Poll: Which would you rather see: another movie, or a Zootopia TV show?

I am prepared for this debate.  Let’s grab some popcorn.
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Oh boy, I’m opening a can of worms here, aren’t I?


The petition for a Zootopia TV show, from last weekend, was without doubt one of the most-discussed things we’ve posted on this site.  For good reason.  There’s a lot of debate over if it would be better to see another Zootopia Movie, or if a TV Show would be the better route for Disney to take.

There are valid arguments on both sides.  I think that a TV show could work considering how well-written a lot of recent Mystery / Crime Drama TV shows have been recently.  Not to mention how much I love the art style of Zootopia: Crime Files.  I would be totally cool with a show based around Nick and Judy working for the ZPD, drawn in that sort of style.

On the other hand, the movie was polished to perfection.  The 3D animation was brilliant, the voice acting was phenomenal, and the writing was just spot-on.  A movie would likely be able to deliver all of that again, and possibly even better.

So, which side are you on?  Are you Team TV?  Or Team Movie?  Vote over in the sidebar!

See marvel, you’re not the only one that make silly divisions in your own fandom!  (totally kidding.  But I am genuinely curious to see what you guys have to say about this?)

53 Comments

  1. I definitely think movie, and its pretty much due to the fanfiction. A series would be great as you'd see so much of the universe, more than we did in the film. But with so man amazing fanfictions, it may be lackluster in comparison for a lot of people.

  2. I like the idea of a TV series, not only for exploring the Zooniverse, but to let them do spoofs of classic cop shows.

    "This is the city. Zootopia. I live here. I'm a bunny cop."

  3. I'd say a movie, but I also would not like to see any sequel, Zootopia has been such an amazing success, they just can't do a movie as good as the first one and I think they will not, and a TV show wouldn't be interesting if it's just resolving cases and sometimes talking about stereotypes for kidos. I signed the petition for the goods but it's just hopeless :/

  4. Would love a movie, yet it would probably go against all the fics I've wrote/read… ugg the stresses of fandom… and just because it would be a tv show doesn't mean it would be lacking animation. Currently, Elena of Avalor, and Descendants: Wicked World are two examples of a CGI animated TV series' showing on Disney channel. However, I am only familiar with their animation style, since I basically just googled them. If you do google them, I'm sure you would agree with me that if disney made a Zootopia series with this type of CGI, it would appease fans of all ages. That being said, Disney has PURPOSELY avoided drawing news attention to their work on anything Zootopia related. I'm speculating they ALREADY HAVE begun production on one of these two options, and are going to pull a surprise release. A TV series would be nice, but slap my vote down for a SEQUEL!!! Or even better: Similar to how the How To Train Your Dragon franchise released it's sequel, release a TV series that catches people up on any character development, then release the movie at the series end. I'd personally love this, but at this point I'll take what I can get.

  5. I would PREFER a TV show, but I'd be just as happy with a movie. With a show, I just feel they could do so much more, over a longer period of time, than they could with a single sequel. On the other hand, if anyone can make a superior sequel, it's Disney – and superior to the original is really saying something.

    That being said, my vote goes to TV show. Just barely. I'm happy with either.

  6. Ultimately, I'd prefer both. But if I had to choose for Disney to immediately start working on only one thing, I'd choose television series. I'd be in a constant state of worry over the quality, but if the storytelling is even half as good as the movie's, it would be one of the greatest shows on television.

  7. Zootopia is set in a marvelous world, and I don't think there have been any police dramas for kiddies in a very long time. There's plenty of material to mine for a 13-episodes-per-year series, and we wouldn't have to wait until 2019 or whatever for the movie. All we'd need is heartfelt animation and good writing.

  8. I choose TV show. I don't mind another movie, but a TV show could take in an a newer direction. I want to see more stories come out, I want to see how the environments effect crimes that happen, I want to see new characters that have quality character traits, but most of all, I believe that it can be a great series, even more better than the Lilo and Stitch series.

  9. i would /strongly/ prefer a movie. and the reason i'd strongly prefer a movie is due – in large part – to crime files. it just felt like disney flung some lazy money in a direction and got a hidden object game made and that seems like a bad direction for them to go in, to me.

    a movie would have /way/ more quality control and a /far/ tighter story [and far better visuals] – basically, they wouldn't be winging it. that worries me about a lot of this spin-off material

    but i'd welcome whatever they did.

  10. I'd rather go with a new movie (provided that it was of the same quality as the movie that we've got). A TV show, by its nature (much compressed schedules) cannot hope to be either as well drawn or as well scripted.

    — Nick Shaefer

    • meh, I'm of the same opinion; the last movie to series we got was How to Train your Dragons. not that it was a bad one but it had its pitfalls. I wonder if the exces at Disney would see those as road blocks rather than investment opportunities on technology. as someone with practice on Fur Rendering I can say that its not cheap to do en mass. if they had to cheat it'd be pretty obvious unless they did some serious work arounds when artifacts showed up…

  11. I'm honestly torn on this one because a TV show and a movie are two different things. as someone who has experience with things related to production (though minor) I can say that any episodic TV show can be canceled at any moment and its worse for animated programs because they can't spontaneously produce the show ender at drop of the hat like a set production can. then again, if a movie gets canceled no one gets to see it unless someone has access to the early footage and either stitches together the parts or has access to a production cut (very rare that any of those are in any one place these days without mammoth hard drives and DRM)

    but if I banked on one I'd at least say a single series TV show produced in the japanese method (26 eppisodes) would be fun to watch, itd at least have a resolution by the end unless it was an intentional cliff-hanger. while Disney doesn't like to do that sort of thing they have been conned into doing good series like Gravity Falls. I could imagine that a Zootopia series would be more maturely centured with a lot of adolecent jokes; admit it, you like the toilet humor in Rick and Morty and you liked the sight gags in Gravity falls, you could stand a Micky Mouse Club rendition of Zootopia if it meant we had more of the duo doing their opposite subtract routine. at least two episodes should test them and they shouldn't be close together so its a tension in the series. Like the comic of Nick eating chicken that one time or Judy holding a grudge against Gidian that Nick plays around even though its a non-issue. discovery, adaptation stage-play and resolution. it gives enough material to work with even for just one season.

  12. Could we have both? Kung Fu Panda got three movies and a decent TV series.

    If I had to choose, I'd say movie, with Byron Howard and Rich Moore at the helm again. But I'd rather have both, if I could! 😀

    • and that was with a Limited Cast. Zootopia could easily generate a few characters and five them their own series within the ZPD Precinct 1. Could even have Nick and Judy in the bullpen every few episodes… Or leave Precinct 1 Street and make a Precinct 1 crime, missing persons, or any number of other police branches in the station.

  13. I've said this before, but the Zootopia world has an edge over other Disney films in that its world presents itself in a way that is open to many different kinds of expansion. I would consider another movie a primary form of that so I voted movie, but in reality a TV series would also be a secondary option for sure.

  14. I'd prefer a TV series. If Disney can nail many of their original shows successfully, I think they can do the same with the characters of Zootopia. Maybe it can be a Netflix series. DreamWorks did that with their franchise and it's a hit! So I can see Disney doing the same thing. One thing is for sure. I know that no matter if it's a movie or a series, I'll be begging for more Zootopia.
    P.S. Today, Zootopia hits Netflix today. Be prepared to hit the replay button on this movie. I know I will!

  15. I prefer a TV series, A sequel would be amazing! But a TV series can explore the world of Zootopia alot more than a sequel. because the movie only showed a portion of this world. But a TV series can show more of the world throughout seasons. But that doesn't mean I still want a sequel, i'm all up for a sequel. Also if you guys didn't know, i'm the creator of the petition and i'm new to the ZNN community. And thank you guys for the support for the petition! 🙂 Lots of love to everyone!

  16. The reason a TV series would work because it could bring alot of unused ideas and concepts that were created for the film and could be used for the series. If they can get the same talented people and more, This show can create huge potential for the franchise. Possibly a higher chance for a sequel, I've been a huge Disney fan for years and from what Disney has shown us with their TV shows like Gravity Falls and there movies throughout the years. A Zootopia TV series would be perfect with clever humor, outstanding storytelling, amazing characters, spectacular locations and a higher chance for a sequel. The Zootopia franchise has a bright future!

  17. Movie for sure. TV serious seems nice, and zootopia is sure rich world to explore (+ countless potential for spin offs, zistopia, that spy one ect.), but it would have to be done properly, which i believe would be really hard. 2 D prefered for sure, as you just cant mass produce 3 D of Zootopia quality.

  18. I personally think that both options are good. If, for the show, we could get the same voice actors as the movie, it would be a good filler. And we could have the TV series go for a season or two while the second movie is being made. We could maybe even incorporate the tv show into the movie, or something like that.

  19. Zootopia is a greaaat movie, i really expecting disney to make a sequel of zootopia so we can see what will happen later that comes to their mind at making the sequel.

  20. Zootopia is a big, rich universe to explore. While I'd be happy to see a sequel or three, I think a TV series can make a lot of room for new stories, just like Disney did for The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Tarzan, and Hercules.

  21. Zootopia is a big, rich universe to explore. While I'd be happy to see a sequel or three, I think a TV series can make a lot of room for new stories, just like Disney did for The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Tarzan, and Hercules.

  22. I could easily see both stemming from the auspicious beginnings. Keep the movies progressing the relationship between Nick and Judy and their continuing good works as beat cops, and eventually detectives. The TV show could encompass Zootopia, itself, as 'The Furred City' (Some of you ancient historians may remember the old cop drama 'The Naked City'). Other members of the ZPD could take the spotlight with it as a rotating ensemble show, with Nick and Judy cameos from time to time. Gary and Larry (the two wolf guards that get caught up in Judy's howl) could follow Nick's lead and join the ZPD Academy as a first season, with howlarious results. (I hereby offer no apologies for that pun.)

  23. Certainly a TV show no doubt, this will give the option of adding some key background characters in Zootopia, to some episodes. I think there were some excellent characters but didn't get a lot of time to contribute to the original movie.

  24. That's a tough one, I love the depth we can get in a TV series, however I'm afraid it would be doomed to watered down humor, simpler graphics and bland plots common to cartoon series. That scares me. So, if it was done correctly, and the quality was on par with the movie, I'd say uh yeeeeeah, the more the better. But I just don't think it would be, so I'm gonna have to say keep it on the big screen.

  25. Why not both? TV show focused on a Different Team all together in an "SVU" or "Shield" style of show, while the movie follows Judy and the group. The TV series could easily pull off their own stuff with little to no interaction for the main movie cast.

    • Excellent idea. The series could focus on lesser known characters with Nick and Judy popping in occasionally in cameos and references, while the movie continues to focus on them. Perfect!

  26. I definitely want both. If Dreamworks can do it, Disney can too. It would be awesome to have a crime series were we follow Judy and Nick. In my opinion it should be animated in 2D as I'm a sucker for 2D.

    If I really have to choose between the two, I would want a movie sequel more, but with the requirement that it has at least the same budget as the first movie. I don't want the same type of cheap sequels that Disney put out in the beginning of the 2000, like Mulan 2, Pocahontas 2 and the list goes on. And of course it has to be the same directors again and as much as possible the same animation crew.

  27. Quite frankly, I'd say a movie is a better approach to the world, however, that being said, a TV show would give its universe a better chance for the audience to see the sights more or less. As nice as having both would be–as some would suggest–a movie would be more practical really. But as said before, both could work, but that's up for debate really.

  28. I thinking, why not do like dreamworks and make a 2. movie and a tv show that shows what happened between movie 1 and 2 + more of the life of Judy and Nick in Zootopia?? I think it would be great.. Also to see places we havn't seen in the first movie and might not see if they make movie number 2..

  29. Hoo, boy. I say both, and here's my reason. I had an idea for it some time back, and it went something like this. There would be, I think, 3 films, and inbetween 1 and 2, there would be an anime series, that sets things up for the second film….is that a dumb idea?

    • No that's absolutely not a dumb idea. I simply can't get enough Zootopia, so the more Disney can make the better. And after the 2nd movie they should continue the series until the 3rd movie. But a very important thing is that it shouldn't be a requirement to see the series before seeing the sequel movie, or a lot of people would be confused.

    • Well, obviously. The series would be more of a collection of side stories, with only the last few episodes really foreshadowing events in the second movie. For example, I had a thought of if they decided, for whatever reason, to bring Jack Savage into the second movie, his first real appearance (he may have one or two smaller appearances beforehand) would be in the last episode of the series. I also had a thought that if they, again for whatever reason, want to bring Wildehopps in, it would be hinted during the series. But both would be more little winks, rather than a necessity to learn before watching the second movie.

  30. I'd prefer a movie. A TV show has lots of potential, but all the TV shows I've seen based on movies have come across as half-hashed and mediocre adaptations more intended to keep merchandise sales flowing than to keep up the quality story of the movie they're based on. Maybe Disney could do differently with a Zootopia TV show, but I think TV shows have tended to be better when the show's producers and/or writers create the concept themselves and are passionate about it. So movie for me – I can imagine Bryan Howard or others being excited producing that moreso.

  31. Why must it be an either/or proposition?

    Have both!

    Zootopia is so rich that one can actually make a story without involving the characters of the movie, except as cameo appearances. Heck, we have seen only the story from the ZPD side. What about the story from the ZFD (Zootopia Fire Department)? Or maybe "The Bigs", as a kinda-parody of "The Sopranos"? Or maybe other precincts of the ZPD?

    Or even a series of anthologies! 3-4 episodes about the ZFD, 3-4 episodes about "The Bigs", 1-2 episodes following, let's say, Gideon Grey's rising star of a bakery, 1-2 episodes about a totally unrelated cub side-character, that somehow crosses path with Nick & Judy, and so on.

    And yeah, make the series a close-ended one. 20-26 episodes, and done. Fin. A clear end. Stop while the story is good. That's what (majority of) Japanese anime do: A clear start, a captivating story, a clear end. Don't let it ramble on continuously (a mistake MANY American TV Series do: Milk the series until the fans had it enough — then cancel without closure).

    Doesn't have to be 3D, might also be 2D if executed in good style. The (official) "Welcome to Zootopia" comic released in Brazil had shown how good Zootopia looks in 2D.

    If you think this is too difficult, consider this: One of Disney's division had been doing this EXACTLY, actually: Lucasfilm, Ltd. For their "Star Wars" franchise, at the same time they have multiple movies in the pipeline AND an animated TV Series (expected to end in Season 5 or 6) AND plans for another animated TV Series.

    Are they being directed by the same person? NO. And they DON'T have to. Each director leads their own respective project; as long as stories match and complements one another, Lucasfilm gives every director freedom. The "control" is only for salient, important plot points in the saga, overseen by "Lucasfilm Story Group".

    Well, Disney had their own version of LSG: The Disney Story Trust. And during production, the Zootopia story was even shown to Pixar.

    The Disney of Iger is different from the Disney of Eisner.

    • Blergh, how does one edit one's comment in Blogger?

      Anyways, to add to my rambling comment above: Time the series so that at the end of the series, a couple of months later Zootopia 2 comes out.

      There. A series that enriches the lore of Zootopia, but does not cheapen the movie. And a movie produced with full fanfare & budget.

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