Chris Pine Is a Villain and Alan Tudyk Is … A Goat, In First Trailer for Disney’s Wish

As you may already be aware, Disney is currently in the process this year of celebrating their centennial, and we’ve been commemorating the company’s highest and lowest creative moments of the century in an ongoing series. But naturally, their own tribute will extend to new content on the big screen as well, in the form of upcoming animated feature Wish, which finally debuted its first trailer today. Featuring the expected A-list vocal talent, along with a comfortably old-fashioned story, Disney’s Wish ties together a persistent theme of all their features across the century: Wishes that come true. The premise, as director Chris Buck (of Frozen, co-directing with Fawn Veerasunthorn) puts it:

The all-new musical-comedy welcomes audiences to Rosas, a fantastical land located off the Iberian Peninsula. “Our heroine, Asha, lives in Rosas, known as the kingdom of wishes,” said director Chris Buck, who helms the film with Fawn Veerasunthorn. “People come from everywhere to give their wishes to a magical king who promises to grant their deepest desires—someday. Only he can decide which wishes will come true and when.”

Sensing a darkness that no one else can see, Asha makes a wish on a star, which unexpectedly falls from the sky to help her with her problems. That, and empower her goat companion Valentino to be able to speak, portrayed by the ever-present Alan Tudyk, a performer who has maintained an impressive streak of animal performances in Disney features. At least this time Tudyk gets to communicate with actual words, and the trailer gets a big laugh from the fact that Valentino’s vocal is decidedly not what one would expect, sounding for all intents and purposes like Tudyk’s Clayface performance on HBO Max’s Harley Quinn. The “magical king” and clear antagonist, meanwhile, is played by the charismatic Chris Pine, while Hamilton and West Side Story star takes on both the speaking and singing part of Asha.

In general, Disney’s Wish feels like an undeniable throwback to films from its golden age of animation, which is no doubt exactly the kind of perception the company is going for. Check out the first trailer below, as we wait for more information to arrive on the film, which hits theaters on Nov. 22, 2023.