Disney+ Day Announcements Include New Marvel Series, First Look at Obi-Wan Kenobi and More
To celebrate its second anniversary, Disney’s streaming platform presented clips and details on dozens of its series from Disney Studios, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, Pixar, and National Geographic.
On Friday, November 12th, Marvel, Lucasfilm, Pixar and more. The presentations, which include some new clips, first looks, and announcements, can currently be viewed on Disney+, but Moviefone is here to break it all down for you.
MARVEL
The Marvel video presentation, which is now available on Disney+, begins with recaps of all the 2021 Marvel series that have been released so far including 'WandaVision,' 'The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,' 'Loki,' and 'What If…?' Then we get an extended trailer for 'Hawkeye,' which drops on November 24th. We also got to see a full scene from the show, which involves Hailee Steinfeld’s Kate Bishop stealing a car and then getting into a chase while Hawkeye teaches Kate how to use his trick arrows. The sequence is one continuous shot, ending with the two heroes swinging off of a bridge on to a moving train.
The official synopsis for the series confirms that it is set in a post-blip New York City and follows Clint Barton on a seemingly simple mission to get back to his family for Christmas. But when a threat from his past shows up, Hawkeye reluctantly teams up with 22-year-old skilled archer Kate Bishop to unravel a criminal conspiracy. In addition to Renner and Stanfield, the series also features Florence Pugh reprising her 'Black Widow' role as Yelena Belova.
The video presentation also includes fans first look at Ethan Hawke is also set to appear as the show’s big bad.
We also got new footage from the series, 'She-Hulk.' The teaser is narrated by Mark Ruffalo, who returns as Jennifer’s cousin, Bruce Banner/Hulk.
The first scene shows Bruce experimenting on Jennifer when she is just a child, presumably in a flashback, but what is interesting is that he is Smart Hulk in this scene. Since 'Shang-Chi' gave us an end-credit scene that revealed that at some point after the events of 'Avengers: Endgame,' Smart Hulk reverted back to Bruce, it makes you wonder if this scene takes place between 'Endgame' and 'Shang-Chi.' If that is the case, and Jennifer was a child during that time period, it makes you wonder if the bulk of the series itself will make a time jump and take place decades after 'Endgame'? We also get a clip that looks more like a commercial, with Jennifer and Bruce dressed in retro clothes and Jennifer saying, “"Don't make me angry, you wouldn't like me when I'm angry,” which is clearly a nod to the 1970’s series, The Incredible Hulk.
The last series to get new footage in the video presentation was 'Ms. Marvel,' which stars Brie Larson, in the feature film, 'The Marvels.'
But that’s not it! Marvel also announced a slew of new shows, some of which had been rumored, and also confirmed that 'Loki' and 'What If…?' will be getting second seasons. In fact, 'What If…?' will also be getting a spinoff with the new animated series 'Marvel Zombies,' which imagines a world where Marvel’s heroes have been turned into the undead. Staying with animation, Disney+ also announced a sequel to the classic 90’s animated X-Men series entitled 'X-Men ’97,' as well as 'Spider-Man: Freshman Year,' which will look at Peter Parker’s first year in high school, and 'I Am Groot,' a series of original shorts starring everyone’s favorite sentient tree.
On the live-action side, 'Secret Invasion' was confirmed, which is based on the popular Marvel Comics series. The show will bring James Gunn will write and direct 'The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.'
Marvel also announced two new series based on the Iron Man franchise. First is 'Armor Wars,' which will star Kathryn Hahn will reprise her 'WandaVision' role as Agatha Harkness in her own series, which will be called 'Agatha: House of Harkness.'
LUCASFILM
While there was no new footage included, fans got their first look at the making of the Star Wars series, 'Obi-Wan Kenobi.' The video is narrated by director Debbie Chow and actor Ewan McGregor and explains what fans can expect from the new series. “For this character to come back, the fans have been waiting long enough,” said McGregor. Chow explained that this is a “dark time,” for Kenobi and that it is “not safe” for him with “Jedi hunters” on the rise. McGregor said that his character has one task, which is “to keep Luke safe,” but Chow explained how that is just a starting point for the series.
“The most beautiful thing of all is that it has brought me back together with Hayden,” McGregor said about the return of Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader. “We couldn’t tell the story of Obi-Wan Kenobi without addressing Anakin or Darth Vader,” added Chow. We are then given some behind the scenes shots of McGregor at rehearsal practicing his lightsaber skills. “To have another swing at each other, might be quite satisfying for everybody,” the actor teased in closing.
Disney+ also released a Boba Fett documentary called 'Under the Helmet: The Legacy of Boba Fett.' It is mostly a “history of the character” video and does not include any new footage from the series 'The Book of Boba Fett,' which premieres on December 29th.
Finally, the presentation included a video from the set of the new series 'Willow,' which is based on the 1988 Tony Revolori ('Spider-Man: Far From Home'). The video was done “tongue in cheek” with Davis playing a version of his arrogant 'Life’s Too Short' character and getting upset when the younger cast can’t the original film and begin to question why anyone would want a sequel series!
PIXAR
Unfortunately, Pixar did not have a lot to announce outside of a Cars-based animated series called 'Cars on the Road,' which will feature Larry the Cable Guy reprising their roles as Lightning McQueen and Mater, respectively. Other announcements from the animation company included behind the scenes documentaries for the feature films 'Turning Red' and 'Lightyear,' as well as a new series called 'Win or Lose,' which is an animated show that will highlight the perspectives of different characters as a middle school coed softball team prepares for their championship game.
DISNEY STUDIOS AND NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
On the Disney Studios side, a remake of 'Cheaper by the Dozen' was announced, which will star Andy Samberg will star in the new live-action/CG animation film entitled 'Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers,' which is based on Disney’s popular chipmunk characters and will premiere in the spring of 2022.
Director Peter Jackson’s documentary, 'The Beatles: Get Back' was also released featuring the legendary band performing “I Got a Feeling” in rare behind the scenes footage. The three-part documentary launches on Disney+ November 25th.
Disney also announced a new series based on the beloved best-selling novels 'The Spiderwick Chronicles,' as well as animated spinoff series from some of their most popular films, including Baymax from 'Big Hero Six,' Tiana from 'The Princess and the Frog,' and' Zootopia+,' which opens up the world of 'Zootopia.' They also announced 'The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild,' which will star Simon Pegg as his 'Ice Age: Collision Course' character.
Finally, National Geographic announced a new six-part series for 2022 called 'Limitless' with Will Smith as he encounters Earth’s greatest wonders.
