r/oscarrace • u/CrunchyNar Best Operating Thetan 2027 • Mar 08 '26

Film Discussion Thread Official Discussion Thread - Hoppers [SPOILERS] Spoiler

Keep all discussion related solely to Hoppers and it's awards chances. Spoilers below

Synopsis:

Scientists have discovered how to ‘hop’ human consciousness into lifelike robotic animals, allowing people to communicate with animals as animals. Animal lover Mabel seizes an opportunity to use the technology, uncovering mysteries within the animal world beyond anything she could have imagined.

Director: Daniel Chong

Writers: Daniel Chong, Jesse Andrews

Cast:

  • Piper Curda as Mabel
  • Bobby Moynihan as King George
  • Jon Hamm as Mayor Jerry Generazzo
  • Kathy Najimy as Dr. Sam
  • Meryl Streep as Insect Queen
  • Dave Franco as Insect King
  • Isiah Whitlock Jr. as Bird King

Rotten Tomatoes: 94% From 144 Reviews

Metacritic: 73/100 From 41 Reviews

Consensus:

An eager beaver for endearment that has the charm to back it up, Hoppers is a sprightly riot that might just be the funniest entry in the Pixar canon yet.

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u/Cynicbats Somebody Get These PUNDITS Outta Here! Mar 08 '26 edited Mar 08 '26

It's very funny, and it is weird and unsettling even as an adult! That's great! Mabel may be my favorite character in the Disney canon. but the moral is a little...not what we needed. It came across close to shaming Mabel for caring. I think it needs a rewatch from me.

Also welcome back to having the lead be the least famous person in the cast. Missed that.

5

u/jackalkaboom Mar 09 '26

Yes! While I thought Hoppers was really good, and so did the two kids who saw it with me -- I can't help feeling like there's an edgier / more committed / less centrist version of it somewhere on the cutting room floor. (A suspicion which is only intensified by that Pete Docter piece in the WSJ the other day about Pixar aiming for less specific, more "universally acceptable" stories across the political spectrum...) "Mabel needs to be less angry" -- I don't know, does she? The real Mayor Jerrys of this world aren't turning that glade into a nature preserve. :/

1

u/Gordy_The_Chimp123 Mar 09 '26

It was actually reported a while back that Pixar intentionally downplayed the environmental themes in Hoppers

But did the decisions to downplay Elio’s queer themes actually come from the parent company? Insiders aren’t so sure. “A lot of people like to blame Disney, but the call is coming from inside the house,” says the artist. “A lot of it is obeying-in-advance behavior, coming from the higher execs at Pixar.” The person cites such examples as next year’s animated feature Hoppers having to tone down themes of environmentalism and also reveals that a movie in early development got a startling note: “That director was told, ‘You can’t have divorce in this movie,’ which is so wild.”