Fantasy World is a 2026 animated musical fantasy adventure film produced by Bloxy Animation Productions and released by Universal Pictures. The seventh film produced by the studio, it was directed by Paige Richards and written from a screenplay by Dominick Gonzales, based on an original story by Jonathan Williamson, and produced by Matilda Davidson. The film stars the voice cast of Anabelle Parrish and Arjun Vaughn as Victoria and Howard, respectively, with Jonathan Hayes, Martha Gardner, Lucas Wilkinson and Lucy Houghton in supporting roles. Fantasy World follows Victoria, a young bright girl who is transported to a world while being ruled by the empire, whose leader is named Howard. Victoria must assist Howard and the group in defeating a group of creatures attempting to rule the empire, as well as restore peace around the world.
Fantasy World was initially announced in March 2025 as the studio's next film after Charlotte (2025), with a November 25, 2026 release date. Though the concept was pitched as early as January 2017, production on the film began in March 2022, when Richards began working on an original story for the studio. The story was rewritten several times to allow for more character development for Victoria and Howard, and a romantic relationship was introduced in the middle of production by early 2024. The film was inspired by various fairy tale stories, which were used to develop key ideas for the relationship, while kingdoms and empires served as the foundation for the worldbuilding. The team took a world tour to research the designs of buildings and read different love stories. Its musical score was composed by Matthew Berry, while the Broadway-inspired songs were created and written by songwriter Benson Mercer.
Fantasy World premiered at the Agora Theater in RoCity, Bloxington Ocean on June 2, 2026, and was theatrically released in the United States on June 12 of that year. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the animation, story, humor, characters and musical numbers. It was a commercial success, grossing $697.3 million worldwide against a $110 million budget.
Plot
In the fantasy world, where creativity is permitted, Howard leads the largest empire and, along with her princess named Isabelle. Isabelle, however, is kidnapped by a group of "monsters" and murdered. In the aftermath, the empire descends into chaos, while Howard attempts to restore order. Howard, believing that he has failed everyone and has been despised by the citizens, falls into a state of depression and hopelessness. In the real world, Victoria, a bright young girl, lives in a small village. While she is grateful, she wishes to venture outside of her comfort zone and discover what lies beyond her "world". Her strict parents, on the other hand, forbid her from leaving town, citing safety concerns. Victoria, who wants to be independent, initially believes them, but decides to spend only one night outside. She discovers a magical water well and perplexed, enters and is transported to a completely different world. Victoria panics and attempts to find an escape, but is unsuccessful. She notices a tree nearby and, realizing it is almost nighttime, decides to make a small wooden chain at the bottom. After spending the night awake, Victoria decides to investigate the true nature of the world. When she discovers a huge village, she walks in, but is quickly welcomed by a group of residents. They then take care of her and, perplexed, inform her that she will be sent to the empire's castle for a check-up, as their hospitals and all others have been destroyed or are overflowing with injuries.
After being sent to a room, Victoria is cared for by the castle's lady maid Emily, who is overwhelmed by the number of injuries and deaths, but seeing the former cry, she assures her that everything will be fine. Emily is ordered by Howard to give Victoria a tour of the castle to distract her from other depressing topics. When she sees a large door, she enters and finds Howard's messy bedroom. Howard, on the other hand, enters and greets Victoria, mistaking her for Emily, until he realizes his error and kicks her out. Victoria, concerned about himself, attempts to re-enter the room to relax him, but Howard kicks her out, forcing the former to leave. She meets the castle's workers, Liam, George, and Grace, who are all inundated by what is happening. Victoria attempts to make them feel better through playing on the piano, but Howard screams at Emily from the other room and throws her out.
