Wish: Release date, trailer, cast, plot & more

Kayla Harrington
Ariana DeBose voices Asha in the Disney film Wish

Here’s all we know about Disney’s upcoming animated feature Wish from its release date, trailer, cast, plot details, and more.

Have you ever wished upon a shooting star? Did you ever wonder where the origin of this tradition came from? Was it just a fairytale or a magical force we cannot see? Well, Disney’s new animated movie Wish is here to answer those questions.

Announced at the 2022 D23 Expo Presentation, Wish is a culmination of the theme Disney has stood by for the past 100 years: wishes coming true. Now, it seems like their century-long arc has finally taken shape.

So, we’re here to grant your wish to know everything about Disney’s latest film, from its release date, trailer, cast, and more.

Wish release date: When is it out?

Wish is slated to hit theaters on November 22nd, 2023. However, this date could be pushed back due to Hollywood strikes.

In January 2021, it was announced that Jennifer Lee, one of the brilliant minds behind Frozen and Frozen II, was writing an original screenplay for Disney Animation Studios. Then, a little over a year later, it was revealed that Lee would be teaming up with Frozen co-director Chris Buck to work on this film. Buck is known for also helping to co-director other Disney movies such as Tarzan and Frozen II.

Wish’s release date could be a real treat for moviegoers as it may premiere the day before Thanksgiving, making it the perfect film to see with the whole family.

However, these plans have all been thrown in the dark with the recent WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, and Disney is now considering pushing Wish back, as reported by Bloomberg.

Is there a Wish trailer?

The first teaser trailer for Wish debuted yesterday at CinemaCon. Check it out below:

On August 22, Disney unveiled another teaser for Wish ahead of its release date. Watch below:

A third trailer for Wish was released on September 27, just under two months before the film’s release.

Inspired by Disney’s 100th year anniversary in animation, the trailers for Wish showcase that the film is a mixture of the company’s iconic musical genre and its new fantasy and adventure genre. The animation for the movie also blends the studio’s original watercolor art style with computer-generated 3D animation, which is what they use now to make their modern movies.

The studio also released a poster for the film that captures the theme of making wishes as the title is made up of shooting stars.

Wish cast: Who’s in it?

The cast of Wish is extremely minimal at this time but still packs a heavy punch. Check out the list below:

  • Ariana DeBose as Asha
  • Chris Pine as as King Magnifico
  • Alan Tudyk as Valentino

Both DeBose and Tudyk were announced as the leading roles in this movie at the 2022 D23 Expo Presentation. DeBose is a Broadway performer turned actress as she appeared in the play Hamilton before being cast in the 2021 reboot of West Side Story. She also sings the song that plays in the trailer titled ‘The Wish.’

According to Variety, Wish could have a Frozen-like song on their hand with DeBose’s title track as the person who wrote the original music for the film is Julia Michaels, who has written chart-topping songs such as Justin Bieber’s ‘Sorry’, Selena Gomez’s ‘Love You to Lose Me’, and Dua Lipa’s ‘Pretty Please’.

The casting of Pine as King Magnifico was announced on April 26 at Disney’s panel for CinemaCon. Deadline reported that Wish‘s executive producer Jennifer Lee explained that Pine was chosen because “as the most powerful person in the kingdom, King Magnifico needed to be played by someone who could give all the charm, cleverness and charisma to this magnanimous character and Chris is beautifully bringing all of that and then some.”

King Magnifico has been touted as one of the most formidable villains in modern Disney history. In an interview on the Walt Disney Company website, Buck describes the king as “[someone] who promises to grant their deepest desires – someday. Only he can decide which wishes will come true and when.”

Wish plot: What is it about?

Set in the magical kingdom of Rosas, King Magnifico rules over a world where he claims that all wishes can come true if they are given to him. The story itself centers around Asha, a 17-year-old girl who’s shown to be an optimist who cares deeply about her community. When she tries to wish on a star in a moment of need, her wish is answered by a magical being called Star.

The pair, along with Asha’s pet goat, Valentino, who was granted the power to speak English by Star, must then face off with King Magnifico in order to save Asha’s community.

That’s everywhere we know so far about Wish, but be sure to check back here for updates as they roll out. In the meantime, check out our other upcoming TV and movie hubs below:

Invincible Season 2 | Stranger Things Season 5 | Harry Potter TV show | House of the Dragon Season 2 | 

About The Author

Kayla is a TV and Movies Writer at Dexerto. She's huge fan of Marvel (especially if Wanda Maximoff is involved), shows that make you laugh then cry, and any cooking show found on the Food Network. Before Dexerto, she wrote for Mashable, BuzzFeed, and The Mary Sue. You can contact her at kayla.harrington@dexerto.com