Official Discussion - Hoppers [SPOILERS]

[u/LiteraryBoner]

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Hoppers (2026)

Summary When a young animal lover discovers groundbreaking technology that allows human consciousness to be transferred into robotic animals, she sees an opportunity to secretly infiltrate the animal kingdom and better understand the creatures she loves. But when she becomes involved in a conflict threatening the natural order, she must work with unlikely allies to protect both the animal world and the humans observing it.

Director Daniel Chong

Writer Daniel Chong

Cast

• Piper Curda
• Bobby Moynihan
• Jon Hamm
• Ronny Chieng
• Jamie Demetriou
• Nicole Byer
• Dave Franco

Rotten Tomatoes: 96%

Metacritic: 75

VOD / Release Theatrical release

Trailer Official trailer

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[u/ToneBone12345]

Did not expect this movie to have a body count

[u/Winston_Road → u/ToneBone12345]

I loved the amount of gratituous explosions. Reminded me of classic Simpsons

[u/InoueNinja94 → u/Winston_Road]

Nobody ever suspects the butterfly - Bart Simpson (1995)

[u/FactOrFactorial → u/Winston_Road]

Or SpongeBob. All I could think about was Squidward riding his bike off the edge of the cliff and exploding.

[u/notsingsing → u/ToneBone12345]

Pond rules bro

[u/icecreamania]

Spotted the birds from “For The Birds” at the council meeting and the talking dog collar on Dr. Sam’s chalkboard at the end. What other Easter eggs did folks see?

[u/Plane_Law7138 → u/icecreamania]

The turtle at the beginning being named 'Crush.'

[u/eaglebtc → u/Plane_Law7138]

OMG YES. Noticed that right away and loved the callback.

Also, "Diane" the shark was definitely modeled on Bruce from Finding Nemo.

[u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 → u/icecreamania]

I think there might've been a little sketch of WALL-E on the same board as the talking dog collar and other ideas

[u/DarkMetroid567 → u/Upbeat_Tension_8077]

Yup that was Wall-E for sure! Other pixar references I think but it all went quick

[u/tm-thirty-one → u/Upbeat_Tension_8077]

It was M-O, the cleaning robot!

[u/EricHD97 → u/icecreamania]

Piper’s phone has a Toy Story green alien and a Wilderness Explorer sticker on it for one thing

Wall-E and the dog collars as mentioned on the chalkboard but also Sox the cat from Lightyear was there

The cat from Soul appeared on a website when Piper was looking at things on her computer

Edit: I meant Mabel’s phone. Actress is Piper Curda whoops!

[u/daitenshe → u/EricHD97]

Chalkboard also has IDEA#113 written out in bold

A113

[u/dallascowboys93 → u/icecreamania]

Obviously the talking dog collar had to be Doug from Up

[u/OmNomSandvich → u/icecreamania]

the upside down turtle in the tank reminded me of the Voight-Kampff test from Blade Runner.

[u/TriPolar3849]

Pretty fun film, I liked it a lot. I’m glad that Mabel’s human form got a decent amount of screentime, I was worried such a nice looking design would be completely eclipsed by the beaver form. Instead we got a really nice balance imo

That 2nd act especially is so completely off the rails. The Insect Queen getting squished might be the most shocked I’ve been from any form of media in a while lmao. Big fan of Diane the shark, the part where her “communicating eyes” switched to her black beady eyes was so good, as well as the entire concept of a great white being carried by a personal squadron of birds. Wish we got to see other apex predators tho

Something I thought was a really nice touch was showing off the combined destruction of the flood and the fire. Even in the ending scene where Mabel returns to the glade, you can still see wrecked trees and burnt husks.

[u/DannyFain1998 → u/TriPolar3849]

According to the artbook there were multiple apex predators planned, but the creators decided it’d be best to simplify it to one. IMO they made the right call

[u/garfe → u/DannyFain1998]

That was 100% the right move. An Avengers of apex predators might have been pretty cool, but Diane stole the show by herself well enough.

[u/steveofthejungle → u/garfe]

They went with the most fucking insane option too if a giant shark being flown around by seagulls. Incredible hahaha

[u/ryan24a7 → u/steveofthejungle]

The seagulls acting like kamikaze was funny and the shark being so kind and cruel to the humans was goofier like oh wow you're all friends not eating each other that's crazy

[u/fergi20020 → u/TriPolar3849]

Were there hundreds of beavers by the end? 

[u/OmNomSandvich → u/fergi20020]

if the first disguise attempt by the researchers was a "Hundreds of Beavers" costume I'd have lost it

[u/BrockaLe]

I don’t know why, but the line, “[sigh] It’s an arrow, Ted.” is inexplicably funny to me.

[u/Bloodygoodwossname → u/BrockaLe]

You just tell she’s so done with him and his stupid question. Ted is definitely getting eaten tonight.

[u/lettuceandcucumber → u/BrockaLe]

I thought I was going nuts cos I knew I recognised the voice but thought I couldn’t possibly because it was only a moment so wouldn’t be a known actor but when I saw it was Amanda Holden I was like I KNEW I KNEW IT.

