Fine Tooning with Drew Taylor

With Drew Taylor sidelined by a nasty case of the Christmas crud, Jim Hill flies solo for this end-of-year edition of Fine Tooning. After a bit of seasonal vamping, Jim dives into animation news before kicking off the first half of a deep-dive holiday history lesson. This week’s episode sets the stage for a story that begins with a modest Disney featurette and ends up triggering one of the biggest upheavals in the history of Walt Disney Feature Animation. NEWS • Avatar: Fire & Ash dominates the global box office with a massive $345 million opening weekend. • Angel Studios’ David surprises with a strong $22 million domestic debut, outperforming several major animated releases. • Zootopia 2 continues its historic run, crossing $1.27 billion worldwide and exceeding the original film by more than $200 million. • The Academy reveals its Best Animated Short shortlist, with notable inclusions and at least one eyebrow-raising omission. • Adult Swim renews Haha, You Clowns for two additional seasons after an initially underestimated debut. FEATURE • The origins of Disney’s 1978 animated featurette The Small One and why the studio once believed it would become a perennial holiday classic. • How Charles Tazewell’s mid-20th-century holiday stories caught Disney’s attention and lingered in development for nearly 15 years. • Behind-the-scenes tensions at Walt Disney Feature Animation in the late 1970s, including the controversial decision to hand directing duties to Don Bluth. • Why this seemingly small production planted the seeds for a massive creative and personnel shakeup soon to come. HOSTS • Jim Hill - IG: @JimHillMedia | X: @JimHillMedia | Website: JimHillMedia.com • Drew Taylor - IG: @DrewTailored | X: @DrewTailored | Website: drewtaylor.work FOLLOW • Facebook: JimHillMediaNews • Instagram: JimHillMedia • TikTok: JimHillMedia SUPPORT Support the show and access bonus episodes and additional content at Patreon.com/JimHillMedia. PRODUCTION CREDITS Edited by Dave Grey Produced by Eric Hersey - Strong Minded Agency SPONSOR Unlocked Magic helps you save on Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando tickets, sometimes up to 12 percent off. Plan ahead for your 2026 Central Florida trip by picking your dates, grabbing your tickets, and letting the savings add up at UnlockedMagic.com. If you would like to sponsor a show on the Jim Hill Media Podcast Network, reach out today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Drew Taylor and Jim Hill kick off this week’s show with a genuinely wild media landscape where holiday releases, awards season, and corporate maneuvering are all colliding at once. From a brewing battle over Warner Bros. Discovery to Disney’s latest tech-flavored swing, the first half is a rapid tour through what’s breaking (and what might be breaking next). Then Jim takes the wheel solo for a longer, history-packed trip over the rainbow, tracing how animation veterans, studio deals, and a certain pair of feuding cartoon animals keep finding their way back to Oz. NEWS • Netflix and Paramount Skydance are reportedly lining up competing bids for Warner Bros. Discovery, with the situation edging into hostile takeover territory • Disney signs a three-year OpenAI licensing and investment deal, reportedly tied to short-form character content and platform experimentation • Zootopia 2 clears the $1 billion worldwide mark, adding to a renewed “WDAS is back” narrative after recent holiday stumbles • The trailer drops for Andy Serkis’ Animal Farm, with Seth Rogen voicing Napoleon and Angel Studios handling distribution • A quick remembrance of animator Tony Benedict, whose career path traced the industry’s mid-century churn from Disney to TV animation FEATURE • Why Chuck Jones left Termite Terrace, briefly detoured to Disney, then later set up shop at MGM • How Disney’s MGM licensing deal and the later Turner-Time Warner corporate shuffle complicated who “owned” what in the Oz rights maze • The surprisingly effective mash-up of MGM legacies in Tom & Jerry and the Wizard of Oz (and why it was successful enough to inspire a return trip) • A lightning round of other animated Oz side-quests, including costly misfires and international oddities HOSTS • Jim Hill - IG: @JimHillMedia | X: @JimHillMedia | Website: JimHillMedia.com • Drew Taylor - IG: @drewtailored | X: @DrewTailored | Website: drewtaylor.work FOLLOW • Facebook: JimHillMediaNews • Instagram: JimHillMedia • TikTok: JimHillMedia SUPPORT Support the show and access bonus episodes and additional content at Patreon.com/JimHillMedia. PRODUCTION CREDITS Edited by Dave Grey Produced by Eric Hersey - Strong Minded Agency SPONSOR Unlocked Magic - Get real savings on Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando tickets, sometimes up to 12% off. Unlocked Magic is run by the same team behind the DVC Rental Store and the DVC Resale Market, so you can pick your dates, grab your tickets, and go. Visit UnlockedMagic.com and let them know Drew and Jim sent you. If you would like to sponsor a show on the Jim Hill Media Podcast Network, reach out today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jim and Drew unpack one of the biggest industry shakeups in years as Netflix snaps up Warner Bros. Discovery, a deal that reshapes everything from Adult Swim to the broader animation marketplace. Then the guys follow the yellow brick road into this week’s feature, exploring the strange, stop-and-start history of Hollywood’s many attempts to revisit