'Wreck It Ralph 2' Announced, First Image Released

Walt Disney Animation made a big announcement on Facebook Live this morning: Wreck-It Ralph 2 will be coming to theaters in 2018. Get the details after the jump.

Filmmaker Rich Moore addressed fans on the Breaking News Facebook Live broadcast, introducing Phil Johnston, who co-wrote Wreck It Ralph and Zootopia. Johnston will be co-directing Wreck-It Ralph 2 with Moore. Johnston didn't start out in animation; he wrote Cedar Rapids and The Brothers Grimsby. This will be his first time (co-)directing a feature film.

Moore revealed that they started working on this new idea right after they finished Wreck It Ralph. The duo famously got pulled away from their project to help save Zootopia (which turned out pretty well). Ralph voice actor John C. Reilly also appeared on the broadcast to make it official and announce the release date. Wreck-It Ralph 2 will hit theaters on March 9th 2018.

As for what it will be about, Reilly said that is "top secret," but that "Ralph leaves the arcade and wrecks the internet." He began to elaborate on the plot and the Facebook Live feed froze, which was a bad joke that left many nerds scrambling.

Fortunately, we were able to dig up some more details elsewhere. First, Disney shared the first bit of Wreck-It Ralph concept art showing Ralph and Vanellope about to wreak havoc in the internet. And yes, they've confirmed Sarah Silverman will return to voice Vanellope von Schweetz alongside Reilly as Ralph.

"The world of the internet is the perfect place to send Ralph and Vanellope," said Johnston in the accompanying statement. "The scope and scale are so vast and the possibilities for comedy are endless."

Rich Moore gave a few extra details to Disney.com:

The relationship between Vanellope and Ralph, we're going to see that again, and the comedy that comes with the two of them. We're going to see their friendship tested by getting to the Internet. So everything you loved about the first one and a whole lot more.

Along with the Wreck-It Ralph 2 announcement comes news that Ralph will be dropping by to "wreck" Disney's mobile game Disney Crossy Road starting at 12 PM PST today.

The one bit of bad news that comes with the Wreck-It Ralph 2 announcement is that Disney Animation's Gigantic has been pushed back. Originally scheduled for March 9th 2018, it will now open November 21st 2018.

Wreck-It Ralph 2 was one of the announcements we predicted yesterday. Last year Reilly let it slip that he had signed on for a Wreck-It Ralph sequel as did composer Henry Jackman. Wreck-It Ralph is one of my favorite of the modern Walt Disney Animation Studios movies so this announcement makes me extremely happy. Back in 2012 Moore said he'd like "to explore online gaming, home games."

We have some ideas of how we could — it was fun to begin it in an arcade. And I think that that really tapped into the nostalgia that that has attached to it. But if we were to do a sequel I think we need to bring it up to date. We're working on ideas, should we do one, that would bring it more into modern gaming, not just arcade cabinets.

Moore later revealed a conversation that he had with Reilly back in the spring of 2013, with the idea that there might be other Ralphs out there. What would happen if another Fix It Felix, Jr. game was plugged in?

Are there other Ralphs that are more contemporary? Is there another version of the game that was made for mobile? Are there those kind of Super Smash Brothers types games where all the characters are gathered in a fighting game? What would that be like for Ralph to come face to face with those different iterations of himself? And it's created some really cool conversations, so I think that that is so funny you bring up because it's something we're playing around with right now.

In addition, there have also been discussions about including Disney characters such as TRON in the world of Wreck-It Ralph. There were also previous discussions about bringing in more iconic video game characters like Mario, a character they didn't want to waste on a cameo without giving him some more significant purpose.

Elsewhere, Moore tells Collider that the story will take place in current day, six years after the events of the first film. They currently don't have a title set in stone, but Super Wreck It Ralph is the frontrunner of the potential options. As an 80's kid who grew up on Super Nintendo, I really love that title. But Moore is hesitant to title the film that because "it's so about the Internet and less about arcade games, it might not be the perfect fit." While Moore wasn't willing to reveal much he did admit there is a nod to TRON in the film. As for other characters, the main cast is back, and he won't confirm any cameos, but King Candy/Turbo is definitely dead.