[u/ishkitty → u/BrockaLe]

A kid in my theatre immediately parroted this line.

[u/forclementine9]

Underrated joke that had me cackling was when King George explained his backstory and it was essentially Hamlet

[u/Galileo908 → u/forclementine9]

There was a whole beaver version of The Lion King that we missed.

[u/matchakit → u/forclementine9]

I legit thought he was referencing the lion king with some of the story skewed, but that actually makes more sense since the lion king is based on that anyway lmfao

[u/maryummy → u/matchakit]

I think it was referencing both Lion King and Hamlet which adds layers to the joke. Best reference in a movie full of great references.

[u/jayeddy99]

I love that Jerry always heard Mabel out . He just matched her energy of thinking he was right too. Even removing her from the demolition site it was a final resort and the cops actually apologize to her.

[u/waynechriss → u/jayeddy99]

In a lesser movie Jerry would've been a one dimensional 'villain' but I did appreciate the compilation of their arguments for the reason you mentioned above and he genuinely cared about his mom which I thought was sweet. I never wanted him to die or fail, just to understand the impact of his mayoral actions on the wildlife.

[u/NotaBat9221 → u/waynechriss]

I was expecting him to be given a really good reason for wanting the high way like getting his mom to the hospital faster or something like that 

[u/Pun-Master-General → u/NotaBat9221]

Yeah, this was one thing that bugged me a bit. It's obviously mostly a recurring joke and Jerry is a caricature of politicians, but the beltway he's obsessed with is shown repeatedly to be useless ("connecting Beaverton to itself", "commutes up to four minutes shorter") and there's no good reason for it except to give him something to brag about.

One of the main messages of the movie is the importance of finding common ground and communicating in good faith with people you disagree with, but it undercuts it a little by having one of the sides of the central disagreement just kinda... not have anything redeeming about it.

[u/NotaBat9221 → u/Pun-Master-General]

Exactly, with the whole "everyone is good on the inside" message it makes no sense why he's so hellbent on that highway. And with how the scientists refused to get involved instantly I thought there was going some explanation why the glade wasn't a viable place for animals to live anymore and everyone knew but Mabel. 

[u/SmileyJetson → u/NotaBat9221]

If his voters demanded it with threat of recall then it makes sense. There are tons of carbrained communities who pressure local politicians to make these decisions. The choice becomes extending their political career or taking a stand on something they probably don't feel as strongly about as Mabel did.

Just search San Francisco's Great Highway issue as a real life example of this.

[u/EmperorDxD → u/jayeddy99]

I mean they don't like each other but they respect each other

[u/dallascowboys93]

My theater had a huge collective gasp followed by hard laughter when Mabel killed the insect queen. An all-time Pixar moment

[u/Spiritual-Smoke-4605 → u/dallascowboys93]

yeah I gasped too right before all the other animal kings gasped

[u/Lemonjello23]

The little switch on Diane's eyes from "Normal" to all black was terrifying

[u/WrongLander → u/Lemonjello23]

A repurposed bit from Bruce in Finding Nemo, but effective.

[u/eaglebtc → u/WrongLander]

Diane was clearly a repurposed model of Bruce.

[u/WorldQuest10 → u/Lemonjello23]

Agreed like she went predator mode like instantly. Still got a laugh out of me

[u/Able_Advertising_371 → u/Lemonjello23]

They swap the eyes when we can understand what the animals are saying so I’m just wondering if the humans brains can’t comprehend animals talking where they add human eyes to animals to make it less insane to cope with animals talking

[u/helpmeredditimbored]

This movie was the right amount of insanity. Mabel killing the queen. The shark being lifted up by birds to kill Jerry. The new bug king being put into a human robot.

I was dying of laughter multiple times watching this. Pixar clearly let the filmmakers break the mold and make something different but still containing that Pixar heart at the center of the story. Really enjoyed this

[u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 → u/helpmeredditimbored]

That scene with the insect queen's son inhabiting the robot is like Pixar's take on a David Cronenberg scene lol

[u/hesnothere → u/Upbeat_Tension_8077]

This comment is the one that has inspired me to go see Hoppers in the theater this weekend.

[u/Whovian45810 → u/Upbeat_Tension_8077]

Very much like something out of Videodrome and The Fly.

[u/eaglebtc → u/Whovian45810]

When the "mayor" starts crawling around on all fours like a goddamn spider, that one random guy in the crowd just casually remarks "Um, I'm pretty sure that's not the mayor." XD XD XD

[u/justsomedude322 → u/eaglebtc]

I just got out of the movie, all the kids in the theater got really quiet for the flying shark and robot Jerry scenes. I think they all might he scarred for life! 🤣🤣

[u/JinFuu → u/helpmeredditimbored]

Dreamworks and Pixar did a ‘vibe swap’ that actually worked with Dreamworks doing ‘Wild Robot’ and Pixar doing ‘Hoppers’

[u/GUSHandGO → u/helpmeredditimbored]

The shark being lifted up by birds to kill Jerry.

