Jason Bateman (Arrested Development) may be lending his voice to character in an upcoming animated feature from Walt Disney Animation.  Directed by Byron Howard (Tangled), the logline on the project is being kept under wraps, but appears to be an animal comedy of some sort.  The picture has no release date at the moment.  This would mark the first feature voice role for Bateman and could be the first solo directing job for Howard, who co-directed both Bolt and Tangled.  Hit the jump for more.

Tangled directors Byron Howard and Nathan Greno will continue the story of Rapunzel (Mandy Moore), Flynn Rider (Zachary Levi), and Maximus, The World’s Most Awesome Horse in the new short film Tangled Ever After.  Disney has sent out a press release announcing that the short film will play in front of Beauty and the Beast 3D.  In Tangled Ever After, Maximus and Pascal the Chameleon lose the wedding rings for Rapunzel and Flynn’s wedding and have to go on a frantic hunt to find the gold bands.  I’m sure it will be comical and cute like the movie, but I think it will be interesting to see how a modern Disney princess movie directly compares to a classic like Beauty and the Beast.

Hit the jump for the press release as well as the poster for Tangled Ever After.    The film Beauty and the Beast 3D opens January 13, 2012.

Tangled has the distinction of being the 50^th animated film to emerge from Walt Disney studios. Lot of miles there. From being the king of the animated world, to the loss of direction in the 70’s and 80’s to the boom of The Little Mermaid and the run of animated hits that followed, to the complete lack of direction again in the 21^st century. At this point you have no idea what to expect from the Mouse house, and often can expect better from Pixar. And yet Tangled is one of their better films, a charming version of the Rapunzel story, where the princess (Mandy Moore) doesn’t need rescuing as much as the would-be prince (Zachary Levi) does. Check out our Blu-ray review after the jump.

Tangled could have been a disaster. Directors Nathan Greno and Byron Howard really pushed for something different by attempting to modernize a classic tale for contemporary audiences while combining the classic storylines and imagery of Disney’s illustrious past. All of that experimentation can unbalance a film by leaning too heavily on one side or the other, but Tangled does a remarkable job at harmonizing the past and present. Gorgeous CG, an involving and up-tempo score, and some of the best sidekicks seen on screen propel this take on the character of Rapunzel. There is a sense of contemporary fun throughout the film, and yet the heart remains where it should; right in the middle.  My full review after the jump:

Walt Disney Animation Studios’ 50^th animated feature film is Tangled, and they really made this one special. This retelling of the Grimm fairy tale about Rapunzel and her magical hair may have some cautiously optimistic, but having seen the film I am just plain confident that audiences will enjoy it. Directed by Byron Howard and Nathan Greno, this tale features the voice work of Zachary Levi, Mandy Moore, Tony Award-winning actress Donna Murphy, and Brad Garrett. All four get in on the action–and singing–with a slew of brand new songs composed by the legendary Alan Menken. Did I mention the film has perhaps some of the best animation to date?  Hit the jump to check out four clips from Tangled, which hits theaters in 3D on November 24th.  Also, look for new interviews with the cast very soon.

The fourth and final interview at Disney Animation Studios for Tangled was with the directing duo of Byron Howard and Nathan Greno, whom I had the pleasure of speaking with at Comic-Con less than two months before. The best thing about Byron and Nathan is that they are a great pair to interview; fun, energetic, and full of passion for what they do. Seeing as they are the minds behind the scenes, I prodded for information about their future plans, what it was like to gather this kind of cast, and how one of my favorite characters, Maximus, came about. Join me after the break for my full interview and a brief recap of the highlights from their roundtable interview earlier that day.

The second part (part one is here) of my visit to Walt Disney Animation Studios continues, which focuses on the talented people that made Tangled and the process that it takes. During my press day at the studio we had a flurry of round-table interviews and John Lasseter, head of Disney’s animation wing, stopped by to speak for over 20 minutes. So join me after the break for highlights of what we discussed and a ton of behind-the-scenes information on Tangled.

What do you do when Disney invites you to spend a day in the Sorcerer’s Hat building of Disney Animation Studios in Burbank, California? You clear off your schedule and jump with both feet, which is exactly what I did last week. Tangled, Disney’s 50^th animated feature film, is heading towards the home stretch and it is apparent how much work and dedication has gone into this passion project for the many talented folks involved. We were treated to a work in progress screening, games, a plethora of interviews, and much more, so join me after the break for the full details and my initial impression of the film.

Last Thursday during Comic-Con, I not only had the pleasure to attend Disney’s Character Creation panel about the 50^th animated film, Tangled, but I also had an exclusive one-on-two interview with co-directors Byron Howard and Nathan Greno. The duo was gracious enough to allow me access to them for over 20 minutes, and I took full advantage. We discussed who influenced the Flynn Rider character, how they got involved, how restricting was the original story, what is with the name change from Rapunzel to Tangled, and a lot more.  After the jump you can read the complete transcript of the interview and some of the key highlights from what they said:

When Disney comes calling, most people jump.  That’s exactly what I did Thursday afternoon when I nabbed an offer to cover the Walt Disney Character Creation panel.  On hand were Glen Keane (animation supervisor), Jin Kim (character creator), Mark Kennedy (head of story), and co-directors Byron Howard and Nathan Greno.  During the panel, they discussed Disney’s upcoming Tangled, which is the 50th animated film in the illustrious history of Walt Disney Animation Studios.

After the break, check out the highlights from the panel; if you are anticipating Tangled, you will want to stay tuned next week for my exclusive one-on-one interview with Byron Howard and Nathan Greno.

With John Lasseter in London promoting upcoming Disney projects and D23 about to happen in California, I knew a lot of Disney news was about to break. So it really shouldn’t surprise me to see all these Disney stories this morning.

Anyway, the latest is Zachary Levi (“Chuck”) and Mandy Moore will be providing the lead voices for Walt Disney’s digital 3D-animated musical action-adventure “Rapunzel”. The film is based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale and it’s due for release in late 2010 with music from Oscar winner Alan Menken (“Beauty and the Beast”, “Aladdin”). For more on the project, click the jump: