Songs

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Bush feels confident that Frozen 3 will be something fresh for viewers who have followed Anna and Elsa since "Let It Go" first became an inescapable hit. "I'd say that we have a very special story in store for people. I think one that will surprise people." However, he saved a more ominous tease for the new villain and how she matches up against Arendelle's former queen. "And we have a brand-new character coming in, a new villain, into the world of Frozen, and someone who may be more powerful than Elsa. So, lots going on." The evildoer's voice was heard by D23 attendees, but when asked when the announcement of the actor would come, Bush merely teased, "We've already recorded her multiple times" and said, "Stay tuned."

As for how it all fits into the wider arc of Frozen, he confirmed, "There's not a whole lot of time between" Frozen 2 and the latest installment. Considering the first sequel ends its deeper exploration of the world and its mythology with Kristoff proposing to Anna and Elsa abdicating the throne, it makes sense for the two to be so closely connected, even if the second film came out seven years ago now.

"I'd say that, if you remember the end of Frozen 2, Kristoff finally proposed to Anna. This movie starts with their wedding. So, not a whole lot of time has passed between those. How much time? You'll discover in the film."

Part of why Frozen became such a smash hit, more than its story and even in comparison to other Disney animated films, is the soundtrack. From "Let It Go" and "Do You Wanna Build a Snowman" to "Into the Unknown," the individual songs have lived well beyond their place on-screen. Between the big wedding, a new villain in need of a tune, and much more, the Lopez's have plenty to work with in crafting their next set of tracks made for viewers to sing along to. Disney jumped to bring the couple back as soon as Frozen 3 was announced, given how integral they've been to the identity of the fantasy franchise so far.

It's too early to discuss in depth the kinds of songs the composers have created, but Bush has one clear favorite so far, one that plays at a pivotal moment. "I'll say that there is a song that you hear around the wedding of Anna and Kristoff that is spectacular." Asked whether it was written specifically for the couple, he kept that detail back for the wedding day itself. "I won't go into any more details."

'Frozen 4' Will Continue Anna and Elsa's Emotional Journey

After initially leaving Arendelle's future to other creators, Frozen co-director Jennifer Lee returned to direct both Frozen 3 and Frozen 4, continuing the franchise's run as one of Disney's biggest modern properties. With the third installment still some way off, Bush offered a glimpse of what lies further ahead for the kingdom under Lee and of the process involved, knowing the threequel would not be the end. Asked whether announcing two new films in the same year changed how either sequel was written to accommodate the other, he said, "It's tricky to answer that question. I'd say for me personally — again, talking just for myself — I think you have to have a rough sense of emotionally where you want your characters to go, a sense of an emotional journey. The plot behind that, at least for me, is secondary to the character journey."

Bush has held to the approach of making two good, complete Frozen movies rather than trying to ensure both feel like two halves of a whole. In the very early stages, he said, the hope was for a quick turnaround on both films, though that idea fell apart before long. The need to make each Frozen the best standalone movie possible was simply too great to ignore, and the challenge came from making each subsequent story of the Arendelle royals still feel like it is building toward some kind of satisfying happy ending for these characters.

"Looking at Frozen 3 and what a Frozen 4 could look like, I know early on it was, 'We're going to put them right together, and they're going to be out in the world. It's going to happen quick.' That's not what we're doing, for a lot of reasons. To me, an important one is we want to make sure that Frozen 3 is the best movie it can possibly be, so that when you get to the end of the movie, do you feel like you've watched a complete story? That it feels like something that feels fulfilling. That doesn't always mean that everything is buttoned up, but it does mean that you have to be building to something that feels worthy of the end of a franchise that's that important to people."

The most important thing, Bush believes, was not to become too fixed on what each future Frozen film needs to look like or what story it needs to tell, while still having ideas for how to build on whatever the previous installment ends up being. His greatest concern was becoming too attached to a story for Frozen 4 at the expense of Frozen 3.

"But then you also need to think, 'Okay, well, if there was a future story, what might that look like?' So you have to have a rough sense of that. But I'd say in my personal experience, I try not to go too in the weeds on that because it can lock you into a Frozen 3 that you may want to change or make better. If you're so rigid on what [Frozen] 4 might look like, then it could stifle you, and that's not something that I want to do."

Frozen 3 opens in theaters on November 24, 2027.