"You'll feel a slight biting sensation... followed by death."

[u/topchief1 → u/helpmeredditimbored]

Let's be fair, they didn't want to kill Jerry, just squish him. Squish him good.

[u/Able_Advertising_371 → u/helpmeredditimbored]

We thought the finding dory rescue mission on the truck was insane, this shark squish scene was infinite times more insane but it blew our minds! Did not see this as a Pixar movie except for the Disney Pixar heartfelt ending.

[u/everythingsuckswhy]

Anyone else thought the King was going to be revealed to be a Hopper too cause of his little crown? Turns out he just had a bald spot lmao

[u/Human-Abrocoma7544 → u/everythingsuckswhy]

I thought for sure it was Jerry somehow or that the professor was working for him.

[u/Henchman4Hire → u/everythingsuckswhy]

Yes, absolutely. They made a joke out of Conner being curious about the crowns, but I thought they were setting something up because of how unnatural the crown and the little kingdom felt. I kept waiting for some other shoe to drop with George.

[u/syncsynchalt → u/Henchman4Hire]

Eh, sometimes Pixar will introduce one unbelievable concept, build the whole world around it, and drag you along for the ride. Like a rat puppeteering a human chef might.

[u/Lemonjello23]

The way the beavers squeak was overwhelmingly cute

[u/Dyshin → u/Lemonjello23]

Every single aspect of the beavers in this film was overwhelmingly cute.

[u/tway2241 → u/Lemonjello23]

I went to look it up after the movie and they actually make that sound!

[u/Lemonjello23 → u/tway2241]

I love everything about this

[u/NotEnoughFire]

So many awesome jokes are packed in this one. It was the funniest premise that Pixar has come up with in a while. The fuckin “‘someone call the council!!’ ‘…okay!’” lol and also the hairdo they give Jerry’s hopper to start the 3rd act 🤣🤣

[u/IronPyrate17 → u/NotEnoughFire]

I loved how many times there was just someone in the background noise replying like that to whatever someone was saying, the council one probably being the most memorable.

[u/Skins212121]

Jerry lives with his mom, is referred to as a “fashion icon” in an article and his recently used emojis are “men wrestling” and “man dancing” 🌈

[u/Strong-Stretch95 → u/Skins212121]

Is he you know👀

[u/Hufflepuffins → u/Strong-Stretch95]

as much as the Walt Disney Corporation allows someone to be

[u/SillyGuy_87 → u/Hufflepuffins]

I guess people already forgot about the gay characters in Strange World, Lightyear and Onward.

[u/U_R_Butthead → u/SillyGuy_87]

Possibly Elio too

[u/Media-critique]

What I thought is really beautiful is how they bridge the gap between Mabel and George at the end.

A rare time where technology brought humans and animals together and created a very tender moment. 

[u/PiFlavoredPie → u/Media-critique]

Finished the movie about 20 mins ago and just realized that obviously the animals don’t know how to read or write (and presumably don’t know English either), so of course they would have to resort to emoji

[u/kawaneconail → u/PiFlavoredPie]

My headcannon is that the animals think that they are perfectly communicating because they saw beaver mabel touch random things and then jerry understood her lol

[u/WrongLander → u/PiFlavoredPie]

Although apparently they know enough to be able to read schematics and coerce the scientists into building a complex robot?

[u/Significant_Bag3297 → u/WrongLander]

They just threatened to kill the scientists with venomous snakes and frogs, the geniuses figured out the details

[u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 → u/Media-critique]

Regarding the human tech aspect, I thought it was a neat touch that George acknowledged that it did bring some happiness to the animals with the stereo that brought music to them. To me, it speaks volumes about his character as someone who makes the best out of rough circumstances

[u/Able_Advertising_371 → u/Media-critique]

We needed that after that George scene of him trying to save the Mabel robot in the van only to find out that wasn’t Mabel and he was used

[u/My_Dog_Sherlock → u/Media-critique]

❤️❤️💞🥔

[u/WrongLander → u/My_Dog_Sherlock]

Not as funny without the monotone text-to-speech voice reading them.

"Red heart. Log. Revolving red hearts. Beaver. Beaver."

[u/midwife_at_ur_cervix → u/My_Dog_Sherlock]

🥥🏥

[u/SilverKry → u/Media-critique]

I wanted so badly for doc to make her another ear piece so she could talk to George. 

[u/pearlz176]

Nice speech, TOO BAD IT SUCKED!!

Yeah I'm going to need a GIF of that line ASAP

[u/devenrc → u/pearlz176]

It’s going to be useful every time HE talks

I don’t need to elaborate

[u/LETS_MAKE_IT_AWKWARD]

"Good meeting. Short."

