Disney+ Greenlights Original New Fantasy Epic Series From the Obamas

Disney has given the green light to a new animated series called Journey, Variety reports. It’s about a young woman named Journey who lives in a city surrounded by energy shields. When they start to fail, she ventures into “the forbidden lands beyond,” per the official logline. “In this new world, she uncovers the truth about her father’s disappearance and discovers a powerful magic within herself that may hold the key to saving her people.” 

It’s hard to make many judgments about the show when we know so little, but that sounds like a sturdy premise of the kind you might find in a YA sci-fi novel. What we do know is that Journey has some experienced people working on it. It’s created by Matt Munn, who worked on animated kids movies like Ice Age: Collision Course and Spies in Disguise. He’ll serve as executive producer alongside Steve Loter, who worked on the 2000s-era animated spy series Kim Possible as well as the 2014 film Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast.

Journey is being produced by Disney Kids & Family, Disney Television Animation, ICON Creative Studio, and Higher Ground. Higher Ground is a production company founded in 2018 by Barack and Michelle Obama. It’s already created a couple of animated series for kids, including We the People and Ada Twist, Scientist. Both of those shows are more educational in nature, whereas it sounds like Journey will be more of a fantasy adventure series in the vein of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, albeit designed for a younger audience.

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“Journey is an epic adventure anchored by a remarkable young heroine whose courage inspires those around her,” said Ayo Davis, the president of Disney Kids & Family. “At its core, it’s a story about resilience, self-discovery and the power of believing in something bigger than yourself — the kind of universal themes that have defined Disney stories for generations.”

Executive producer Jessie Dicovitsky, the head of television at Higher Ground, also weighed in. “Combining adventure, imagination and music, Journey is a true original that takes bold swings. We’re proud to partner with Disney on this fantastical series and to build on Higher Ground’s history of delivering fun and meaningful stories for kids and families,” she said.

Journey will join other animated shows from Disney Kids & Family like Bluey, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse+, Marvel’s Spidey and His Amazing Friends, Big City Greens, and Phineas and Ferb. No release date has been set, but the show is in production now.