Disney’s Clay will get a look all its own, according to Walt Disney Animation Studios chief creative officer Jared Bush. He says the original film will be “a completely new approach,” one “meant to look tactile, like claymation.”
“Like nothing we’ve made before,” Bush wrote on X late Tuesday night, replying to a fan. “You all wanted new art styles…. They are coming.”
@DongwaMiao Clay will be a completely new approach and asthetic – meant to look tactile, like claymation. Like nothing we’ve made before. You all wanted new art styles…. They are coming.
Jared Bush (@thejaredbush) October 21, 2026
Bush was answering a fan who asked whether Clay would be hand-drawn or “the typical CGI.” He did not name either, and Disney has not said how the film is being animated.
Bush has been central to the studio’s recent hits. He co-wrote Moana and Encanto, co-directed Zootopia 2 with Byron Howard and now oversees the studio’s slate as chief creative officer.
What We Know About Clay
Bush announced Clay at D23 in August. Kieran Culkin voices Flip, who, in the words of the official synopsis, “is unwillingly chosen during a yearly ritual to mentor a young, impressionable ball of clay named Mushy.” The two get “swept into a chaotic, funny and ultimately life-changing adventure.”
The premise inverts a Disney staple. Bush pitched it at D23 by asking, “What if the next Disney mentor stunk?” Instead of a wise guide, the young hero gets someone who never wanted the job, and the story plays out in a fantastical forest.
Fawn Veerasunthorn is directing, with Peter Del Vecho producing, and the film opens in theaters on November 22, 2028. Veerasunthorn directed Wish with Chris Buck, and she is also directing Disney’s Hexed with Jason Hand, which reaches theaters November 25 of this year.
Disney Animation’s upcoming original film, Clay, will feature a “completely new” art style, says Jared Bush.
Drew Smith (@DrewDisneyDude) October 21, 2026
“Clay will be a completely new approach and aesthetic – meant to look tactile, like claymation. Like nothing we’ve made before. You all wanted new art styles…. They are coming.”
The film stars Kieran Culkin and hits theaters in November 2028.
What The Art Shows So Far
One piece of concept art Disney has released shows a lanky, wide-eyed figure in a blue tunic lunging across a field of oversized orange and pink flowers toward a small orange creature, with towering mushroom-shaped trees behind and crystal-like foliage overhead.
That art is two-dimensional, so it only hints at the finished look.
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