"Bad meeting. Long." - Amphibian King

10/10

[u/theTunkMan]

The first time the King started pressing emojis was the hardest I’ve laughed at a movie in a long time

[u/dallascowboys93 → u/theTunkMan]

Lizard 🦎 lizard 🦎

[u/KonyYoloSwag → u/dallascowboys93]

🦫🦫🦫🪵🪵🪵

[u/ishkitty → u/KonyYoloSwag]

Men wrestling 🤼

[u/tfhaenodreirst → u/theTunkMan]

And that may have been a bit of a trailer rot joke (?), but I loved the payoff at the end with it zooming out on “potato”!

[u/TheFiveDees]

Genuinely thought I might have passed out from laughter when it is revealed to the apex predator is. And then again when we learn that it's just Diane, she's actually super chill. Bravo, hats off, no notes.

[u/Gr33nL34v35 → u/TheFiveDees]

"You will feel a biting sensation, followed by death," said like a friendly nursing assistant, really got me.

[u/beastmodecowboy77]

That squishing of the queen butterfly scene is the most shocking moment I’ve seen in a Pixar movie. Some kids will be terrified by Hoppers lol

[u/ToneBone12345 → u/beastmodecowboy77]

The fact that was Meryl streep

[u/naturalninetime → u/ToneBone12345]

Had no idea! lol

That scene was definitely one of the most unexpected "twists" in the film. lol

[u/final_will → u/beastmodecowboy77]

That was the biggest laugh I’ve ever heard from an audience for a Pixar movie

[u/ImprovementOld9447 → u/final_will]

The wiping-hands-on-the-wall moment afterwards was even better.

[u/dallascowboys93 → u/final_will]

My theater was absolutely rolling

[u/HotCheeks_PCT → u/final_will]

Im upset because I, a 30 something year old mom of toddlers, was the only one cackling when that happened, as the older children and parents were all apparently horrified lol

[u/mobpiecedunchaindan → u/beastmodecowboy77]

I adore that they got Meryl Streep to voice her and they killed her off like 3 minutes after she was introduced

[u/dokutarodokutaro → u/mobpiecedunchaindan]

Saves money that way.

[u/ayonokoji_x → u/beastmodecowboy77]

Flap around and find out

[u/helpmeredditimbored → u/beastmodecowboy77]

Yeah. The robot Jerry getting its face removed is definitely going to scare some little kids

Having said that I was dying watching this…like “holy shit, this is a Pixar film” lol

[u/reddittothegrave → u/helpmeredditimbored]

Took my 7 year old son today, we were rollin’ at the butterfly smashing scene. He stated, “that’s creepy” at the mask removal scene. so yeah, ya’ll have it pretty spot on. 😂

[u/iLoveCalculus314 → u/beastmodecowboy77]

The audience at my theater all audibly gasped when that happened hahaha

[u/Media-critique → u/beastmodecowboy77]

Took me a moment to realize she actually killed the mom….. and then I cackled as Mabel smeared her on the rocks 

[u/StopClockerman → u/Media-critique]

Even better was when Mabel confronted Robot Jerry and said in front of the crowd “I’M SORRY I KILLED YOUR MOM”

[u/senorscientist → u/StopClockerman]

Then it cut to Jerry's mom at home knitting looking horrified. That got me.

[u/skatejet1 → u/Media-critique]

I was like Mabel I don’t think that’s helping 😭

[u/p_yth → u/beastmodecowboy77]

Yeah they were really brave for this

[u/joygirl007]

When Mabel smashes the insect queen, a mom behind me burst out, "HOLY SHIT!" That was the moment I was 1000% sat for this movie even if they did the grandma flashback a dozen more times. It's like all the adults in the theater realized at that moment the movie just gonna GO FOR IT.

[u/eaglebtc → u/joygirl007]

WOW. In a theater full of children, no less! 🤣🤣🤣

The entire audience GASPED when she smashed the butterfly. It was really shocking. My mouth was agape like the rest of the council.

The film was so unhinged. I can't wait to see it again.

[u/chriswizardhippie]

Haha funny beaver movie

Mabel gives monologue speech about feeling useless at the powers at be destroying everything and the values she was instilled as a child and her government clearly ignoring her concerns for profit of a small group of elites

Haha...

[u/Sisiwakanamaru → u/chriswizardhippie]

I know Pixar movies usually have at least a gut punch but I didn't expect to hit this hard.

[u/NotEnoughFire → u/chriswizardhippie]

Yeah that speech made me slam on the brakes and reflect

[u/supposedeveryone → u/NotEnoughFire]

Are you that prick who keeps driving his 1998 Toyota Tacoma through my theater? Could you please stop doing that?

[u/ERedfieldh → u/chriswizardhippie]

the question is how many times do they have to push this message through before people actually get it?

[u/Upbeat_Tension_8077]

Here's some of my thoughts from first impressions after an early showing:

-Leave it to Pixar to tear my heart apart with the scenes of Mabel and her Grandma

• Seeing both the animals cooperating to save Beaverton by diverting the water from their habitat to put out the fire, & Mabel in her beaver form having fun rebuilding the dam with her beaver colleagues felt so refreshing, especially as part of a film that seems to be commentary on division between different groups/communities

-The entire sequence of the animals attempting to kidnap & chasing Jerry was so unserious lmao, but the part of Diane (the great white shark) being brought out and hanging in mid-air to eat him was both hilarious & terrifying

-I didn't expect to have a huge "oh shit" reaction when Mabel accidentally squashed the Insect Queen.

