'Wreck-It Ralph' Writer Tapped to Direct Disney's 'Frozen'

Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios

Jennifer Lee, one of the screenwriters behind Disney Animation’s Wreck-It Ralph, is making the jump to director.

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Lee has been tapped to join Chris Buck in helming Frozen, the studio’s 53rd animated feature, due to hit screens Nov. 27, 2013.

The movie, which already is in production, features the voices of Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel and is set in a kingdom where eternal winter has set in.

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According to the studio, "Anna, a fearless optimist, teams up with extreme mountain man Kristoff and his sidekick reindeer Sven on an epic journey to find Anna's sister Elsa, the Snow Queen, and put an end to her icy spell."

Peter Del Vecho (Winnie the Pooh, The Princess and the Frog) is producing. The movie will feature original songs by Broadway's Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez.

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Lopez co-wrote The Book of Mormon and Avenue Q. His wife, Anderson-Lopez, is behind the play In Transit and wrote songs for 2011’s Winnie the Pooh as well as a stage version of Finding Nemo.

Buck is a 25-year animation vet who co-directed Disney’s 1999 film Tarzan and Sony Animation’s 2007 film Surf’s Up. Buck was skiing solo on Frozen and having a co-director on animated features is a very common practice. It is somewhat less common, however, for a co-director to come on while a project already is under way.

"Jenn has a real connection to the film and creates dynamic and relatable characters,” said Del Vecho in a statement. “Her sense of comedy, adventure and story structure paired with Chris Buck’s vast experience and incredible instincts create an ideal situation for this film.”