Hoppers

As I sit alone with my thoughts, I sometimes wonder what it would be like to take my brain and put it in someone else’s body for a day. I know, I know — that sounds a little like Avatar. But I’m not trying to be a blue cat on a planet named after a music streaming service. I’m talking about something far more sensible… like being Ryan Gosling for a day.

That’s not exactly the plan for Mabel, the lead character in Pixar’s latest film, Hoppers. And while I might think she chooses poorly, her reasoning is much more morally sound than mine.

Mabel (Piper Cyrda) isn’t your typical kid. She loves animals and firmly believes they shouldn’t be kept as pets. After getting caught—again—trying to free the school’s animals, her mom drops her off with her grandmother (Karen Huie). Grandma takes her to a special place: a quiet pond where Mabel can calm down and find her center. The trick works. As Mabel grows up, she returns to that pond often. It becomes her happy place.

But that happiness is threatened. Mayor Jerry (Jon Hamm) wants to bulldoze the pond to finish his “glorious” beltway, and Mabel fights him with everything she has. Unfortunately, it’s not enough. While searching for a solution, she stumbles upon her professor, Dr. Sam (Kathy Najimy), who has developed technology that allows humans to transfer their consciousness into lifelike robotic animals.

So Mabel takes a leap — literally. She hops into a beaver with one goal: rally the other beavers to reclaim the pond and stop the mayor’s ridiculous beltway. Of course, things are never that simple. Shenanigans ensue — including a shark assassin, a wild animal council, and even a caterpillar prince. It sounds like chaos, but none of it feels out of place. Hoppers fully embraces its absurdity, and writers Jesse Andrews and Daniel Chong (who also directs) trust the audience to keep up. That trust pays off.

Unity is a major theme in the film. It’s preached in Mabel’s classroom, and while that message feels timely, the movie never pretends cooperation is easy. It acknowledges that working together can be messy and complicated — and that makes the message feel earned rather than forced.

Hoppers is both thoughtful and wildly entertaining. It drops you into a vibrant, imaginative world brought to life with colorful, cartoony animation that’s simply a joy to watch. There’s a lot to love here. The casting is spot on, and the voice performances truly sell the human-to-hopper experience. Along the way, the film weaves in ideas about environmental protection without ever feeling preachy. In other words, it’s fun and meaningful.

Visually rich and emotionally resonant, Hoppers stands as one of Pixar’s stronger recent entries. I genuinely loved spending time in this world — and trust me, you’re going to love the beavers. Especially King George (Bobby Moynihan), who somehow always seems to say exactly the right thing. But he’s just one of many memorable characters.

Some people say Pixar isn’t what it used to be. I’m not in that camp. And honestly? Hoppers might just win a few of them back. It’s a reminder of why we fell in love with Pixar in the first place.