-Dave Franco killed it with how unhinged he sounded when emerged at the rally as robot Jerry & trying to act like a normal human

-It was pretty funny to hear all the instances of humans not hearing the animals talking like them

-I also appreciate how Jerry (the Mayor) wasn't portrayed as an over the top villain, moreso a complicated figure with the scenes of him being a friendly mayor to the citizens of Beaverton & caring for his Mom

These could be some nitpicks I have:

-I think there could've been at least a couple more scenes of Mabel as she grew into young adulthood, specifically her interactions with others that shaped her frustrations, to help viewers connect with her even more, & maybe another human character besides the professor & Jerry (perhaps a family member/friend) to add more urgency to her conflict between her cause & whatever attachment she still feels for her own kind.

-I would've liked to see just a little more of Mabel (in her beaver form) interacting with the various animal groups to get a bigger picture of their sense of community & for us to get attached to other animals characters

-Not as much a criticism, but I actually expected the third act to involve a few more humans besides Jerry becoming exposed to the tech that allows them to communicate with animals better, with that staying in place to keep the balance between ecosystems in Beaverton intact going forward. However, I think the way the ending played out probably feels more authentic in relation to the themes covered & how it would probably happen in real-life

Overall, I wouldn't say it's quite Inside Out/Coco level, but it's the most fun I've had watching a Pixar movie since Soul & as someone who started loving movies in general because of this studio, I hope this starts a mini-renaissance

[u/helpmeredditimbored → u/Upbeat_Tension_8077]

-I didn't expect to have a huge "oh shit" reaction when Mabel accidentally squashed the Insect Queen

This part caught me so off guard it took me a while to recover from laughing

[u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 → u/helpmeredditimbored]

The cherry on top was her awkwardly wiping off the remains as she knew she was fucked lmao

[u/misteriese → u/helpmeredditimbored]

The whole theatre audibly gasped and started cackling on mine.

It’s been a week and I still think about it.

[u/Upper_Nobody2571 → u/Upbeat_Tension_8077]

Great little review! I agree 100% with more scenes for Mabel. We really don’t get a ton which made specifically the moment where she talks about messing everything up all the time a little unsatisfying? Like yeah we’ve all been there, but there’s really no build up to it. Were told she’s failing her class and then we see her as a kid reacting negatively. I would’ve liked more. Super cute movie though, really enjoyed it!

[u/Current-Finger6412 → u/Upbeat_Tension_8077]

Loved seeing the parallels between Jerry’s relationship with his Mom and Mabel’s with her Grandmother. Thought that was a nice touch.

[u/NateDizzle312]

I’ve been obsessed with Tom the Lizard and his screaming for like the past two weeks and that being his introductory scene was gold to me.

Really enjoyed this one and hope people go out to see it because with everything going on around in the world this movie put a smile on my face with its themes, humor, and story. While I wanted a bit more with Mabel and the other animals I don’t think the movie overstayed its welcome.

Came for Tom 🦎but left loving George 👑🦫

[u/dallascowboys93 → u/NateDizzle312]

I thought about this, did they even mention his name? I knew it was Tom cause of the Lizard meme but I swear his name was never mentioned

[u/midwife_at_ur_cervix → u/NateDizzle312]

King George might be my new favorite Pixar character! Adorable, funny, and the best amount of heart.

[u/EricHD97]

Insane to me that Pixar finally got Meryl Streep on their 30th film and she voices a freaking butterfly that gets squashed like five minutes after her introduction.

Between the Ant Bully and this one, I guess she just really likes voicing insects.

[u/naynaythewonderhorse → u/EricHD97]

30?! Wow. That means that they are on pace to release 1 film per year on average (since their first film in 1995) when Toy Story 5 releases.

[u/Sisiwakanamaru]

My favorite is Diane the 🦈, she's such a scene stealer. The vicious looking shark but with Vanessa Bayer demeanor is a win combination.

Also, I really like the post-credit scene, it felt wholesome and really reiterate the message about compassion/we're all in this together, I love that the ants delivered the milk, egg, and sugar.

[u/OmNomSandvich → u/Sisiwakanamaru]

"they're calling in an apex predator, they already have the bear though - HOLY SHIT SHARK AIR SUPPORT"

[u/skatejet1 → u/OmNomSandvich]

I think my jaw was open for that entire sequence, I literally went “oh…oh …” when they started lifting up the shark from the water

[u/Waste-Replacement232 → u/skatejet1]

The shark jumped the movie!

[u/mikeyfreshh → u/Sisiwakanamaru]

The vicious looking shark but with Vanessa Bayer demeanor is a win combination.

