The Disney Junior Let’s Play event, a summer event celebrating Disney Junior shows, was held on August 8, 2025. With that comes a whole slew of announcements from renewals to premieres and new shows. We’ve already highlighted the Marvel announcments, now let’s talk about the rest of them!
1. Cars: Lightning Racers
First on the list is Cars: Lightning Racers, a series based on Pixar’s Cars movies. The series will premiere in 2027 on Disney Jr., then Disney+. Produced by Disney TV Animation in association with Piar, it’s exec produced by Travis Braun (creator of TOTS and Pupstruction) and Frank Montagna (co-executive producer and art director on Alice’s Wonderland Bakery). Story editor is Dana Starfield (developer of Madagascar: A Little Wild) and supervising director is Nathan Chew (supervising director on Alice’s Wonderland Bakery). The show follows Lightning McQueen as he gears up for all-new adventures in Radiator Springs alongside his hilarious best friend Mater and new friends thrill-seeking drag car Pipes and mud-loving monster truck Miles. The all-star cast returning to their original roles includes Owen Wilson as Lightning McQueen, Larry the Cable Guy as Mater, Tony Shalhoub as Luigi, Cheech Marin as Ramone, Bob Peterson as Chick Hicks and John Ratzenberger as Mack. Leah Lewis and Yuri Lowenthal join the cast as Pipes and Miles, respectively. Sheryl Lee Ralph will also voice a new character, Ms. Blinker.
This isn’t the first time in which a Pixar property was produced by Disney Television Animation, as seen with both Buzz Lightyear Of Star Command and Monsters At Work, based on Toy Story and Monsters Inc respectively. This also isn’t the first time in which a Pixar property had some presence on Disney Junior given how Merida from Brave guest starred in an episode of Sofia The First. One would probably wonder why the Cars franchise would get a Disney Junior show, but considering how the first 2 movies and various shorts air often on Disney Junior, with the shorts in particular getting uploaded to the Disney Junior YouTube channel, this makes sense.
2. Mickey Mouse
We have plenty of Mickey Mouse news in store. First up, the recently released Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Plus, a followup to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, was renewed for seasons 2-3. That’s definitely the sign of confidence in a show. Given how Disney Junior Mickey Mouse projects get a lot of attention, this isn’t surprising. Of course, that’s not all we’re getting. We’re also getting stop motion musical shorts for Halloween and Christmas. Given the stop motion specials and shorts we’ve been getting, this isn’t surprising. The projects are made by Disney Television Animation, with the shorts also getting produced by Stoopid Buddy Studios.
3. SuperKitties Season 3
This will be quick, but it’s still worth mentioning. SuperKitties, a show centering on a super cute kitties Ginny, Sparks, Bitsy, and Buddy, will have its third season come out October 1, 2025. The show was also renewed for a season 4, and is getting more shorts. It shows no signs of stopping. The show is produced by Sony Pictures Television and Mainframe Studios.
4. Ariel Special
In 2024, the Ariel series, based on the Little Mermaid franchise, premiered its first season. Now, on August 22, 2025, the show will end its first season with the half hour special “The Glow Crystals”. The special follows Ariel as she and her friends use their special gifts to rescue her family after a glitch in Ursula’s crystal ball sends her, Triton and Sebastian into a mystical cavern. The series is produced by Wild Canary Animation.
5. Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures Season 3
The third season of Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures will premiere in the fall on Disney Jr. and Disney +, though a date is currently unknown.” Produced by Lucasfilm in collaboration with Wild Canary for Disney+ and Disney Jr., the show is exec produced by Michael Olson, James Waugh, Jacqui Lopez and Josh Rimes. Set 200 years before “The Phantom Menace,” during the High Republic era, “Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures” follows Jedi younglings Kai Brightstar, Lys Solay, and Nubs as they study the ways of the Force, explore the galaxy, help citizens and creatures in need with their friends Nash, and learn valuable skills needed to become Jedi along the way. Season 3 follows the young Jedi as they delve into the world of droid care, befriending a droid shop owner named Dotti and three new droids: Beepers, Dozer and Gigi.
6. Firebuds Season 3
Firebuds is a series from Sofia The First and Elena Of Avalor creator Craig Gerber that follows three kids named Bo Bayani, Violet Vega Vaughn, and Jayden Jones as the help the people of Gearbox Grove with their talking vehicles Flash Fireson the fire truck, Axl Ambrose the ambulance, and Piston Porter the police car. Season 3 comes out September 15, 2025, and arrive on Disney Plus on October 29. This is the final season of the series. Season 3 introduces a new “Aquabuds” story arc and finds the Firebuds crew back with some new friends and equipped with new gear to use in daring water rescues.
7. Casting For “Sofia The First: Royal Magic”
In 2022, it was announced that Sofia The First would be revived in the form of a sequel series. In 2024, the name was revealed to be Sofia The First: Royal Magic. This new series produced by Disney TV Animation and created/exec produced by original series creator Craig Gerber will debut in 2026 on Disney Jr. and Disney+. As previously announced, Ariel Winter will return in the titular role as the voice of Sofia in this new series Additional returning cast members from the original series including Wayne Brady as Clover, Tim Gunn as Baileywick, Eric Stonestreet as Minimus, Sara Ramirez as Queen Miranda and Travis Willingham as King Roland. The new show follows Sofia as she attends The Charmswell School for Royal Magic, where she discovers she is the most magical princess in the realm and must learn how to master her powers while making new royal friends.
8. “Hey AJ” Premiere Date
Finally, we have the premiere date for Hey AJ, which comes out in 2026. Announced in 2022, this new show, produced by Surfing Giant Studios, and executive produced by Martellus Bennett, Jeff “Swampy” Marsh (who developed the Amazon preschool series Pete The Cat, but is better known for co-creating Phineas And Ferb and Milo Murphy’s Law) and Michael Hodges. Inspired by former Super Bowl champion and children’s book author Martellus Bennett’s book of the same name, the upcoming new family comedy series is described as a whimsical and music-filled family comedy about an imaginative young girl who, along with her stuffed bunny sidekick, uses her big imagination to make ordinary life moments extraordinary. Amari McCoy will star as lead character A.J. while Martellus Bennett will voice her father, Marty, and Jhené Aiko voices her mom, Siggi. Rounding out the cast is Juliet Donenfeld as A.J.’s best friend Jessie, Innocent Ekakitie as Jazz, and David Mitchell as A.J.’s bunny sidekick Theo. Pop superstar Meghan Trainor will recur as A.J.’ s best friend Jessie’s mom.
And that’s all the news we have. What do you think?
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