Rise of the Guardians: Vol. 2

Rise of the Guardians: Vol. 2 is a 2018 American 3D computer-animated action-adventure fantasy dramedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Universal Pictures. The sequel to 2012's Rise of the Guardians, it is based on William Joyce's The Guardians of Childhood book series and The Man in the Moon short film by Joyce and Reel FX Creative Studios. Jennifer Yuh Nelson and Christina Steinberg directed the movie with Joyce and Guillermo del Toro being executive producers of the film. Peter Ramsey, the director of the first movie, did not return for the film due to his occupation with Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse but remained as both creative consultant and additional story artist.

The film stars Chris Pine, Alec Baldwin, Isla Fisher, Hugh Jackman, and Jude Law reprising their character roles from the first film, with Miles Bakshi (replacing Dakota Goyo), Gary Oldman, Christopher Lloyd, Patrick Warbuton, Kristin Chenoweth, Jacob Tremblay, and Ruby Barnhill joining the cast.

Set several months after the first film, the plot revolves around the Guardians who enlist young Jamie to save the world from both Pitch Black and Heat Miser who have very powerful weapons that they plan to destroy children's imaginations with. However, Jamie discovers a terrifying secret about his past, and discovers that Pitch Black has something to do with it.

The film was released on December 25, 2018 and unlike it's predecessor, received largely positive reviews, with critics praising its animation, voice acting, musical score, action sequences, emotional depth, character development, and darker, more serious tone compared to its predecessor, although some criticized the plot as derivative of both Kung Fu Panda 2 and Rise of the Guardians. The film grossed $950 million worldwide against its $180 million budget. It is also the first DreamWorks Animation film to be rated PG-13 as it has a lot of thematic elements throughout.