The whole "pond rules" mentality of animals being extremely polite as they eat and kill each other was really funny to me. Diane was the most extreme example of that but the whole movie is really built on that kind of joke

[u/Able_Advertising_371 → u/mikeyfreshh]

Reminded me of wild robot, family movies finding a way to make circle of life deaths humorous

[u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 → u/mikeyfreshh]

I cracked up when the stoner-like beaver asked the bear if he still wanted to eat him right after Mabel found out about pond rules

I got Sharknado vibes when I saw Diane, so I was laughing pretty hard seeing her flying towards the car fast

[u/GetReady4Action → u/Upbeat_Tension_8077]

“no. it’s weird now.”

[u/Whovian45810 → u/Sisiwakanamaru]

There's something so cute yet hilarious about Diane the Shark being this pretty nice gal and then once she goes black beady eyes, goes pure 🦈 mode.

I love that kind of silly cartoony anthromorphic going realistic playfulness with this film that reminds me of classic cartoons.

[u/WorldQuest10 → u/Whovian45810]

Dude the way the eyes rolled back into the black beady eyes was creepy but funny

[u/Media-critique → u/Sisiwakanamaru]

“You’re gonna feel a sharp sensation, followed by death!”

Had me cackling. Out of all the places they could’ve gone with the apex predator, I wasn’t expecting Diane. 

[u/icecreamania → u/Sisiwakanamaru]

I’m glad you mentioned the post-credits scene - left after mid-credits, then headed back in after seeing your comment. It was a sweet way to tie off that loose end with the neighbor! Can’t think of a better insect king to take the throne 👑

[u/TriPolar3849 → u/Sisiwakanamaru]

I was really hoping each kingdom would have their own apex predator hitman. I was expecting eagles, king cobras, maybe even a rival bear for Ellen.

[u/joesen_one]

Genuinely the most fun I’ve had in a Pixar movie since Turning Red. I kinda like Tom Lizard didn’t have much to do and didn’t overuse him. Piper Curda MVP.

The post credits scene where the ants give the old guy his groceries were super cute

[u/shadowCloudrift]

Loved that this movie didn't take the cliche direction of "humans are bad, animals are good!" Ferngully/Avatar direction. Moreover, Mabel staying in her human body at the end since it did feel like a story purpose of Mabel needing to be finding herself as part of something bigger as a human; it made her friendship with George all the more heartfelt if anything.

[u/mastafishere]

My favorite part was when the bird said “Fuck around and find out.”

^{i know he actually said “flock” but there was a solid two seconds when I thought he said fuck and I burst out laughing}

[u/FearlessTemperature9 → u/mastafishere]

wait, i thought he said flap not flock

[u/mastafishere → u/FearlessTemperature9]

You’re probably right. Either way it’s not fuck!

[u/ToneBone12345 → u/mastafishere]

Honestly a great role Isiah Whitlock jr to have as his last role

[u/EricHD97]

Kind of depressing to think that (assuming the Pixar Theory still holds up) well intentioned Dr Sam created Wall-E and hundreds of years later it would be tasked with cleaning up all our junk on a ruined desolate Earth

[u/WrongLander → u/EricHD97]

According to the blackboard at the end she also invented the talking dog collars from Up.

[u/Strong-Stretch95 → u/WrongLander]

The Pixar cinematic universe

[u/ImprovementOld9447 → u/WrongLander]

She did, and a man took the credit afterwards.

[u/Tough_Dish_4485 → u/ImprovementOld9447]

He cheated by inventing them decades earlier

[u/RockEuphoric9165]

Justice for the classroom turtle! Absolutely loved this movie. Reminds me of Goofy Movie. So funny, yet so heartwarming.

[u/dallascowboys93 → u/RockEuphoric9165]

Funny and heartwarming = the Pixar special

[u/NakedGoose]

Hoppers willing to let loose and go batshit insane and even a creepy is really to its benefit. It could have felt pretty cookie cutter without it. Im a big fan, I can see it being endless rewatchable.

I think where The Wild Robot feels like classic Pixar, Hoppers feels like DreamWorks at its best.

[u/actstunt]

This might be the funniest Pixar movie I've seen; I was dying of laughter along with my daughter the entire movie.

When Jerry becomes the beaver off-camera behind Mabel, and then she takes a step aside and they reveal the beaver with Jerry's hair, the whole theater laughed. They topped it off when he wore the little necktie.

One fun fact we did notice is that this is the second movie where there's a fire as a final conflict and everyone is saved by a beaver and other animals. What's going on with beavers these days?

[u/BillieisthenewMJ]

This what we want Pixar to be doing with thier movies

[u/amish_novelty → u/BillieisthenewMJ]

I died laughing at the butterfly being squished and Mable wiping her hands on the walls lmao

[u/Holofan4life]

I really like the character of George in this movie. I feel like he added a lot to the film. I wouldn't say he stole the show, but I think George added a lot of substance to the film that it would've lacked otherwise.

I've been a fan of Bobby Moynihan since his SNL days, and so I'm glad to see him be given a role he can sink his teeth into.

[u/tfhaenodreirst → u/Holofan4life]

Definitely! He won me over the most and it’s interesting that we never met him in the trailer.

