Disney treated fans at D23 Expo Saturday to their first look at “Raya and the Last Dragon,” a new animated film starring Awkwafina and written by Adele Lim, co-writer of “Crazy Rich Asians.”
Onstage at the expo in Anaheim, California, Awkwafuna, co-star Cassie Steele (“Degrassi: The Next Generation”), producer Osnat Shurer and Lim, explained that the film is inspired by Hong Kong action films with a setting inspired by Southeast Asia.
Set in Kumandra, a fantasy world with five lands and a sea shaped like a dragon, the film follows Raya (Steele), a lone warrior on a quest to find the last dragon, whom she believes can save Kumandra from a so-far unrevealed evil force. Awkwafina, meanwhile, plays Sisu, the last dragon, who has become trapped in a human body and needs Raya’s help to find the power to return to her dragon form.
The film is still in development, so there wasn’t much to bring to Anaheim, but Disney did show off some concept art, which it later shared on Twitter. Check it out below:
Just Announced: Disney’s Raya and the Last Dragon, starring @cassandrasteele (Raya) and @Awkwafina (Sisu, the Last Dragon). Check out all-new concept art, and see the film in theaters November 2020. #D23Expo pic.twitter.com/V40bv64IIp
— Walt Disney Studios (@DisneyStudios) August 24, 2019
Directed by Paul Briggs and Dean Wellins, “Raya and the Last Dragon” is set for release in November 2020.