The Oscar-winning Big Hero 6 director reportedly left Skydance Animation after about two and a half years and is already working on a secret new project at Walt Disney Animation Studios.
Don Hall, the director who gave the world Baymax, has gone home. TheWrap reported on Thursday, Nov. 5, that Hall left Skydance Animation and returned to Walt Disney Animation Studios.
He’s already working on an unannounced project for his old studio, “according to several people with knowledge of the situation,” TheWrap’s Drew Taylor wrote. Disney hasn’t announced anything about the move. TheWrap didn’t say what the project is or what Hall’s title will be.
So, yeah, nobody knows what he’s making. The guy has a pretty good track record, though.
Who is Don Hall at Disney Animation?
Hall has been a Disney animation lifer for most of his career. He started at the studio in the late 1990s as a story artist, per TheWrap, and worked his way up to the director’s chair.
His directing credits at the studio:
Winnie the Pooh (2011)
Big Hero 6 (2014), which won the Oscar for best animated feature
Moana (2016), as a co-director
Raya and the Last Dragon (2021), which earned an Oscar nomination
Strange World (2022)
He also co-wrote Meet the Robinsons (2007) and was an executive producer on Wish (2023). His story work goes back to The Emperor’s New Groove (2000) and The Princess and the Frog (2009).
Big Hero 6 is the big one. The film made about $658 million worldwide, per Box Office Mojo, and it turned a huggable inflatable robot into one of Disney’s most popular characters. Here’s the official trailer from Walt Disney Animation Studios on YouTube:
Why did Don Hall leave Disney for Skydance?
Nobody ever really said. TheWrap broke the news in June 2024 that Hall was leaving Disney for Skydance Animation. The plan was for him to “create, develop and produce an original animated feature for Skydance.” No reason for the exit was made public, and no project details came out.
That original movie never got made, according to WDW News Today.
WDWNT also reported that Hall did some work on Brad Bird’s Ray Gunn while he was there, though TheWrap’s report doesn’t mention it. Ray Gunn is scheduled to hit Netflix on Dec. 18.
So Hall spent about two and a half years away. As far as anyone has reported, nothing he started at Skydance made it to screens under his name. That’s a long time to be gone from the place that handed you an Oscar.
What’s going on at Skydance Animation?
Hall’s return was a small exclusive tucked inside a much bigger TheWrap story about Skydance’s animation business. Skydance now owns three animation studios: Paramount Animation, Skydance Animation and Warner Bros. Pictures Animation.
TheWrap reported that Holly Edwards is president of Skydance Animation. Its first theatrical release is set to be John Lasseter’s Cosmic Motors, through Paramount next year.
Yes, that John Lasseter. He ran Disney and Pixar animation until he left in 2018. So the two studios have now traded a few big names back and forth, which is a sentence nobody would’ve predicted 10 years ago.
What could Don Hall make next at Disney?
That’s the fun part, because nobody has a clue. TheWrap only says “unannounced project.” There’s no reliable report of a Big Hero 6 sequel in the works, so don’t get your hopes up over a rumor you saw on social media.
What we do know is what Disney Animation already has on deck. The studio’s next original movie, Hexed, is set for Thanksgiving week 2026. Frozen 3 is due in 2027.
Hall would also be working under Jared Bush, who was named Walt Disney Animation Studios’ chief creative officer in September 2024. Bush and Hall go back. Both worked on Moana, and Bush co-wrote and co-directed Zootopia and Encanto.
Does Big Hero 6 still matter to Disney fans?
Oh, absolutely. Baymax never really left. The robot got his own Disney+ series, Baymax!, in 2022.
He still pops up at Disney parks, too, including San Fransokyo Square at Disney California Adventure.
Big Hero 6: The Series also ran for three seasons on Disney Channel and Disney XD.
A director coming home doesn’t mean any of that is getting a revival. Hall’s credits are all over the map, from Pooh Bear to a fantasy dragon quest to a sci-fi adventure. It could be anything.
Still, it’s nice to see one of the people who built modern Disney Animation back in the building. We’ll update you when Disney says what he’s working on.
Article compiled and written by Kambrea Pratt (editor-in-chief), Derek Gibbs (beat editor) and the Pirates & Princesses newsroom. Pirates & Princesses is part of WebReef Media.
Pirates and Princesses is your destination for Disney news, theme park updates, and the pop culture you love. From Disney cruises and travel tips to Disney fashion, food, collectibles, and movie news, PNP covers it all. Visit us at piratesandprincesses.net for daily coverage. Follow PNP on Facebook and Instagram, and listen to the Pirates & Princesses podcast on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Hat Tips:
TheWrap (Nov. 5, 2026), first report of Hall’s return and Skydance Animation details
TheWrap (June 4, 2024), Hall’s move to Skydance
WDW News Today (Nov. 5, 2026), Skydance film and Ray Gunn details
Laughing Place (Nov. 5, 2026), follow-up coverage
What’s on Netflix, Ray Gunn release date
Box Office Mojo, Big Hero 6 worldwide gross
Walt Disney Animation Studios, Big Hero 6 trailer
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