Hoppers Movie Mixes Animal Advocacy With Inventive Set Pieces
The new hoppers movie frames a teenager’s environmental crusade as a comic, animal-driven uprising that leans on memorable characters and elaborate set pieces to land its message. That blend of heart and spectacle matters because the film avoids standard family-film reversals and instead gives its animals and humans clear motivations from the start.
Hoppers Movie finds its own footing
Director Daniel Chong and screenwriter Jesse Andrews shape a story that introduces Mabel Tanaka first as a young student, voiced by Lila Liu, who is so determined to save turtles, guinea pigs and snakes from her grammar school that she frequently erupts in rage. The film then follows teen Mabel, voiced by Piper Curda, into direct conflict with Mayor Jerry, voiced by Jon Hamm, who wants to build a mostly pointless highway on top of the pond where Mabel and her Grandma, voiced by Karen Huie, watch beavers and other animals live.
A spirited heroine and an animal-led campaign
The plot turns when Mabel discovers college professor Dr. Sam, voiced by Kathy Najimy, has developed technology that allows consciousness transfer into robotic animals. Mabel seizes that technology to enlist animals to protect their pond, and her advocacy inspires the animal kingdoms to cooperate to “squish” Jerry for good. Bobby Moynihan’s beaver George acts as a moderating force, described as the "king of the mammals, " telling Mabel that "people places and animal places are all just places" and urging unity.
Characters across the animal world receive distinct design and personality: a kind-hearted shark voiced by Vanessa Bayer, a bratty caterpillar voiced by Dave Franco, and monarchs voiced by Meryl Streep and Ego Nwodim. The film avoids a common Pixar trope by not revealing a seemingly benign authority figure to be secretly evil, and it also skips the manufactured falling-out between best friends that often propels final-act drama.
A quiet grief and a pacifist core
Grandma’s death is handled quietly and implied rather than dwelled upon, steering away from the "Up"-style gut-punch. That restraint supports the movie’s larger moral: cooperation, not escalation. The screenplay gives the animals and human players clear personalities from the outset, and the film wraps its environmental plea in wit rather than melodrama. The review notes the film does not resort to a musical gag tied to High School Musical despite ownership overlap.
With Daniel Chong directing and Jesse Andrews credited for the screenplay and story—shared with Chong—the announced cast includes Piper Curda, Bobby Moynihan, Jon Hamm, Kathy Najimy, Dave Franco, Eduardo Franco and Aparna. In 2026, the film’s pacifist moral and focus on communal effort is described as feeling practical rather than theoretical.
Critics singled out the film’s set pieces and character work as the reasons Hoppers moves beyond its influences and holds emotional sway without forcing tears. The credits list Daniel Chong as director and Jesse Andrews as screenwriter, with story credit to both Chong and Andrews and a voice cast that rounds out the film’s principal players.
