Zootopia 2 producer Yvett Merino has gone from tech temp to Oscar-winning director — and that was before Zootopia 2 became the second-highest-grossing animated film of all time. In an interview with Variety, Merino talked about making the sequel, her Oscar win for Encanto, and how important creativity is at Disney.

Yvett Merino and Zootopia 2

Merino was a sociology major who planned to go into social work but took a detour for “emotional survival” and ended up as an animation producer. Her Disney story began in 1996 when she became an assistant in the technology department.

“I was a temp. I was an assistant,” she explained to Variety. “It says somewhere out there [online] that I’m a software engineer — I’m not.”

She spent about a decade in administrative and studio infrastructure roles before a producer approached her about running an editing department. She said, “Within six months, I knew — oh, this is what it’s like to love your job and to feel as if you belong here.”

The Mexican American’s first producer credit was on Encanto, and with the film, she became the first Latina nominated as a producer in the animated feature category of the Academy Awards. She’s aware of how important that moment was.

“My favorite thing is that people, after we won for Encanto, I got so many texts from my girlfriends saying, ‘My daughter saw you and said, hey, I want to do that,’” she told the outlet.

“The door has been kicked open a bit,” she added, “so I feel like it’s my job to keep it open and continue to welcome people into the world of storytelling however they want to be a part of it.”

Now Zootopia 2 is nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 98th Oscars, up against Pixar’s Elio and Netflix’s massive KPop Demon Hunters.

Merino doesn’t focus on her own success, but the success of her team. You’ll notice she said “we won,” not “I won” for Encanto. That attitude continues with Zootopia 2.

When she found out the sequel was nominated, “I was thinking of all of the artists and the production management team that put everything into this film. For it to be recognized and in the conversation for the year is super exciting.”

Zootopia 2 was directed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard, who also directed Encanto. When Merino began talking about a sequel with Bush and Howard, pressure was high. The first Zootopia was “very successful,” she noted. “To do a sequel and to continue the story needed to be something just as good, if not better.”

Her anchor through the process was the character of Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and her evolving relationship with Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman).

“I love, love, love Judy Hopps,” Merino said. “As long as we hooked it on her and her relationship with Nick, and how their relationship evolved, I think I was in. It took a little bit to find that, but once we found that, we were kind of in for the ride.”

Merino said one reason Zootopia and Zootopia 2 resonated with audiences is that they trust kids to understand a complex plot and include some jokes for adults.

“Kids these days are super smart,” she explained. “We never want to, quote unquote, dumb it down for kids. We just want to make sure it’s understandable and digestible.”

As for the adult references: “We have references to The Shining and The Silence of the Lambs. And I can guarantee you, the 5-year-olds in the audience have no idea what it is.”

Zootopia 2 had the biggest-ever global opening for an animated film. It became Walt Disney Animation’s highest-grossing movie ever, surpassing Frozen 2. Its box office success then carried it past Pixar’s Inside Out 2, once the world’s highest-grossing animated film. It is now the ninth-highest-grossing film of all time and the second-highest-grossing animated film (behind China’s Ne Zha 2, also released in 2025). It has grossed approximately $1.834 billion — and is still going.

It may be one of the most successful films ever, but Merino knows high box office isn’t the only thing that marks success.

“A hit is measured in so many different ways,” she said. “Finishing the film is its own success, because they’re difficult to make.”

Regarding Disney Experiences chairperson Josh D’Amaro’s upcoming promotion to CEO, Merino said, “Josh mentioned the importance of nurturing and understanding — the creative is really at the heart of what we do. I’m excited for everything that’s coming.”

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