Zootopia Is Kojima’s Favorite Disney Movie — Now He’s in the Sequel

Image: Disney

Viewers watching Zootopia 2 in Japan—or those streaming the Japanese dub—may notice a surprising cameo: famed game auteur Hideo Kojima provides the voice for Paul Moledebrandt, a curmudgeonly mole who leads the Zootopia Police Department’s IT unit.

In the English-language release, the role is performed by Josh Gad, the American actor, comedian and singer best known for voicing Olaf in Disney’s Frozen franchise. According to Famitsu, director Jared Bush personally invited Kojima to take the Japanese part, and Kojima accepted eagerly—partly because he’s a devoted fan of the original Zootopia.

Kojima told reporters (via a machine-translated interview reported by VGC) that while he’s made cameos before in live-action films and games, this was his first time dubbing a full-length animated feature. He said he felt honored to be asked, especially since the invitation came directly from Bush.

He described the recording session as a valuable learning experience. With the animation already completed, the sessions flowed smoothly, and performing rather than directing gave him fresh appreciation for the minutiae voice actors attend to—small actions and sound control that support a scene’s realism.

Kojima also praised the 2016 original (directed by Byron Howard, Rich Moore and Jared Bush), recalling that he watched it in theaters with one of his children. He praised its balance of social commentary and broad-hearted humor, saying it appealed to both adults and kids and left audiences feeling uplifted.

After participating in the dubbing sessions, Kojima expressed confidence in the follow-up: he believes the sequel will equal or surpass the original in quality.

Zootopia 2 opened in the United States on November 26, 2025, and is slated to arrive in Japanese cinemas on December 5, 2025. The sequel is already setting new box-office marks internationally. For more on its commercial performance, see Polygon’s coverage here.

Source: Polygon