Walt Disney Animation Studios has released the first teaser trailer for Hexed, the company’s first original, non-sequel film in three years. In April, the company debuted the first footage from the film at CinemaCon and announced that Hailee Steinfeld and Rashida Jones would voice the lead characters. Hexed centers on Billie (Steinfeld), an “impulsive and unconventional teenage girl,” per the film’s frankly uncalled-for description, and Alice (Jones), her uptight mother (that description is mine, but if Disney is going to dunk on Billie for no good reason, I’m going to upgrade their description of Alice as “cautious” to be similarly unflattering). “When Billie accidentally unleashes secret magical abilities,” the synopsis continues, “she’s hurtled out of suburbia and into a magical realm called Hexe, where she’s greeted by Ms. Quill (voiced by Tracey Ullman) and Elias Quire (voiced by Stephen Fry). As Billie’s spectacle-filled journey unfolds, she uncovers family mysteries that could change the magical world of witches forever.”
The teaser trailer is quite charming, with Steinfeld delivering a take on teen angst that’s relatable rather than cloying. And the characters voiced by Ullman and Fry are a talking quill and a talking book, respectively, which is just delightful.
