Disney previews the first 35 emotional minutes of Pixar’s anticipated sequel Inside Out 2 at CinemaCon

Disney is closing out CinemaCon 2024 with extended looks at upcoming films, including Pixar’s highly anticipated sequel, Inside Out 2. Coincidentally, I visited Pixar Studios at the end of March for an in-depth look at the emotionally driven sequel, which finds audiences getting reacquainted with Riley, the same young woman who let us walk around inside her head in the Pete Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen original in 2015.

During Disney’s CinemaCon panel, the Mouse House screened 35 emotional minutes of Inside Out 2 for the crowd. JoBlo’s editor-in-chief, Chris Bumbray, was in the crowd, detailing elements of the preview for us to share.

THIS PORTION OF THE ARTICLE CONTAINS PLOT SPOILERS FOR PIXAR’S INSIDE OUT 2:

Riley (Kensington Tallman), the central character of 2015’s Inside Out, returns for the sequel. She’s entering her “terrible teens,” and the emotions inside her head -Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Tony Hale), Disgust (Liza Lapira) – are frantically trying to course-correct as new emotions – Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Ennui (Adèle Exarchopoulos), Envy (Ayo Edebiri), and Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser) – arrive in Riley’s Mind Space.

The story finds Riley attending a Hockey camp after an influential coach notices her skills on the ice. As she and her friends explore new surroundings, Riley begins to experience the onset of bodily maturity and mood swings. New emotions take control of her every move, compelling her to make questionable choices and cloud her judgment. While the emotions should work together, it’s not long before Joy and her friends are bottled up and cast into the far corner of Riley’s mind, forgotten and unable to influence the young woman’s actions.

JoBlo’s editor-in-chief, Chris Bumbray, said he found the preview positively hilarious as Riley displays some BIG feelings during the onset of her teen years. Like Pete Docter, Inside Out 2 director Kelsey Mann goes to great lengths to understand and represent what it’s like to be a young girl on the verge of womanhood. Easily overwhelmed by the tornado of change around her, Riley begins making poor life choices when Anxiety (Maya Hawke) seizes control from Joy, who considers herself the boss of Riley’s Mind Space. While Sadness proved to be a necessary element of Riley’s growing pains, Anxiety gives villain vibes as she allows a mixture of fear and apprehension to dominate Riley’s decision-making.

The CinemaCon preview for Inside Out 2 has the film looking positively brilliant and is a must-see in theaters this summer. We’ll have much more to share soon when the first part of our Inside Out 2 Press Day coverage goes live here.

Inside Out 2 arrives in theaters on June 14, 2024.