Howard becomes enraged and begins to trash Emily's room, but Victoria has had enough and decides to stop him. Victoria rushes to the bed after grabbing him by the front and screaming for him to stop. Victoria is injured in the leg in the process, and Howard realizes and bursts into tears, saying sorry several times, leaving her happy but confused. During the night, at Emily's suggestion, Howard further apologizes and tells her that after various attacks on the castle by a group of "monsters," he had been overwhelmed by negativity and believed that he was a failure as king, as well as his mental health deteriorating over time without his knowledge. Victoria agrees to assist Howard and the workers on the condition that the latter work to improve his mental health and seek the necessary help. Howard, who sees "something special" in Victoria, decides to crown her as the next princess; upon confirmation, the empire celebrates for the first time in years and holds a parade for Victoria. Victoria, Howard, and everyone immediately begin devising a strategy for defeating the creatures. At the same time, the creatures, having been briefed by the news, begin to devise their own plan to kidnap and kill Victoria, similar to Isabelle's.
The following morning, Victoria goes to meet with the citizens who are concerned about the empire's future and tells them that, no matter what, there is still hope, and one of her first orders is to restore global peace. When asked about Howard, she says that he is receiving the assistance that he requires. Later, Victoria persuades Howard to come out to the crowd, something he hasn't done in years, and, while being heavily booed, he expresses regret for giving up and leaving his citizens behind. Victoria smiles as she walks back to the castle's doors, hoping for a brighter future for the empire. However, in the following days, various attacks took place, and Howard and Victoria addressed the empire about it. When they realize the creatures are about to attack, they prepare for a major fight. The workers and all of the citizens fight the creatures when their leader, led by Queen Sarah, enters the town. Despite eventually winning the battle, Victoria notices a badly injured Howard, who is on the verge of death, and orders him to sing a song. She does and watches Howard die peacefully before sobbing and hugging him while everyone else watches in sadness.
Voice cast
- Anabelle Parrish as Victoria, a bright and independent seventeen-year old female, who is ruled as the empire's princess (known as queen). Victoria was originally intended to represent females in the 1800s, including traits such as purity and domesticity, as well as the cult of domesticity. The character designs in the fantasy world were inspired by those from classical eras. The team researched various fashion designs, including keeping the design simple and loose-fitting, as well as features like the waistline. It was also inspired by the hoop skirt. Victoria was originally written to have anger issues and yell at people; however, she was scrapped in the middle of production after realizing that the story and character were not working and underwent a major rewrite. Williamson, the storyteller, created the character as "an energetic, yet overwhelmed girl, who is trying to process what happened to her".
- Arjun Vaughn as Howard, a twenty-year old male, who serves as the empire's king. Howard, like Victoria, was intended to represent those from the 1800s, including self-reliance and independence.
- Jonathan Hayes as Liam, one of the castle's workers. Screenwriter Gonzales described Liam as having a "shy-like" personality and a fear of causing trouble, explaining that he was written the "way that he is" to relate to a group of people who had or were dealing with anxiety.
- Martha Gardner as Emily. Working as a lady's maid for Victoria, she is portrayed as friendly and protective of her, particularly during her first days in the castle, after believing she had been completely brainwashed, which is false. Emily was inspired by her family, according to Richards, who described her as a "lucky child's mom" and the "best mom in the entire world".
- Lucas Wilkinson as George, an ill-mannered, yet worried worker.
- Lucy Houghton as Grace, an eccentric and moderate worker. Being a huge fan of music, she is seen playing on the piano with the other employees.
Production
Development
During a five-hour meeting with Universal Pictures executives in late January 2017, animators, writers, and directors, primarily from the television series Robloxians, were asked to pitch ideas for the studio's first film. After John Stevens pitched Cruise (2020), director Paige Richards pitched the concept of a young girl entering a fantasy world. The concept began production the following month under the working title Fantasy World, but was canceled just days later due to story issues. Richards began working on an original story for Bloxy Animation Studios in early March 2022, as confirmed during an interview about the studio's future and other upcoming films, including The Noob and the Bacon (2022), for which he was the storyboard artist. While developing the idea, Stevens stated, "I remember this one time, when I pitched an idea that I wanted to do back in 2017, but it never made it to the writing stages. I suddenly remembered that moment, and it occurred to me: Should I begin writing the idea, which is about a young female entering a fantasy world? I thought about it for days and weeks, at my desk, during test screenings, and everywhere. I considered the story that I was about to take on, but I had no idea who the characters would be or what type of story it would be; a musical or a fairytale?"
