Frozen 2 Trailer: The Internet's Best Reactions And Memes

In case you haven't been on the internet at all in the last day or so, let us be the first ones to catch you up to speed. On February 13, Disney gave fans everywhere an early Valentine's Day present, releasing the first teaser trailer for the forthcoming film Frozen 2, the long-awaited sequel to the 2013 blockbuster Frozen.

It's been a long six years since the world fell in love with the story of Anna and Elsa, their uniquely emotional story of the strength of love between two sisters who endured the unimaginable together. Characters like Olaf and Sven also won hearts everywhere, too. When we last left these characters in Arendelle, it seemed like they had all found their happily ever afters. But the dark trailer for Frozen 2 has already changed everything.

Understandably, the internet had a whole lot of feelings about this. Here are some of the best reactions.

Sorry, Aladdin

There's no easy way of putting this: reactions to the first trailer for the forthcoming live-action adaptation of Aladdin haven't exactly been the best, especially not when it comes to the questionable CGI used for Will Smith's Genie. So, in some ways, it kind of feels like Disney was doing serious damage control by releasing the first look at Frozen 2 so soon afterward.

One eagle-eyed Twitter user couldn't help but make a comparison between the social media attention shift and the always recognizable Distracted Boyfriend meme. Making matters all the more amusing was the comparison made between a particular screencap from the trailer, where Kristoff appears to be looking toward Anna in the same manner as the meme.

We'll take spot-on commentary for $200, Alex

Frozen 2 was so thoroughly the talk of the internet after its trailer release that even the highest winning Jeopardy! champion and cultural commentator Ken Jennings had a hot take on what seems to be going on in the storyline so far. Given that this was just a teaser trailer, we don't actually know much of what Frozen 2's story will wind up being about.

But seeing as about half of the two minute trailer was spent on Elsa's quest to control the sea, it's understandable why Jennings would draw a comparison between Elsa's behavior and another beloved Disney princess, The Little Mermaid herself, Ariel.

Winter is coming

That's right, folks: winter is coming. Or, well... wait, what do you mean wrong franchise? It's not hard to understand the temptation to conflate the total tone shift in Frozen's marketing with the way HBO has handled the promotion of the likely epic, game-changing, and decidedly wintry final season of Game of Thrones.

The core characters of Frozen assume many of the same heroic, awed poses as the Stark clan does in the early teaser HBO released for season 8. And to be fair, winter has already come to both Arendelle and Winterfell. But both Frozen 2 and season 8 are posing some real threats to those familiar realities.

Raise your hand if you feel called out

In the years since its 2013 release, Frozen has admittedly attracted its fair share of detractors - critics who say that the billion dollar blockbuster is nowhere near deserving of all the hype and praise it received. A lot of those complaints came about early along, too, when it came to comparing the way Frozen was marketed - a silly movie with a snowman and a reindeer! - versus the story of the love between two sisters.

Regardless of which anti Frozen camp people were in, it was clear that some of these criticisms persisted even with the release of the new trailer - but that the overwhelming majority of responses to the teaser were amazingly positive. Many commentators of all ages focused on the emphasis of female strength and empowerment, which made it easier for viewers of all ages to embrace.

2 Frozen 2 Furious

Theories are already flooding the internet like mad as to what the story of Frozen 2 will be. Why is Elsa dealing with rushing water and the sea? Who are these mysterious new characters, who may or may not be linked to other seasonal elements? Twitter user @BrockBaker made a comparison that may prove to be especially astute.

Using the title format of the Ice Age franchise - as well as a fun little bonus sixth film title - Baker noticed that Frozen 2 may potentially be going the way of having the kingdom of Arendelle deal with a thawing of its own quasi "ice age." While it's unlikely Disney would go on to produce as many films as the Ice Age franchise, it's very likely that this comparison will hold water.

Elsa and Anna weren't the only ones sporting new hairstyles

The changes in the appearances of both Elsa and Anna were some of the biggest topics up for discussion in the world of Twitter immediately following the teaser trailer's release. Elsa has a ponytail and a new outfit! Anna's hair is more free-flowing, and she's sporting a new outfit, too. She even gets to use a sword!

According to Twitter user @KeyOfTwilight, however, it wasn't just the sisters of Arendelle that were dealing with some sartorial and hair-related changes. In keeping with the vein of the "wig snatched" meme, the user shared a meme graphic that reported on wigs across the world flying all the way to Arendelle - meaning that the trailer was so amazing that the user could hardly manage a coherent response.

Move over, children: the adults are here

Six years may not be all that long to wait for a sequel for some Disney movies - the waits between Toy Story 2 and Toy Story 3, and Toy Story 3 and Toy Story 4 were both roughly a decade. But a little kid or teenager who saw Frozen back in 2013 is decidedly a different person seeing Frozen 2 in 2019.

While Disney movies are primarily marketed at children, there's no denying that these movies are made for audiences of all ages, too. So when the release date of the film rolls around in November 2019, there will definitely be plenty of adults going to the theatres by themselves, surrounded by a sea of Disney fanatic children.

Corporate synergy at its finest

It's not hard to find plenty of Disney parallels within most Disney movies. There's only so many conventional story beats to hit on your average hero's journey story, after all. But Twitter user @jeffgordonla had a particularly witty take on a certain shot of the Frozen 2 teaser trailer that harkens all the way back to The Lion King.

Gordon observed that the shot of Sven, Kristoff, Anna, Elsa, and Olaf surveying all of Arendelle from a cliff vantage point reminded them of Simba and Mufasa looking out over the Pride Lands. Of course, while there may not be an Elephant Graveyard in Arendelle, there will always be dastardly old Weaseltown - no, sorry, Weselton, which Olaf should definitely avoid.

Disney, are you okay?

For better or worse, the primary takeaway from Frozen was definitely the power ballad song "Let It Go" belted out by Queen Elsa in her moment of transformation. It's a pretty heavy song, behind all the catchy show tune, but since the film wound up with a trademark happy ending, the series has never been forced to reckon with the darkness that lingered in these characters since then - least of all in the saccharine shorts and mini-films that have followed.

But now, as Frozen 2's trailer shows, nothing is off limits. The film reads more like an action movie than a typical coming of age Disney film, because these characters have already come of age, and are now forced to confront the hard realities of the world in which they live. Even if it means something as daunting as climate change may be on the horizon.

Elsa snapped

Just when Disney fans thought that Thanos snapping was the worst kind of snapping they had to deal with, the Mickey Mouse company turned around and showed that Elsa's got some real snapping power of her own. The promotion for Avengers: Endgame has been incredibly dark and daunting so far, and seeing as the film is starting off with countless characters out of the picture, they already had their work cut out for him.

But somehow, in many ways, Frozen 2 came out of the gate running with a trailer that was more intimidating, more unexpected, and more daunting than anything Avengers: Endgame has produced so far. We can sort of know what to expect when we go into the final chapter of the Avengers saga. When it comes to Frozen 2, however, we really have no idea.