10 Years.
10 years ago, to the minute, I hit “post” on the very first article on this website.
Wow.
I don’t really have words to express how momentous this is. How much life has changed in a decade. How much has remained the same.
For the first year of its release, Zootopia was at the top of its game. It grossed over a billion in the box office, proved itself to have incredible legs, and raking in every award it was nominated for (except the BAFTA). Even a year later, the fandom was still cruising, ranking high in the tumblr fandometrics. On our first anniversary, I had the absolutely life-changing opportunity to visit the Disney Animation Studio and deliver the results of the First Ultimate Thank-You Card Project to Byron Howard and Jared Bush in person. It still ranks as the greatest day of my life thus far.
In late 2017, we had our first evergreen meme break out into the wider internet, and although it has been discussed ad nauseum, it was a relevant milestone. To this day it’s still one of the most widely searched pages on ZNN, and we did our best to make it a de facto entry point to the works the community has made. And we got some Arby’s out of it, so it’s not a total loss.
Because there have been so many amazing things this community has created. I could list them, but… well, it’d take me roughly 10 years! We have hundreds of thousands of pieces of fanart, and thousands of fanfics. We have comics, videos, songs, animations, even a few games. Where most fandoms fizzle and die out entirely within a few years after release without new content, Zootopia didn’t. It wasn’t a roaring blaze like it was before, but it was a constantly warm and glowing fire all the same. It survived where others don’t.
It persisted like this for many years. We had a little fuel added to the fire in 2022, when the shorts of Zootopia+ released on streaming. That introduced us to a few new characters in the world we love so much, such as Molly Hopps, Mr. Big’s Grandmama, and Sam the Otter. And while that sated us for a bit, and allowed us to roast some metaphorical marshmallows, we still craved a sequel.
In 2023, the Zootopia Land in Disneyland Shanghai opened its gates, and quickly became one of the largest attractions in the park. It recreated the city we love beautifully, with in-universe brands, character cameos, animatronics, a ride, themed restaurants… the works!
Then last year, after nearly a decade, we finally got it. A true Sequel. Zootopia 2.
I had the opportunity to attend the Annecy Film Festival and interview Jared Bush directly, where we got a short preview of the film. But nothing could have prepared us for the full release.
Zootopia 2 exceeded every expectation we had. It performed nearly twice as well as the original’s already massive success in the box office, becoming the 2nd highest grossing animated film of all time! It earned the BAFTA that Zootopia 1 missed, and while it didn’t sweep the awards shows quite like the original, it was an undeniable hit. It expanded the world without detracting from it, it introduced us to new species and new districts. But best of all, our favorite duo, Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde, deepened their relationship further than they had before.
With the teaser in the post-credits scene, we know that we aren’t done exploring the mammal metropolis of Zootopia. Nick and Judy will return. And while there were points where the fire of the fandom got precariously low in the past, I can say with certainty that it will never die. And ZNN will be here for as long as there is a community to share the warmth with.
We’re just getting started, people. We have plans to push ZNN forward like never before. We will need your help and support to do so, but I believe this community can make incredible things happen.
Thank you all so much for your continued support and care over the past 10 years. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again- we wouldn’t be here without you.
Special thanks to the members of the ZNN staff who keep things running in the background.
To our Treasure Hunters, who search out and share the amazing art you all make.
Merc_Marten, Christopher Guará, Fricsi, and Vol Foxxo.
To our Pre-Readers, who read every single fanfic submitted to us and ensure we are featuring high-quality works.
O.H. Shoot, Berserker88, Smilingdolphins, Drewit, UnkaAJ, Kiliguana, and ProfessorBonkBoy
To our Reporters, who keep us informed and up-to-date on the latest news.
Pent, Civet, Kora, Scruffy, and Dangeresque
To our Social Butterflies, who spread the word of the community’s achievements far and wide.
Fonz, Nate, Nekomimiranger, and Sapperjoe
To our Artful Dodgers, who create beautiful pieces and unique works like the one at the top of this article.
Quirky, Catoberrycarrots, Anthony_Disney_Weasel, TheRealBlu, Feverwildehopps, and Sendrax
To our Multimedia Wizards, who put our projects and podcasts together.
AJ, Pinkstar, and Skul
To our Special Eyes, who handle odd jobs nobody else can.
Translation Bear, Atocha, Vulp (of Zootopia Archive), and Audrina
To the previous leaders who kept ZNN functioning in spite of me, and have moved on.
Moonwolf, Shadow9692, DarkflameWolf, and Lucario389
And finally, to our Fearless Leaders, who keep the lights on and the show in motion.
Andy Lagopus, Agentexeider, Jimm9v, and Dusty0071.
I’m Andy Lagopus. This is ZNN. And we can’t wait to see what the next decade has in store.
Remember, as always…
TRY EVERYTHING!
In memory of Alps Sarsis, who passed too soon, but whose work continues to inspire others. Fly high, and enjoy watching us from above.
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