In June 2022, Richards brought the idea to story writer Jonathan Williamson after a test screening of Noob and the Bacon and a workprint of Adopt Me (2024). Williamson, who liked the idea, was brought on with the former to develop a story treatment and was described by the production teams, who were briefed on the news of Richards's concept, as "a fairytale story," which hadn't been done at the studio; an idea about an original fairytale story was previously pitched in January 2017, though it was scrapped later on. Under the working title Fantasy World again weeks later, Richards and Williamson began discussing what the story would be inspired by from which fairy tale stories. At one of their offices, they read fairytale books to get an idea and eventually decided that the film would be set in "a fantasy world with empires and castles; lots of flying creatures and uncommon people." Following a lengthy talk with writers at the studio, the two pitched the idea to Universal Pictures executives, who liked the idea and green-lit it for possible development, under the condition that the story "would be fully original". Richards and Williamson began to hold one- to two-hour meetings by August 2022, where a group of writers would pitch various ideas for the characters and the story and write them on notes to give the two a better understanding of the film and to create the story much more smoothly, without causing story problems later on.
Early on, Richards had been considering developing the project as a non-musical adventure film to "stand out from the rest of the others," which were all musicals. However, during one of the meetings, one writer pitched the idea of the film being a Broadway-inspired musical. Another writer suggested having the main story take place in the 1800s, while the real world would be set in the modern period. While the concept was originally scrapped early on, the idea was rebought again a month later but would take place in a nearby village with no connection to the outside world. Taking notes from the writer's suggestions, Richards and Williamson "slowly but surely" developed Victoria as a "soft, bright, and independent female" who "wants to step out from her comfort zone (the village) to discover what world is beyond her reach." A concept that inspired the "core" of the film was the thought of creatively being allowed in the fantasy world, which was developed on a whiteboard in October 2022, where the two developed their own ideas by themselves. Some elements of the film were written, including the character development between Victoria and Howard, who was originally planned as a "sidekick villager" who would join her in exploring the world.
Writing
During development, screenwriter Dominick Gonzales was conflicted by several writers about what the story of the film would be, which was split into three opinions: have Victoria enter the fantasy world and try to survive by herself with Howard before being sent to the castle for treatment; have Victoria be mistaken as the castle's princess after their last one was kidnapped; or have Victoria try to help a depressed king Howard.
While the first opinion was scrapped, the remaining ones kept on being revised various times. Early on, Victoria was given a "more joyful and friendly personality" and "messed around with everyone," while "having a good time with herself." In a draft dated January 9, 2023, written by Williamson, Victoria was written to have been bought in by the villagers, who tell her that she was "brainwashed" by a group of monsters, followed by a celebration of her return and a planned "Broadway-style" musical number, before being crowned again as the empire's princess. However, after a testing screen of a work-in-progress version of Fantasy World, the executives believed that Victoria was "too childish" and ordered the team to "mature her into an independent woman."
Earlier versions of the film focused on Victoria and Howard's relationship. In one draft, Victoria meets Howard, who was originally described as a "carefree, but relaxed dude" in the middle of the fields, while the latter is hunting for animals. In another, Howard planned to accompany Victoria to the castle, as well as the villages and explore it. However, by November 2023, Gonzales felt that the story needed to be completely rewritten after dealing with a variety of issues in the second and third acts. Another series of meetings was held in an attempt to get the story "making sense" so that a well-structured plot could be developed. Writers would suggest various ideas for the film.
Throughout the three months, writers and directors made various notes; one writer suggested adding conflict to the story, pitching a "group of creatures" attempting to take over the empire. Another writer proposed the development of a romantic relationship between Victoria and Howard. Controversially, one writer proposed adding sexual scenes, albeit toned down, in which Howard and Victoria were supposed to have sexual intercourse on-screen but were changed to show their shadows in the background instead. The idea was described as "some of the most repulsive ideas that someone had pitched." A gag in the scene featured the workers in shock, one covering the other's head.
