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Zootopia Sequel Doubles Down on Puns and Parody Brands

Co-director Jared Bush describes an aggressive wordplay strategy during the film’s final pre-release push.

Overview

  • Jared Bush says Disney once suggested capping the original film at five puns, but the team ignored the note and "put a billion" in.
  • The sequel layers wordplay across dialogue, character names, and dense background signage, with advertising and brand labels described as "aggressive."
  • Production designer Cory Loftis leads the in-world signage, reflecting his enthusiasm for puns throughout the cityscape.
  • Reported background gags include animal-branded parodies such as Gnucci, Tommy Swillfigure, Urban Snoutfitters, Snarly Davidson, Cattlelac, and Barns and Noble, plus an in-universe streaming service called HuluZoo.
  • The mystery extends into Zootropolis’s past with sequences styled like a century ago, with Ginnifer Goodwin and Jason Bateman returning, according to Bush’s SFX interview ahead of the Nov. 26 U.S. release.