Oz, from Disney’s abandoned visions to Filmation’s long-delayed Journey Back to Oz. NEWS • Netflix acquires Warner Bros. Discovery for $82.7 billion and what this lightning-fast deal could mean for Paramount, cable networks, and Adult Swim. • How the sale compares to Disney’s 2017–2019 acquisition of Fox once you adjust for inflation. • Industry chatter around the merger’s approval process amid concerns from competing studios. FEATURE • A colorful tour through Hollywood’s many post-MGM attempts to return to Oz. • Disney’s near-miss projects, including the almost-produced “Rainbow Road to Oz.” • Rankin/Bass, Chuck Jones, and the surprising number of animated Oz interpretations in the 1960s. • Filmation’s turbulent decade-long journey to complete Journey Back to Oz, featuring Liza Minnelli, missing dialogue tapes, and recycled Sammy Cahn music. HOSTS • Jim Hill - IG: @JimHillMedia | X: @JimHillMedia | Website: JimHillMedia.com • Drew Taylor - IG: @drewtailored | X: @DrewTailored | Website: drewtaylor.work FOLLOW • Facebook: JimHillMediaNews • Instagram: JimHillMedia • TikTok: JimHillMedia SUPPORT Support the show and access bonus episodes and additional content at Patreon.com/JimHillMedia. PRODUCTION CREDITS Edited by Dave Grey Produced by Eric Hersey - Strong Minded Agency SPONSOR This episode is brought to you by Unlocked Magic — where you can save up to 12 percent on Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando tickets. Planning a 2026 trip? Pick your dates, grab your tickets, and let Unlocked Magic handle the rest. And don’t forget to tell them Jim and Drew sent you.UnlockedMagic.com If you would like to sponsor a show on the Jim Hill Media Podcast Network, reach out today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jim goes solo this week while Drew speeds back toward LA for an early press screening of “Avatar: Fire & Ash.” In the meantime, Jim catches us up on a very eventful week in animation news, from the monster launch of “Zootopia 2” in China to Disney Parks animatronics already slipping into B mode. He also spotlights new shorts, holiday specials, and takes a deep dive into the surprising Hollywood history behind “The Wizard of Oz.” NEWS • Zootopia 2 shatters expectations with a $156M domestic debut and a staggering $275M in China. • Shanghai Disneyland’s Zootopia Land proves to be a major factor in the sequel’s overseas success. • Early operational issues arise with the Clawhauser animatronic at Animal Kingdom’s new “Zoobetter Together” attraction. • Plymptoons launches a TikTok account and announces a December studio art sale in NYC. • Locksmith Animation debuts “Cardboard,” a touching new short drawing awards-season buzz. FEATURE • Jim traces the fascinating Hollywood history of “The Wizard of Oz,” from Disney’s thwarted attempt to acquire the rights to the abandoned “Rainbow Road to Oz.” • How MGM’s 1939 classic became a television institution and shaped Disney’s musical ambitions. • A preview of next week’s continuation on animated Oz adaptations of the 1960s and 70s. For this episode’s full show notes, click here. HOSTS • Jim Hill - IG: @JimHillMedia | X: @JimHillMedia | Website: JimHillMedia.com FOLLOW • Facebook: JimHillMediaNews • Instagram: JimHillMedia • TikTok: JimHillMedia SUPPORT Support the show and access bonus episodes and additional content at Patreon.com/JimHillMedia. PRODUCTION CREDITS Edited by Dave Grey Produced by Eric Hersey - Strong Minded Agency SPONSOR This episode is brought to you by UnlockedMagic.com, where you can save up to 12 percent on Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando tickets. Just pick your dates, grab your tickets, and go. And when you do, please let the folks at Unlocked Magic know that Drew and Jim sent you.Unlocked Magic If you would like to sponsor a show on the Jim Hill Media Podcast Network, reach out today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Jim Hill and Drew Taylor sit down just hours before Zootopia 2 preview screenings begin, they dig into the film’s early reactions, the surprising box-office shape of the holiday season, and the escalating economics behind today’s animated franchises. HIGHLIGHTS Early reactions to Zootopia 2 and what Drew learned from scoring sessions and long-lead press days. How Wicked: For Good outpaced the original film’s opening—and why reviews may complicate the long-term outlook. Stephen Schwartz’s long history with animation—from Pocahontas to The Prince of Egypt—and his record-breaking opening weekend. A surprise Thanksgiving return for Prep & Landing and why Snowball Protocol deserved more promotion. Drew breaks down the blockbuster salaries behind Frozen 3 and 4—and how favored-nations deals shaped the cast’s negotiations. Tim Allen completes his Toy Story 5 recording, plus a look back at the franchise’s evolving pay scale. Trailer talk: David, Hoppers, and what Pixar’s 2026 slate signals for the studio. Hosts Jim Hill — X/Twitter: @JimHillMedia | Instagram: @JimHillMedia | Website: jimhillmedia.com Drew Taylor — X/Twitter: @DrewTailored | Instagram: @drewtailored | Website: drewtaylor.work Follow Us Facebook: @JimHillMediaNews YouTube: @jimhillmedia TikTok: @jimhillmedia Producer Credits Edited by Dave Grey Produced by Eric Hersey Sponsor This episode is brought to you by Unlocked Magic, from the team at DVC Rental Store — offering discounted Disney theme park tickets, including special events. Save on your next trip at UnlockedMagic.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices