Disney’s Clay: Kieran Culkin Leads a Brand-New Animated Adventure Coming in 2028

Disney Animation is expanding its theatrical lineup with Clay, an entirely new animated feature starring Kieran Culkin. The film is currently scheduled to arrive in theaters in November 2028.

Disney is preparing to take audiences somewhere completely new.

During the latest D23 presentation, Walt Disney Animation Studios unveiled new concept art and details for Clay, an upcoming original animated feature that will star Kieran Culkin.

Unlike Disney’s many sequels and established franchises, Clay is being positioned as a fresh animated world, giving audiences a completely new story to discover.

Kieran Culkin Leads Clay

Kieran Culkin will headline the voice cast of Clay, bringing his distinctive comedic style and personality to Disney Animation’s latest project.

Culkin has become one of Hollywood’s most recognizable performers following his acclaimed work in Succession, as well as his Oscar-winning supporting performance in A Real Pain.

For Clay, however, he is stepping into a very different kind of project — a colorful animated adventure designed for the big screen.

Meet Flip and Mushy

The newly revealed concept art introduces audiences to some of the strange and colorful characters inhabiting the world of Clay.

Among them are Flip and Mushy, two characters highlighted by Disney Animation during the D23 presentation.

The artwork presents an unusually bright fantasy environment filled with enormous plants, colorful landscapes and imaginative creatures. It immediately suggests that Clay will have a visual identity very different from Disney’s more familiar animated worlds.

And judging from the first look, the movie appears to be leaning heavily into imagination and visual creativity.

A Completely Original Disney Story

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of Clay is that it isn’t another sequel.

Disney Animation has recently continued major franchises such as Frozen, Zootopia and Toy Story across its broader theatrical slate. At the same time, the studio continues to develop original stories and worlds.

Clay falls firmly into that second category.

There is currently no established Clay franchise for audiences to fall back on, meaning Disney has the opportunity to build an entirely new world around these characters.

That makes the film one of the more intriguing projects on Disney Animation’s future schedule.

What We Know About the Story

Disney has not yet revealed a complete plot synopsis for Clay, so many of the film’s story details remain under wraps.

The concept art does, however, provide an early glimpse at the film’s imaginative setting and its unusual inhabitants.

Rather than revealing too much too early, Disney appears to be keeping the central story a mystery while allowing audiences to become familiar with the characters and visual style first.

As more information is revealed, the relationship between Flip, Mushy and the rest of the characters could give us a much clearer idea of what kind of adventure Clay has in store.

When Will Clay Be Released?

Disney Animation currently has Clay scheduled for an exclusive theatrical release in November 2028.

That gives the studio plenty of time to develop the film before audiences finally get to experience its world on the big screen.

The project is part of Disney Animation’s long-term theatrical slate, which also includes established franchises alongside new stories. Disney Animation currently describes its theatrical feature lineup as spanning more than a century of storytelling and continuing into its upcoming releases.

Why Clay Could Be Important for Disney Animation

There is something particularly exciting about seeing a major animation studio introduce an entirely new property.

Sequels come with built-in audiences, recognizable characters and established worlds. Original movies don’t have those advantages.

But when an original animated film succeeds, it can become something much bigger.

Disney has already demonstrated how original animated characters can eventually become cultural icons. Clay now has the opportunity to begin that journey from scratch.

The colorful concept art also suggests that Disney Animation is aiming for a visually distinctive world rather than simply recreating the aesthetic of one of its existing franchises.

Geeksterr Take

This is exactly the kind of Disney announcement worth keeping an eye on.

Clay doesn’t have decades of franchise history behind it. It doesn’t have a familiar sequel number attached to its title. Instead, Disney is asking audiences to meet a new group of characters and step into a world they have never seen before.

That’s a risk — but it’s also what makes the project exciting.

Kieran Culkin leading the cast adds another reason to be interested, while the first concept art suggests Disney Animation could be building something wonderfully strange and colorful.

With a November 2028 theatrical release, there’s still a long road ahead for Clay. But if Disney can turn the promise of its concept art into a memorable story, this could eventually become one of the studio’s next original animated standouts.

For now, Flip, Mushy and the world of Clay are just getting started.

Clay — Quick Facts

Title: Clay

Studio: Walt Disney Animation Studios

Type: Original animated feature

Lead Voice: Kieran Culkin

Featured Characters: Flip and Mushy

Release: November 2028

Release Format: Theatrical