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Founded on October 16, 1923, by brothers Walt and Roy, the Walt Disney Company has defined the childhoods of countless generations with their revolutionary take on children's stories as crucial as their groundbreaking discoveries in animation. Disney's global impact has, for 100 years, been unfathomable, with all of us able to cite at least one Disney movie that particularly impacted our formative years. Recently, Disney has become even more dominant on the global film stage than ever before with their acquisitions of Lucasfilm, 20th Century Fox, and Marvel Entertainment. They eventually launched their streaming service, Disney+. Taking all of this into account, it's obvious that Disney is planning on celebrating this 100-year milestone with great fanfare. And what better way to celebrate this milestone than with a brand-new Disney movie?

Wish, directed by Disney royalty Chris Buck (Frozen and Pocahontas) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Zootopia and Moana), is that movie. With a star-studded cast and heaps of Disney magic, the film looks set to be a worthy addition to the iconic studio's 100-year library. So, with this in mind and with the eyes of the cinematic world focused on the Walt Disney Company in 2023, here is everything we know about Disney's Wish.

Editor's Note: This article was updated on November 18.

Disney Wish Poster
Wish
PG

Wish follows a young girl named Asha who wishes on a star and gets a more direct answer than she bargained for when a trouble-making star comes down from the sky to join her.

Release Date
November 22, 2023
Director
Chris Buck , Fawn Veerasunthorn
Cast
Chris Pine , Alan Tudyk , Ariana DeBose , Evan Peters
Runtime
92 minutes

When and Where Is 'Wish' Releasing?

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Image via Disney

Wish was expected to release on November 24, 2023, to coincide with the 100th anniversary that is merely a month before, but it has now been moved up to November 22 instead! What's more, Disney is also giving fans a chance to catch the movie early with a special screening in select theaters on November 18. You can get tickets for the early screening at Fandango.com/DisneyWishEarlyAccess.

Unlike many other Disney projects of recent years, Wish will not be heading straight to Disney+, and it's set to open exclusively in theaters when it premieres. With such a significant milestone represented by Wish and theaters playing a pivotal role in Disney's illustrious history, it makes sense that they would make this choice. Despite this, it is to be expected that Wish will make its way to Disney+ in 2024, so fans who cannot get themselves to an expectedly sold-out theater need not worry too much. Most Disney films have made their way to streaming roughly three months after their theatrical run.

Watch the Trailers For 'Wish'

We received our first official trailer for Wish on April 27, 2023. The teaser didn't reveal a ton of information, but it does highlight the combination of 2D and 3D animation. The film is quintessential to the 100-year celebration of Disney, and the blend of both classic and modern animation styles really shines. Check out the Wish trailer, and experience the Disney magic for yourself. Disney followed that up with another short teaser for Wish, and while it doesn't give us new information, it continues to show the animated film's magical wonders.

The first full trailer for Wish was released on September 27, offering better insights into the film's plot.

Disney also released a featurette starring Chris Pine. You can check out the behind-the-scenes clip below.

Enjoyed the song in that featurette? Disney released a one-minute music video of "This Is The Thanks I Get?!" on October 25, which you can see below:

More sneak peeks followed, with a featurette going deeper into Chris Pine's character, Magnifico; a scene showing our hero confronting Magnifico; and a featurette that goes into the making of the movie's song "I'm a Star". On November 16, Collider got the chance to exclusively premiere another new featurette, this one showing the filmmakers talking about the 100-year legacy of the House of Mouse. Here's the latest featurette:

Who's In the Cast of 'Wish'?

Wish boasts a talented ensemble voicing its characters, including Alan Tudyk (Harley Quinn) as Valentino, Ariana DeBose (West Side Story) playing the lead character, Asha, and Chris Pine as King Magnifico. Other cast members include Angelique Cabral as Queen Amaya, Victor Garber as Sabino, Natasha Rothwell as Sakina, Jennifer Kumiyama as Dahlia, Harvey Guillén as Gabo, Niko Vargas as Hal, Evan Peters as Simon, Ramy Youssef as Safi, Jon Rudnitsky as Dario, and Della Saba as Bazeema, among others. With these great performers working with a script penned by director Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, the writers behind the likes of Frozen, Wreck-It Ralph, and Zootopia, to name just a few, fans can expect Wish to do the 100-year anniversary of Disney justice.

What Is 'Wish' About?

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Image via Disney

For such a crucial milestone, the plot details for Wish are going to be essential. Below is the plot synopsis for Wish:

"Wish will follow a young girl named Asha who wishes on a star and gets a more direct answer than she bargained for when a trouble-making star comes down from the sky to join her. Asha a 17-year-old driven optimist, and leader in the making. She will face one of the most formidable enemies in the universe and will have to team up with Star, a cosmic force and boundless ball of pure energy and maybe chaos."

This plot synopsis offers a lot to love for Disney's millions of fans, creating a significant buzz around the fandom as anticipation rises for the release. Of course, with such an important anniversary being celebrated, Disney will likely try to find representations within this movie for their 100-year history. For example, the lead character being a 17-year-old is the perfect representation of just how impactful Disney has been on the lives of children for a century. In perfect Disney fashion, Asha wishes upon a star in this film, perhaps even the same star that so many famous Disney characters have themselves wished upon. From Pinocchio to Peter Pan, the motif of the star has been incredibly significant for Disney, so to see our protagonist team up with possibly Disney's second most iconic character behind Mickey Mouse is perfection. There is fair speculation that this film may be some spiritual prequel to Pinocchio, although that has not been confirmed.