A roundup of Disney’s CinemaCon presentation, from first looks and surprise appearances to what the studio kept for D23
At CinemaCon, Disney closed the convention with a presentation that stitched together big franchise moments and quieter film teases. The studio balanced star-powered clips with a clear business message: it still values the big-screen event. Attendees received fresh footage from live-action and animated projects across Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars, Searchlight and 20th Century releases, while executives hinted that some of the deepest secrets may be held for D23 later in the year. The tone mixed spectacle with industry metrics, and the crowd reactions made clear which returns the audience most wanted.
Rather than an avalanche of brand-new announcements, the presentation favored extended first looks and cast moments that translate into press-room watercooler chatter. Several clips acted like cinematic appetizers: one full trailer dropped immediately online, others were provocative cold opens shown only for the CinemaCon crowd. Alongside these creative reveals, the company showcased an equipment rollout and re-release plans meant to emphasize the theatrical window as a core part of its strategy.
The most affecting premiere was a trailer for Ridley Scott’s survival drama that opens with Jacob Elordi holding a puppy before abruptly revealing a post-apocalyptic world. The film stars Jacob Elordi, Margaret Qualley, Josh Brolin and Allison Janney, and the clip landed as one of the rare full-length first looks on the slate. Elsewhere, Martin McDonagh’s period piece showed John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell in a charged airport exchange set against the Chilean revolution; Malkovich’s darkly comic asides made him a scene-stealer in that snippet.
The room erupted when the Russo brothers, Kevin Feige and a surprise appearance from Robert Downey Jr. unveiled a trailer teasing Dr. Doom as a major antagonist. The sequence suggested surprising team-ups and confrontations: the Fantastic Four meeting the Avengers, a clash between Gambit and Shang-Chi, Mystique morphing into a Florence Pugh-linked figure, and a moment where Doom intercepts Thor’s axe. Chris Evans’ bearded Captain America also made a brief, resonant return in the footage and on stage, framing his comeback as purposeful and necessary for the team’s future.
Jon Favreau introduced an extended, adrenaline-forward opening sequence from the upcoming Mandalorian and Grogu film that played like a miniature action set piece: a base infiltration, commandeered walkers and an icy, high-stakes skirmish culminating in a dramatic explosion with Grogu offering a quiet, character beat. The sequence was followed by a flashy title sequence and a plot hook involving a mission with Sigourney Weaver to find a man sheltering with Jabba the Hutt’s descendant. Cold open and Top Gun-style title sequence vibes were intentionally referenced by the presentation to frame the film as a popcorn spectacle.
Animation highlights included two clips from Toy Story 5, where Bonnie becomes absorbed by a tablet called the Lilypad and Woody returns to reinsert himself into the toy dynamics. Tom Hanks and Tim Allen appeared together to riff on their legacy voices; their stage rapport underlined the nostalgic heartbeat behind the sequel. The studio also revealed casting for the animated Hexed, with Hailee Steinfeld voicing a young witch named Billie and Rashida Jones as her mother, and showed a scene of a talking book recruiting new witches that leaned on classic fairy-tale beats.
Dwayne Johnson dedicated his performance as Maui in the live-action Moana to his grandfather and introduced Catherine Laga’aia, with the latter’s family visible in the audience. Johnson performed a snippet of “You’re Welcome,” and used the platform to connect familial memory to character work. These moments emphasized Disney’s emphasis on blending star narratives with franchise storytelling.
Not every expected title appeared. Fans hoping for footage from a rumored Starfighter with Ryan Gosling, the next Pixar entry often referred to as Gatto, a new Simpsons movie, Frozen III or a Bluey feature went home disappointed. Searchlight’s presence was mostly theoretical beyond McDonagh’s tease; the studio did list upcoming titles like Super Troopers 3, Behemoth! and Sweet Sick but showed only the one clip.
On the business side, Disney used the stage to press its case for theatrical distribution. The company pointed to multiple billion-dollar releases over recent years, cited a $6.5 billion total in 2026, and reiterated an average 57-day window to PVOD. The presentation also celebrated the global success of Hoppers, which the studio said earned $350 million worldwide and marked a notable original animated opening since Coco. These figures were framed as evidence that Disney’s model continues to reward theatrical premieres.
Additional snippets included a peek at an editorial meeting for The devil wears Prada 2, a tense first look at Brian Duffield’s thriller Whalefall (which is scheduled to open on October 16 and showed a diver facing a massive sperm whale), and a new “Ice Age” gag pairing Scrat with a Baby Scrat. In quieter beats, The Rock referenced family and masculinity in relation to Maui’s portrayal, and the event delivered a mix of humor, spectacle and strategic messaging that kept the focus on the theatrical experience.