The 89th Annual Academy Awards deemed Zootopia the Best Animated Feature of 2016. Zootopia, intended to be a movie targeting children for an audience, was regarded one of the most politically sound movies.
The Disney animated film Zootopia outlines the life of Judy Hopps, a bunny, who struggles to work her way up to becoming a police officer in a city run by animals.
Under a facade of light, immature humour, Zootopia talks of the deeper meaning of diversity. Directed by Byron Howard and Rich Moore, the film became an instant favourite among all age groups.
Zootopia (Photo: Twitter/ Disney’s Zootopia)
The film features the voices of most of Hollywood’s renowned names like Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba, Jenny Slate, Nate Torrence, Bonnie Hunt, Don Lake, Tommy Chong, J. K. Simmons, Octavia Spencer, and Shakira.
At first, Disney was skeptical about moving forward with the film, given how discrimination can be a rather heavy subject to cover in a children’s movie. However, the message was essential and Zootopia manages to convey the outcome of bias in a diverse society.
What changed their mind was the sudden change in the society that they witnessed with Donald Trump’s rise to power. As Trump gained more power, director Howard felt the need to tackle the Trump problem. He then created Zootopia with that message.
Howard said that Trump’s Presidency “is what [the film’s] entire third act is about, our villain is using fear to stoke division.”
Donald Trump’s stand on immigrants has always been clear but never before was it as transparent when he issued the immigration ban.
With such a subtle and brave jibe against the President of the United States, the film became an instant hit, receiving 98 percent ratings from critics. The film was also a huge commercial success, collecting over one billion dollars across the world.
