Oscars Move to YouTube, 2026 Animation Slate & Industry Shifts | Fine Tooning Ep. 340

Hospital Stay and Disney History

• 🏥 Drew Taylor shares his recent recovery from acute appendicitis, highlighting the irony of being hospitalized at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center, directly across from the Walt Disney Studios.
• 💡 The hospital's history is intertwined with Disney, including its founding during WWII due to proximity to a Lockheed plant and Walt Disney attending the groundbreaking for a wing where he later spent his final days.

Oscars Shift to YouTube & Awards Season

• 📺 The Academy Awards will move from broadcast television to YouTube starting in 2029, ending a long-standing deal with ABC.
• 😕 While this may reduce prestige, it's seen as a positive for accessibility for those without cable packages.
• 🗓️ Key dates for the current awards season are noted: nomination voting opens January 12th, nominations are announced January 22nd, and the ceremony is March 15th.

Box Office Hits and Animation Milestones

• 💰 Avatar: Fire and Ash has officially crossed the billion-dollar mark worldwide, with strong performance continuing.
• 🏆 Zootopia 2 has become the highest-grossing film ever released by Walt Disney Animation Studios, surpassing Frozen 2 with over $1.58 billion worldwide.
• 📉 Animated films like SpongeBob Movie: Search for Sponge and David are performing closely at the domestic box office, with Angel Studios' David recovering its production costs.

The 2026 Animation Slate Preview

• 🎬 The year 2026 is shaping up to be a massive year for animated theatrical releases, with major studios like Pixar, Illumination, Disney, DreamWorks, and Sony releasing multiple films.
• 🌟 Highly anticipated films include Toy Story 5, Hoppers, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, Coyote vs. Acme, and Forgotten Island (from the directors of Puss in Boots: The Last Wish).
• 🍿 The slate also features Minions 3, Shawn the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom, The Cat in the Hat, and Hex from Walt Disney Animation Studios.
• ⚠️ Concerns are raised about the direct-to-streaming release of Avatar: The Last Airbender and Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on Paramount Plus, contrasting with the theatrical success of anime films.

Anime's Growing Theatrical Presence

• 🌏 The popularity of anime continues to grow, with films like Ne Zha 2 and various theatrical releases and Netflix hits reshaping the marketplace.
• 🌟 Distributors like GKIDS and Fathom are increasingly handling theatrical releases for anime, with films like All You Need Is Kill and Arco receiving wider distribution.
• 🎭 Upcoming anime releases include Lupin the Third: The Immortal Bloodline, Scarlet (a gender-swapping take on Hamlet), and Cosmic Princess Kaaya on Netflix.

Studio Strategies and Future Projects

• 🚀 Sony Pictures Animation is releasing Goats and has strong expectations for its animated slate, influenced by the success of the Spider-Verse films.
• 🌟 Pixar is highly optimistic about Hoppers, with significant consumer product plans, and has moved Elio to 2027.
• 🎬 DreamWorks Animation is preparing Forgotten Island, an original film from the directors of Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, with a potential Super Bowl trailer.
• 🥜 Sony's acquisition of a majority stake in Peanuts Holdings raises questions about the future of upcoming Peanuts projects, including an untitled CG feature film.