The first “Wreck-It Ralph” film was something of a nice surprise from Disney— with an all-star cast and a razor-sharp script, the video game equivalent to “Toy Story” managed to pack in enough heart, humor, and video game references to become a bona fide hit both critically and commercially. Now, the House of Mouse is looking to replicate that success with the sequel, the laboriously-titled “Ralph Breaks The Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2,” which sees Ralph, voiced by John C. Reilly, and Vanellope, played by Sarah Silverman, move past the world of the arcade and into the World Wide Web.
In addition to references to Twitter, Facebook, Amazon, Google, and Spotify, earlier trailers for the film have shown off how much Disney is utilizing the Internet of the film to promote their own intellectual properties. These include “Star Wars,” the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the Disney princess line-up, with recent additions Moana, Elsa, and Merida appearing alongside Snow White, Cinderella, Belle, et al. Despite the meta-commentary about the Disney brand— in particular, how the princesses always seem to encounter the same terrible circumstances and marginalization— the presence of all these brands in a single movie screams total corporate synergy. And it’s an interesting mix of clever and entirely cynical, though kids will hardly notice the latter.
A new look at the film shows off Gal Gadot’s Shank, a tough-as-nails character that appears to be equally inspired by online gaming personas as her character in the “Fast and Furious” franchise. This new footage, featuring the characters going into the online game “Slaughter Race,” is the first to indicate that the film may be as faithful to video game culture as the first movie, a nice change of pace. It also features new footage of the princesses, including Merida (voiced again by Kelly MacDonald), the princess from the “other studio,” as Anna notes. Again, corporate synergy at large.
“Ralph Breaks The Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2” arrives in theaters on November 21, 2018.