Halfway through production, Richards and Williamson realized their original vision for the story was "about kingdoms and castles" and began writing a new story treatment. The revised script included developing Howard as the empire's king, reworking Victoria into a "soft-hearted" female, and creating new characters for the film, such as Emily, Grace, and Liam. Several people suggested during production that king Howard deal with mental health issues, such as anger and breakdowns. While the concept was deemed "dark" for a children's film and even scrapped, the production team stated that the "point was to take big risks" and did not want Fantasy World to "play it safe". The team conducted research on mental breakdowns and met with people who were experiencing or had previously dealt with mental health issues. The team was considering "going the extra mile" and exploring "beyond just a love story" to develop Victoria and Howard's romantic relationship, with the former attempting to assist the latter with his mental health issues.
Early on, the team dealt with story problems about how Victoria would "make Howard suddenly snap out of it," in which Gonzales pitched a scene in which Howard screams and begins to trash one of the workers's bedroom, in which Emily would bring Victoria in to assist, but it was changed to have her be the one who enters the room. In earlier versions, the castle's workers' roles in the film were much smaller, with the character George "having no reason to exist at all" and was considered to be scrapped due to "his average rude behavior". Gonzales, however, rewrote some scenes in the film to help George understand what was going on between Howard and Victoria after he assumed she was only trying to make Howard worse. In one version, when Victoria was mistaken for the empire's princess, George spread rumors throughout the village and was planned to sing a negative musical number about her; however, due to story changes, the idea was later abandoned. Emily was originally written as a food maid, but was later changed to a lady's maid and then revised to assist Victoria with her injuries in the first act, whereas Grace was written based on Broadway writers and composers.
Design and animation
Fantasy World, like the studio's previous films, was produced with traditional animation; however, due to the size of the worldbuilding, the team decided to use computer animation for the majority of the backgrounds, with the exception of close-ups. The production team considered making the backgrounds and designs as "simple and basic as possible" early on, but that idea was later abandoned. To color in the backgrounds, which included the forest, flowers, and villages, the team would draw black lines with markers and pencils before painting. For computer animation, they designed the houses based on wooden cabins, using a model in which the team worked on each part of the house, including the windows, walls, doors, and furniture. When developing the design and layout of the empires, including the villages, the production team embarked on a worldwide tour that began on May 12, 2023, which was announced by Paige Richards, and lasted approximately two weeks, visiting Malorie, Bloshaven Village, and Petit Village.
During their research, they were also inspired by the novel The Robloxian in the High Castle, though only a few elements were used. During the tour, the crew sent photos and sketches of the houses to the animators at the studio. The production team was inspired by fairytale stories, which included the use of a magical wand, to study how it allowed them to focus and direct their spells with greater precision and effectiveness. The film's production team numbered 1,000 people, including 300-320 animators. Initially, the team consisted of only 100 animators, who had joined the studio as members months before and had received training sessions to prepare for animating the scenes. However, with the finished production on Charlotte (2025), the finale of the television series Robloxians (2013-2026), and Roblox: The Movie nearing completion, and over 500 more people joining the studio by November 2025, an additional 200 animators were hired over the course of two months.
To make the scene where Victoria is taking a bath less complex, the team first animated the character using hand-drawn animation on digital rather than paper, before adding the 3D model of the bathtub to overlap. Animating the main character Victoria was a major challenge for the production team because they wanted to use realistic movement to match that of a female, which required the use of real-life references, which Charlotte Hussain, a co-producer on the film, handled. After the recordings were completed, the animators were given the footage and used digital animation to trace it over. They used references from a group of animators, where people would play out the exact same scenes from the storyboards, to use realistic movement within the camera and make it look like the film was "filmed in real-life".
Music
- Main article: Fantasy World (soundtrack)
Release
Theatrical
Fantasy World was confirmed in March 2025 for release in theaters on November 25, 2026, the day before Thanksgiving. However, due to the delay of Roblox: The Movie to that same spot in December of that year, the film was pushed back to June 12, 2026.