Pixar’s new movie Hoppers lands almost perfect Rotten Tomatoes score

‘Hoppers’ matched the score received by ‘Coco’ in 2017 CultureFilmNewsPixar’s new movie Hoppers lands almost perfect Rotten Tomatoes score‘Hoppers’ matched the score received by ‘Coco’ in 2017Kevin E G Perry in Los Angeles Tuesday 03 March 2026 20:44 ESTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popoverHoppers - TrailerYour support helps us to tell the storyRead moreSupport NowFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreThe latest Pixar film, Hoppers, is earning rave reviews from critics.The animated original, which arrives in theaters March 6, follows 19-year-old environmentalist Mabel who “hops” into the mind of a beaver before attempting to help a colony save their habitat in a plot that has drawn comparisons to Avatar.The film, which features a cast of voice actors including Piper Curda, Bobby Moynihan, Dave Franco, Jon Hamm and Meryl Streep, has earned a near-perfect score on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, currently sitting at 97 percent.Although that score may fluctuate as more reviews come in, it currently represents the best rating for a Pixar film in almost a decade since 2017’s Coco. The first two Toy Story films both have a 100 percent rating on the site, while Toy Story 3, Finding Nemo, Inside Out and Up all scored 98 percent.Pixar's 'Hoppers' has a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes score (Pixar)It is the first of two Pixar films slated to be released this year, with Toy Story 5 set to follow in June. In recent years, the animation studio has balanced original stories such as Luca, Elemental and Elio with sequels and spin-offs, including Lightyear and Inside Out 2.They have already announced another original film, Gatto, for a 2027 release, and are reportedly working on two further sequels: Incredibles 3 and Coco 2.Pixar first started in 1979 as the computer animation division of Lucasfilm. It was originally known as Graphics Group before it changed its name to Pixar in 1986, the same year it became an independent company backed by Apple founder Steve Jobs. In 1995, the studio released the groundbreaking Toy Story, the first fully computer-animated feature film. It was distributed by Disney, which later bought Pixar outright in 2006.The Independent critic Clarisse Loughrey was among those who praised Hoppers. In her four-star review, she wrote: “Yes, it’s basically James Cameron’s Avatar, and director Daniel Chong and screenwriter Jesse Andrews are honest enough to admit that within the first 15 minutes of their film. “That said, it’d be uncharitable to call Hoppers derivative, when it’s otherwise odd and spiky enough to carve out its own niche. Pixar, certainly, have only benefited from the energetic, expressive influence of anime on Western animation. All their creatures leap around the screen like they’ve just been electrocuted. It’s worth noting, too, that the degree of life-like fluffiness Pixar achieves with beaverfied Mabel makes Monsters Inc look positively primitive.”More aboutPixarreviewsJoin our commenting forumJoin thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their repliesCommentsMost popularPopular videosBulletinRead next