Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding creator Hideo Kojima will be appearing in the Japanese version of Disney’s Zootopia 2. According to Mantanweb, Kojima received a direct offer from Jared Bush, CCO of Walt Disney Animation Studios and director of the Zootopia series, to lend his voice to the new film.
Kojima will play the role of Officer Paul Moledebrandt, a mole who works at the Zootopia Police Department alongside protagonists Judy and Nick. This will be the game director’s first appearance in an animated film, and he seems pretty excited about it.
“I’ve had many cameo appearances in live-action films and games, but this is my first experience dubbing for an animated theatrical film. And it’s from Disney, of all places! What’s more, it’s the sequel to my favorite film, Zootopia! On top of that, I received an offer directly from director Jared Bush, so I was extremely honored and accepted without hesitation,” he commented.
It seems Kojima only has a brief appearance in Zootopia 2, but he was full of praise for the movie’s level of production. “Since I’m usually on the directing side, actually experiencing acting myself taught me a lot.” Kojima has talked about his love for the original Zootopia and its social themes on several occasions in the past, but he took the opportunity to once again call it “the pinnacle of Disney’s filmmaking.”
Zootopia 2 is out now in the West. The Japanese version, with Kojima Hideo’s cameo, will premiere on December 5.
