Speaking to Collider, Bush confirmed that Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde will remain at the center of the story, but hinted that their next adventure could take them into previously unexplored parts of the world.

“I think this may be the first time that we travel outside the bounds of Zootopia City itself,” Bush revealed.

The filmmaker also noted that introducing entirely new animal groups has been part of the creative conversation since the early days of the franchise. According to Bush, he and director Byron Howard discussed concepts such as reptiles and birds more than a decade ago while developing the original 2016 film.

“The idea that one day you’d introduce reptiles or one day you’d introduce birds are conversations we had 15 years ago,” he said.

While Bush‘s comments suggest the sequel could expand the world significantly, Disney has not officially confirmed any plot details.

Disney still has flexibility with the sequel’s release

Bush also shed light on how Disney Animation plans its future slate. He explained that the studio typically has a ten-year creative roadmap, with the first five years mapped out in greater detail and the latter half serving as a broader creative guide.

As a result, Zootopia 3‘s launch window remains flexible.

“It could be in a few different years depending on how that movie is doing, how the movies around it are doing, how our world is doing,” Bush said.

He also noted that Disney animated features generally require between four and six years to complete.

At present, Zootopia 3 does not have an official release date.