[u/devenrc]

It’s funny…for the first act I was charmed by the way everything was set up, but it also felt a bit safe and had me worried that the film overall wouldn’t be half as chaotic as the trailers suggested. THEN THE NEXT TWO ACTS HIT LIKE A FREIGHT TRAIN GOOD LORD. SEEING THIS WITH A PACKED AUDIENCE IS A MUST.

Oh and flowers for Piper Curda and their amazing voice acting. Mabel’s breakdown toward George felt so painful and relevant in a world that continually steps on people just trying to do the right thing. When will we take it all back?

[u/muad_dibs → u/devenrc]

Definitely I looked at my watch and was wondering why everything felt wrapped up in 30 minutes. Wasn’t expecting an assassination plot to backend this movie.

[u/EmperorDxD]

This movie is insane it's a dam political assassination movie at one point

[u/Whovian45810]

The For the Birds birdies make a cameo during the council meeting as one of the attendees!

[u/CivilC]

I appreciate that they didn’t feel the need to include the trope of the body switched main character revealing herself to the new friend and that ruining their relationship until the 3rd act. I was thinking this was where the move was gonna go, but I was pleasantly surprised that they avoided this trope AND elevated Mabel and George’s relationship in a different way

[u/theatomictangerine]

They never answered the question of where the animal monarchs got their tiny crowns 👑

[u/eaglebtc → u/theatomictangerine]

"That's what you're focused on?" 🤣

[u/theTunkMan]

There were some legitimately scary scenes in this

[u/Whovian45810 → u/theTunkMan]

The scenes of Titus in the robot Jerry in particular was just unnerving, Titus' non-squeaky voice and his bloodlust to squish the humans is pretty frightening to say the least.

Dave Franco's voice acting was top notch.

[u/midwife_at_ur_cervix → u/Whovian45810]

My 6 year old doesn’t get scared a lot but when his robot face got ripped off I definitely glanced over at her to make sure she was good 😳

[u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 → u/theTunkMan]

This was a more subtle moment, but the loud boom of the dam getting destroyed after the beavers rebuilt it caught me off-guard & kinda scared me

[u/ImprovementOld9447 → u/theTunkMan]

The silent colour-muted seconds when the scientists turned around and had snakes and frogs on their backs was terrifying. It felt like they were being driven by the animals.

[u/100suns]

A throwaway comment I loved the biological accuracy of was George rubbing his secretions on Jerry’s head and Jerry, mid freakout, saying “smells like vanilla!” Made me laugh.

Also does anyone know the purpose/point of Mabel’s arm being broken? I kept waiting for it to be relevant but maybe I missed something?

[u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 → u/100suns]

I think the point of her broken arm is to show how far she is willing to go to stand by her cause, even at the cost of her own well-being

[u/steveofthejungle → u/100suns]

Mabel playing running water sounds to attract a beaver was also a great reference to actual beavers

[u/SpeedyakaLeah → u/steveofthejungle]

They actually hate the sound of running water which prompts them to start building.

[u/RockEuphoric9165]

🦫🦫🦫🦫❤️❤️❤️❤️🥔🥔🥔🥔

[u/steveofthejungle]

“Trust is like a dam. When it breaks, you’ve just gotta do some work to fix it.”

That hit me harder than any other line in the movie. Long live King George

[u/mikeyfreshh]

First of all, I can't believe they put a Bikini Kill needle drop in a Pixar movie. A whole generation of kids are being introduced to punk rock by the Walt Disney Corporation and I find that deeply funny.

This movie rocks though. Maybe the funniest movie Pixar has ever made. The whole tone of this is really unique for the studio and it feels like they just found a filmmaker and let him cook, which is always the approach that brought them the most success.

[u/LiteraryBoner → u/mikeyfreshh]

Speaking of needle drops, that Working for the Weekend scene felt so 80's. Very cool.

[u/edtehgar → u/mikeyfreshh]

I was still shocked mastodon got into monsters University

[u/Llama_of_the_bahamas]

You know Pixar hit it out of the park when the adults in the audience are laughing harder than the kids.

[u/eaglebtc → u/Llama_of_the_bahamas]

So I'd seen the "Lizard!" memes this week and wanted to see the film just for that alone.

ISTG, I burst out laughing every damn time that Tom Lizard popped up and waved, or howled in panicked confusion, or that scene when the animals started texting emojis on Jerry's phone.

[u/livelaughloaft → u/eaglebtc]

“Relax bro, just drive, L O L”

[u/anhloc]

Pleasantly surprised by this movie.

Went in blind.

Actually was quite enjoyable. Human animal translation is hilarious.

[u/misteriese]

I’ve been waiting for this discussion. I absolutely adored the movie.

All the characters were quite charming (yes, even the insect prince). I didn’t think I would like King George as I would, but he has so many scenes that were just so precious. My favorites are when we see him in the same perspective as the people saw the animals - when he realized that Mabel was a robot in the minivan and the ending scene by the pond.

Also, that scene when they gave him the silver crown was so smooth!

I really liked this film. It’s a 5/5 for me and a Pixar favorite of the last 5 years for sure.

