The process of creating drawings for movies takes an incredibly long time for animators. What many people may not realize is that a 60 to 90-second clip of an animated film can actually take an animator up to six weeks to finish. Making a lengthy animated movie is a mammoth task.
Considering how time-consuming the process of animation is, it's no wonder that the majority of animated films are short. Since Western animated films are often marketed to children, the short runtimes can also prevent kids, and adults, from getting restless and help them stay focused. However, there are some animated movies, including some of the longest Disney movies ever, that tell stories too big to be constrained by a short runtime.
10 Coco
105 Minutes
Coco is a Disney-Pixar film that was released in 2017. The inspiration behind the film is the Mexican holiday, The Day of the Dead. The story follows 12-year-old Miguel who is an aspiring musician, but his family doesn't approve of his passion for song. Miguel later gets trapped in the Land of the Dead but makes it out after meeting his great-great-grandparents.
Coco has one of the most tear-worthy endings of any Western animation. It won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song for "Remember Me." The film's official runtime is 105 minutes, making it one of the longest Disney movies to date.
9 Cars 2
106 Minutes
Cars 2 is the Disney-Pixar 2011 sequel to the 2006 film Cars. Lightning McQueen teams up with his best friend Tow Mater, and they travel to Japan and Europe for the World Grand Prix. Lightning's race is interrupted when he encounters British spies, which of course, are also cars.
Cars 2 has an official runtime of 106 minutes, making it the eighth-longest Disney animated movie. The film earned mixed reviews from critics, but it still was a box office success. The Cars franchise just wasn't quite finished as they released the third film in 2017.
8 Zootopia
108 Minutes
Zootopia was released by Disney in 2016. It's a buddy cop film, but instead of humans, a rabbit and a fox pair up to solve a noir-ish mystery. Nick Wilde, the fox voiced by Jason Bateman, must team up to solve a case with Rabbit Judy Hopps, voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin. Nick and Judy have a hard time getting along, however. Idris Elba even makes an appearance as Bogo, the African buffalo police chief.
Its official runtime is 108 minutes. A film that addresses social issues and inequities, Zootopia won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature, a Golden Globe, a Critic's Choice Movie Award, and an Annie Award.
7 Ratatouille
111 Minutes
Ratatouille is a Disney-Pixar film that was released in 2007 after seven years of development. It follows a rat named Remy who takes up residence in a Parisian restaurant and loves to cook. Its official runtime is 111 minutes. The film won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature.
Ratatouille gained immense popularity over 13 years after its initial release on TikTok. TikTok creators and famous actors like Wayne Brady came together to release a Ratatouille musical in 2020 and raised $2 million for The Actors Fund.
6 Ralph Breaks The Internet
112 Minutes
Ralph Breaks the Internet is the sequel to the 2012 film Wreck-It Ralph. The film was released in 2018 by Disney. Six years after the first film in the franchise, Ralph and Vanellope are still the best of buds. This film features a variety of cameos ranging from Disney princesses to Tim Allen as Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story.
Its official runtime is 112 minutes. Ralph Breaks the Internet received positive reviews. It was even nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Feature but lost to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
5 The Incredibles
115 Minutes
The first film in The Incredibles franchise is 11 minutes shorter than its sequel. Here, viewers are first introduced to the super-powered Parr family whose abilities set them apart from their suburban neighbors, even if they don't know about their baby Jack-Jack's powers yet. They live in Metroville and are forced to live in secret as a part of the Superhero Relocation Program after superheroes are outlawed.
The Incredibles was extremely successful and even won two Oscars for Best Animated Feature and Best Sound Editing. Infinitely meme-able, quotes from the film are still referenced today.
4 Cars
117 Minutes
Disney and Pixar teamed up to produce and release Cars in 2006. It would be Paul Newman's final acting role as the voice for Doc Hudson. This is why Newman's character does not return for future films. Owen Wilson voices Lightning McQueen and Larry the Cable Guy voices Mater, a tow truck that Lightning meets in Radiator Springs.
The official runtime of Cars is 117 minutes, making it the third-longest Disney movie, and the fourth-longest animated film overall. The film was nominated for two Oscars but lost to Happy Feet. Cars was ultimately a success considering two more sequels were released in 2011 and 2017.
3 Incredibles 2
126 Minutes
The long-awaited sequel to the 2004 Incredibles film arrived in theaters 14 years later. Incredibles 2 takes place immediately after the ending of the first film, which is surprising considering how much real-life time has passed since. The runtime clocks in at 126 minutes, making it the second-longest Disney film to date.
The main voice-acting cast returned for the sequel with the exception of Spencer Fox, who voiced Dash in the first film. This is because director Brad Bird wanted to keep Dash sounding like a 10-year-old kid. Incredibles 2 was another box office success and was even nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe.
2 Fantasia
126 minutes
Fantasia is the longest Disney movie that's animated. It is also one of Disney’s oldest animated films as it was released in 1940. Fantasia has a runtime of just over two hours. Fantasia 2000, the sequel to Fantasia, was released in 1999 by Walt Disney’s nephew. The film is mostly composed of animated segments, pairing stories with classical music provided by the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Fantasia is a critically acclaimed film and was the first commercial film shown in stereo sound with reproduction via a technology known as Fantasound. Over its 80 years, it has become one of the highest-grossing films in the United States.
1 The Lord Of The Rings
132 Minutes
It's no shocker that one of The Lord of the Rings movies counts as one of Western cinema's longest films. However, it's not the one people think. Before the popular movie trilogy with Elijah Wood and Ian McKellen, there was an animated film that was released in 1978 based upon the J.R.R Tolkien novels.
The total runtime of The Lord of the Rings is 132 minutes. The film actually performed quite well, and John Hurt even voiced the character of Aragorn. There was no sequel made, however, and the film actually ends with the siege of Helm's Deep.