'Disenchanted' (Disney's Official 'Enchanted' Sequel) Gathers Speed with New Director

Enchanted 2 has been on the "going to do this someday" slate for Disney for quite some time, but now the project is heating up and Disney reportedly has plans to start shooting in Summer 2017. If you count the months, you'll realize that really isn't very long to do the final polish on the script and get all the pre-production complete and camera ready.
From THR:

Adam Shankman, the helmer behind the musical Hairspray, is in negotiations to directDisenchanted, the follow-up to Disney’s musically inclined 2007 fantasy Enchanted that starred Amy Adams. 

Adams is expected to return for the sequel. 

Sources say Disenchanted is set 10 years after the first movie, with Giselle finding herself questioning her happily-ever-after life and accidentally triggering events that make everyone's lives turn upside down in both the real world and in the animated kingdom of Andalasia. 

Shankman's resume seems ideal for a sequel along the same lines as the original - a comedic musical fantasy. He not only did Hairspray, but also Rock of Ages, episodes of Glee and the romance films A Walk to Remember, The Wedding Planner and the family films Bedtime Stories and The Pacifier.

There's a good chance this movie will be filling one of those slots of "Untitled Live Action Fairy Tale."

Fitting that it will be around the time of the 10th anniversary... 10 years after the first movie, just when the story is to be set.

King of the Elves Canceled, Snow Queen Canceled, Rapunzel Getting A Name Change - What's Happening at Disney?

Looks like Disney Feature Animation is having second thoughts about a lot of things right now. Here's a summary:

"King of the Elves", a CG feature that's been on the Disney Animation projects' site for a while, quietly disappeared at the end of last year. (See HERE for a discussion on KotE - there's also discussion on the "Snow Queen" thread linked to below.)

Rumors of "Snow Queen" getting the axe (again) surfaced on February 3rd and seem to be confirmed now (see this enormous forum discussion - lots pages/entries - following the announcement of SQ getting greenlit, then cut HERE, as well as the TAG blog HERE, though I can't find the reference in a quick search.) This is despite a very recent public confirmation in early December 2009 by Disney Producer Peter del Vecho that "Snow Queen" was to be the next hand-drawn feature after the Pooh movie (see my post HERE).

And, also surfacing on February 3rd, it appears "Rapunzel" may be about to have (another) name change, though it should be noted, insiders are quick to say "Rapunzel" has always been a working title. See above for the initial change. (See HERE for the article.)

No official sword from the Mouse House on any of these yet but we're unlikely to hear anything official about the cancellations. Regarding the name change we should know in the next few months.

You, like many others, may be asking why? (Or: "WHY?!") Because there's no official, announcement reasons are vague and can only be considered rumors at this stage (even when information seems to be coming from the inside).King of the Elves disappeared very quietly and as not much information was released about the project in the first place there doesn't seem to be much discussion on the subject.

Snow Queen, on the other hand, has been getting a lot of attention by Disney watchers. From what I'm reading, many people picked up Hans Christian Andersen's story to read for the first time when Disney announced it was the next 2D project less than two months ago. Skepticism turned to excitement in the potential of the story, especially for animation, so the main rumor that Disney couldn't settle on a story approach have left people with their jaws dropped in shock. (Stay tuned for some glimpses at past attempts in the next few posts.)

The "Rapunzel" name change seems to be a reaction to 'too many girly pictures' and an attempt to attract more boys to the film/Disney product. Initially titled "Rapunzel Unbraided" then changed to just "Rapunzel" the proposed names take a different approach. The current possibilities are: "The Thief and the Tower", "The Hidden Tower" or perhaps even "Tangle" or "The Switch", though the last name may something else altogether.
There seems to be concern about Disney only being about fairy tales (again) and that there are already too many 'Princess pictures' in a row. The other factor, especially in SQ's cancellation, seems to be how "Princess and the Frog" 'underperformed' at the box office (read, it wasn't a blockbuster like "Avatar", though the current earnings would be considered an outstanding success by most film companies).

So what's next?

The answer to that is barely anything. "Rapunzel" will still be released and after that is a "Winnie the Pooh" feature. "Ramayana" has been bandied about for a while as a possible project and I read that it's mentioned in the introduction of the book "The Art of the Princess and the Frog", something I can't confirm as I haven't read the book yet myself. After that, nothing is confirmed or even rumored anymore. "The Ballad of Nessie" still remains on the shorts project list but this means not only are no more fairy tales planned and no more 2D but that a whole lot of people just lost their jobs. If Enchanted 2 wants animators (see my post earlier in the week HERE) there are a LOT to choose from this week!

Ramayana Concept Art
by Hans Bacher

Regarding the future of animated fairy tale films, not just by Disney, the response to "Rapunzel" will be telling but possibly not as much as when Pixar release their first fairy tale "The Bear and the Bow" (see my post on the exciting sounding movie HERE), which has a very different approach (ie. not a musical princess film).

If I find out any updates you can be certain I will post them.

Sequel to Disney's Enchanted In The Works

The big news yesterday, courtesy of Variety, was that Disney has finally* greenlit a sequel to the animation/live action combo hit "Enchanted" AND that they'd like it to hit theaters as early as next year. (Can I get a yikes from anyone who's worked in Production?)

Choreographer-turned-director Anne Fletcher is confirmed as attached to the project (she's been busy with successful films such as "27 Dresses", "Step Up" and "The Proposal") with the writer, Jessie Nelson, already reportedly working on penning the next chapter in Giselle's life as wife and mother (Giselle was the animated heroine who was banished from Andalasia to present-day New York and became real, played by Amy Adams).
The plan is to bring back the entire cast for the sequel, though it seems the challenge will be working around Amy Adams (who is popularly considered to be the crucial cast member in making the sequel work) as she's getting ready to have her first baby. To get the film into theaters next year they'll need to begin filming as soon as possible this year. No word on whether there will be any animation, though I can't imagine they could include very much, if any, on this current schedule (though there are plenty of out-of-work animators to choose from right now if they needed to assemble a crew - hint, hint Disney!).
* I say 'finally' because it was a huge box office/financial success in 2007 so a sequel has been expected ever since.