Recap: The Best of Disney's D23 Expo

The Walt Disney Company trotted out their best and brightest over the weekend with pomp and circumstance at their third annual D23 Expo, previewing projects to come with the help of some celebrity shine and plenty of pixie dust for good measure. Read on for a recap of some of the best things to look forward to on the Disney slate -- plus the biggest missed opportunity of the event (!).

D23 Expo fans got the first-ever look at the trailer for Maleficent, and the film's star Angelina Jolie made a surprise appearance, taking the stage to share her affinity with the title character from the 1959 animated classic Sleeping Beauty. "Since I was a little girl, Maleficent was always my favorite," she told the crowd after a standing ovation. "I was terrified of her, but I was also drawn to her. I wanted to know more about her. She had this elegance and grace, yet she was wonderfully, deliciously cruel." Jolie's daughter Vivienne Jolie-Pitt was seen in the footage, and the film's director Robert Stromberg told ET that she wasn't afraid of her mom's scary look – in fact she kept on trying to rip them off her head!

Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige took center stage to preview some of the most anticipated live-action films on Disney's slate. The cast of Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Chris Evans, Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan – were on hand to preview their April 2014 sequel, while Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins and Tom Hiddleston excited the crowd with footage from their November 8 release Thor: The Dark World. Audiences also got to see a clip from Guardians of the Galaxy, which went into production in London in June and hits theaters August 2014.

More previews of Disney's slate included first public details on Disney's Into the Woods starring Meryl Streep, Johnny Depp, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine and Emily Blunt (December 2014); a glimpse of the live-action Cinderella from director Kenneth Branagh (March 2015); director Brad Bird along with co-writer/producer Damon Lindelof screened a mysterious, Lost-like teaser for their upcoming Tomorrowland (December 2014) starring George Clooney, and opened up an equally mysterious box of items onstage; Disneynature's Bears will captivate audiences in April 2014; and after a pair of clips from the making-of Mary Poppins tale Saving Mr. Banks (starring Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson, in theaters Dec. 13) were shown, co-stars Jason Schwartzman and B.J Novak welcomed Mary Poppins composer Richard Sherman to the stage and led a confetti-filled, grand-finale sing-along performance of Let's Go Fly a Kite from the classic Disney film.

After being treated to footage from Muppets Most Wanted, the film's star Ty Burrell took the stage piloting a tiny European car to the audience's delight. The Modern Family star plays French Interpol agent Jean Pierre Napoleon alongside Ricky Gervais, Tina Fey and of course Muppet favorites Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy, who greeted guests "from the film’s international set," plus a fun and funny musical number got feet tapping at the Anaheim Convention Center. Muppets Most Wanted hits theaters March 21, 2014.

Animation big cheese John Lasseter, who holds the title as chief creative officer for Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios, unveiled an ambitious slate of animated films with lots of clips and test footage, including the upcoming Disney-Pixar films Finding Dory (November 2015), The Good Dinosaur (May 2014) and Inside Out, plus Walt Disney Animation Studios' Zootopia (a working title, out 2016), Big Hero 6 (November 2014), Frozen (November 27, 2103), Planes: Fire & Rescue (with Dane Cook returning to play Dusty Crophopper July 2014) and two new Tinker Bell movies: The Pirate Fairy (starring Mad Men's Christina Hendricks as the title fairy and Tom Hiddleston as a young, singing Captain Hook!) and Legend of the NeverBeast (Spring 2015).

A highlight of the bunch was The Good Dinosaur, asking "what if" the asteroid that erased the dinosaur population missed the earth entirely? Bill Hader, Judy Greer and Lucas Neff took the stage to introduce their dino characters – who are modern-day farmers – and showed footage along with co-director Peter Sohn and producer Denise Ream. Lots of moments and cute character tests were shown from the humorous and exciting story, which follows Arlo, a lively 70-foot-tall teen Apatosaurus who meets a young human boy named Spot. Neil Patrick Harris, John Lithgow and Frances McDormand round out the voice cast of the dino family.

Frozen stars Kristen Bell, Josh Gad and Idina Menzel came out to share their all-time Disney favorite films and showcase the new Disney animated feature in theaters November 27. The visually stunning tale showcases not one but two classic Disney princesses in the story of Anna (voiced by Bell), a modest princess and fearless optimist who teams up with rugged mountain man Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) on an epic journey (encountering Everest-like conditions, mystical trolls and a hilarious snowman named Olaf, played by a goofy Gad) to find Anna’s sister Elsa (Menzel), whose icy powers have trapped the kingdom of Arendelle in eternal winter. The presentation culminated in a captivating performance by Tony winner Menzel singing the film’s powerful new song Let It Go.

Director Byron Howard (Tangled) and writer Jared Bush talked up their fun animated comedy adventure Zootopia (a working title, in theaters 2016), showing detailed drawings and concepts of their imaginative animal city. The film tells the story of a fast-talking fox who goes on the run when he's framed for a crime he didn’t commit, teaming up with his natural enemy -- a self-righteous rabbit cop -- after the two become targets of a conspiracy. Sounds serious, but the footage was anything but – lots of fun anthropomorphic characters and clever interpretations of natural habitats turned into colorful city dwellings.

Audiences were treated to lots of new animated projects, including the premiere of Get a Horse, featuring Mickey Mouse himself in a black-and-white, hand-drawn theatrical short that opens in front of Frozen this November; Party Central, a rollicking new Monsters University short to open before The Good Dinosaur next year; 10 minutes of Disney-Pixar's Toy Story of Terror delighted crowds (it premieres on ABC this October 16); and Bill Hader took the stage multiple times, being in no less than three Disney-Pixar films: Monsters University, Inside Out and The Good Dinosaur. The final time -- dressed as a sea cucumber -- he amusingly lobbied to also star in Finding Dory, but Pixar Lucky Charm John Ratzenberger surprisingly took the stage – backed by a marching band, no less -- for a fun back-and-forth of one-upmanship.

Because so many projects were unveiled for the first time at D23 Expo and so many more details and footage were revealed for known projects, the bar was set very high for something to be said about Star Wars VII. With no word on the hugely anticipated, upcoming Star Wars sequel at July's Comic-Con, anticipation was high that, having recently acquired Lucasfilm Ltd., Disney would use the D23 Expo to make a big announcement about the new film to be directed by J.J. Abrams. Perhaps the worst-kept secret in the galaxy – that Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher have been asked to reprise their iconic roles for the new movie – would finally be officially confirmed, and we'd get to see the trio appear together onstage. Alas, other than the acknowledgement that the film is in the works, no new information was released. Disney Chairman Alan Horn simply told the audience, "I do wish I could tell you more, but there are dark forces -- and they are watching."