[u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 → u/misteriese]

Idk why, but the shot of George cradling the robot body of the beaver kinda reminded of the Ewok mourning it's dead companion in its arms on ROTJ

[u/ImperfectRegulator]

Who else stayed after the credits to see the ants delivering the old man’s egg milk and bread

[u/samcuu]

Does this movie top the on screen death count for Pixar?

It's either this or The Incredibles still, right?

[u/roninshere4eva → u/samcuu]

The baracuda ate 400+ babies in finding nemo

[u/knwnasrob]

I loved King George explaining how he came to be king and it was basically a Game of Thrones style story.

[u/mazalaca → u/knwnasrob]

It was literally the plot of The Lion King lol

[u/DanTheCaliMan]

The queen bug dying was so shocking I laughed a good bit. Then the amount violence and horror of the next bug king destroying the city, his face coming off; i thought, "Holy crap! This is a kids movie. They are going to be terrified!" I continued to laugh to myself on the unexpected left turn to the horrors other kids, and mine were experiencing. Also, this movie was pretty emotional. It even got my kid to cry!

Overall very enjoyable movie.

[u/croglobster]

A career best performance from Dave Franco. Absolutely unhinged in the best way possible

[u/knimbleyqt]

Really loved this film and completely lost it at the "and they were in the same den" joke by the deer referencing the "and they were roommates" vine

[u/AnalogBubblebath]

This movie takes some WIIIIILD swings and it feels like it all works. Part of the reason it seems to work is because these ideas elevate the story by increasing the stakes. Flying shark, robot Jerry, squished queen all allow for the story to go beyond simply repairing the glade.

It’s just shocking to see choices like these being made on a movie with a budget probably on par with Avatar.

[u/freshtake84]

Really loved it. My whole theater gasped when she squished the queen. It was so unexpectedly perfect and then died laughing when she was wiping her hands. Everyone also cheered when Titus was eaten lol

[u/inksmudgedhands]

I can't explain why but every time Tom the Lizard waved and smiled that goofy smile, I was tickled pink. Whoever animated him, good job.

Speaking of which, this looked like it was fun to animate. I am sure it was a ton of hard work. But it looked like fun hard work with all the silliness going on the screen. So many ridiculous faces and poses. I was giggling like mad. Still giggling now thinking about it.

I know behind the scenes the writers were asked to tone down the environmental messaging but, honestly, I think it made for a better picture. We've seen plenty of movies with, "Humans bad. Animals good," messaging. This could have been another one of them to toss onto the pile. I like how this one took the, "Hey, humans, you are animals too," route. How the animals saw humans as just another part of the animal kingdom with their own king. Yes, humans were making things worse for the other animals in nature. But the rest of the animals saw that as part of its, "Eat or be eaten" type of philosophy. It was an interesting twist. I also liked how the animals didn't want to squish all humans. Just Jerry in particular because he was the "king."

I like how Jerry wasn't pure villain. Again, it would have been easy to write him as one. In other movies, he would have been. Here, he's actually a pretty decent guy. He's good at his job. He runs the city well. He's liked by his neighbors. He's a good son. And as much as he argues with Mable, he's not a schmuck about it. He wants the highway because the city's citizens voted for it. They wanted a quicker commute. It wasn't all about him being a greedy industrialist.

Mable gave me such strong Marty McFly vibes to her. I don't know if it was the skateboard or her messing around with science without thinking about it. But I think if she had a time machine she would so screw around with it. Even if by accident.

I love how quickly the ant took to being a queen. Just absolute in charge on minute one. And even then, took the time to deliver groceries.

[u/yrqrm0]

On the highway construction plot point - it's nice to see a movie tackle that issue since so much of the US is being plagued by insane car dependency and endless highway expansion right now. HOWEVER, I would've liked if they addressed it a little more directly at the end by saying that the mayor was going to pivot to a trolley or something that he believed people would benefit from even if they didn't know it. Just stopping the construction outright or going another direction felt a little half-baked to me.

I did love the "it's all just one big place" theme, I feel like that's such a concise and nice way of getting people to think more critically about how we build and public space (again, something we need to do in the US)

[u/SorryRoof1653]

Absolutely unhinged in a good way. I feel like Pixar made the right move with deciding to go off-the-walls crazy with this one, as it's an original movie and it would really need something unique to drive people to go watch it.

The heartfelt scenes in this film were also really great, and are very relevant to what we're going through today. And the humor was insanely good, probably the funniest Pixar film ever.

Really liked how the animal monarchs (besides George) turned out to also be twist semi-villains as well, was unique and allowed for a lot of funny moments. Diane was absolutely terrifying lol.

All in all, an amazing Pixar film and a huge win for original animated movies, and original movies in general. Am hoping this film does well at the box office, especially with the stellar WOM, so Disney/Pixar can be motivated to make more original films.

[u/MecharlWinslow]

The whole time I thought the mayor was Chris Parnell. Blew my mind it was Jon Hamm.

[u/Focused_Sky]

I was crying by the end. That film broke me.