New DreamWorks Animation Movie Gets 2024 Release Date

Universal has scheduled The Wild Robot, a new movie from Dreamworks animation and director Chris Sanders (How to Train Your Dragon, Disney's Lilo & Stitch), for release on September 20, 2024. The movie, adapted from Peter Brown's bestselling book of the same name, centers on a robot that finds itself shipwrecked on a deserted island and forced to figure out how to "survive" there. Along the way, the robot develops relationships with the animals on the island. The book has since spawned two sequels -- The Wild Robot Escapes and The Wild Robot Protects -- and won numerous prestigious awards.

September has, for years, been a friendly spot on the release calendar for animated features. This year's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie hit during that window and went on to be one of the biggest hits in the kid-movie space.

Deadline, who first reported the news, hailed it as a sign that audiences might start to see some of those "untitled franchise movie" slots on the 2024 schedule get filled.

Obviously, with the dual writers and actors strikes in 2023, Hollywood's release calendar is in shambles. Numerous 2023 and 2024 movies have been pushed back to 2024 and 2025, and there has already been some speculation that some of the earlier spots might be taken up by animation, where the actors generally spend less time actually performing.

Back in October, DreamWorks Animation laid off roughly 70 employees, just weeks ahead of the release of the premiere for Trolls Band Together. That movie was just released on digital, having earned just under $185 million globally so far (it's still in theaters). The studio's previous movie, Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken, was disappointing earlier this year with under $50 million in receipts against a reported $70 million budget. 

The studio also recently released Fright Krewe, an animated series created by created by Eli Roth and James Frey, on Hulu. Besides The Wild Robot, Dreamworks Animation's 2024 theatrical releases include Orion and the Dark (based on the novel by Emma Yarlett) and Kung Fu Panda 4, which will bring franchise star Jack Black back to the franchise for the first time in years.