Move Over Barbie: Zootopia 2 Cast's Genius Marketing Stunt Is Winning Fans' Hearts
Officer Judy Hopps, Nick Wilde, and Flash hit the streets of Los Angeles in themed cars with a promo van in tow, turning heads as Disney ramps up the buzz for Zootopia 2.
Disney rolled out one of its goofier, smarter stunts to hype Zootopia 2: Judy Hopps, Nick Wilde, and Flash literally hit the streets of Los Angeles in tiny, character-sized cars, cruising alongside a branded van like they just merged out of a storyboard and into the 405. It is exactly the kind of absurd visual that makes people stop scrolling.
What actually happened
On November 2, 2025, DiscussingFilm shared a video of costumed Judy, Nick, and Flash driving around LA in small-scale vehicles, trailed by a Zootopia 2 promo van. The clip did numbers for obvious reasons: it looks like the Zootopia universe clipped into our world, right down to Flash crawling through traffic like he has all day (because he does).
Fans noticed, and yes, they made the big comparison
People immediately stacked this up against the all-timer marketing blitzes from the Barbie/Oppenheimer summer. And while Barbie had a monster campaign, quite a few folks said this Disney move took the cake for pure charm and execution.
"Even Flash thinks LA traffic is too slow. The Zootopia universe just rolled into the real world! Zootopia 2: Fast & Furryous."
- Plenty of love for the marketing team, with fans saying they nailed the brief and calling it a straight-up win.
- The Flash gag landed hard: people joked it was perfectly in-character for him to be inching along in LA traffic.
- Another detail fans appreciated: the cars looked scaled so the characters would feel "right" if they were next to human-sized pedestrians.
Why the push makes sense
The first Zootopia launched in 2016, connected with a massive audience thanks to its riffs on bias and belonging (and one determined bunny), and hauled in $1.02 billion worldwide per Box Office Mojo. Nine years later, you have built-in nostalgia, an audience that literally grew up with Judy and Nick, and a sequel that can move their dynamic forward.
Disney is also packing the cast bench: expect a bunch of returning voices and some new, cameo-friendly additions. Pair that with playful, highly shareable stunts like this LA drive-by, and you can see the box office plan forming in real time.
The bottom line
Zootopia 2 opens in US theaters on November 26, 2025. If Disney keeps blending clever in-world jokes with real-world spectacle like this, the movie is going to arrive with momentum to spare.