He plays Paul Moldebrandt in the Japanese version of the hit film
By Ali Shutler 2nd December 2025
Hideo Kojima. CREDIT: Kojima Productions
Hideo Kojima, the creator of Death Stranding and Metal Gear Solid, has reportedly been cast as a mole in the Japanese version of Zootopia 2.
- READ MORE: How Woodkid’s bizarre pop made the world of ‘Death Stranding 2’ even stranger
The sequel to the 2016’s Zootopia follows rabbit detective Judy Hopps and her fox friend Nick Wilde as they investigate a smuggling ring that may or may not be led by the slippery Gary De’Snake.
AdvertisementThe film was released in the UK and America last month while a Japanese version is set to premiere later this week.According to a report from Famitsu, Kojima has been cast as Paul Moldebrandt (a mole who works at the Zootopia Police Department) after being asked by the film’s director Jared Bush.
Hideo Kojima has been cast as Paul Moldebrandt in the Japanese version of 'Zootopia 2'
It's his first voice acting role in an animated film
(via @famitsu) pic.twitter.com/7OQZnsoLWV
— Culture Crave 🍿 (@CultureCrave) December 2, 2025
“I have plenty of experience with cameo appearances in live-action films and games, but this was my first time dubbing an animated feature film,” Kojima said (via VGC) “And it’s from Disney! And for the sequel to Zootopia, my favourite Disney movie! What’s more, because the offer came directly from director Jared Bush, I was incredibly honoured and accepted without hesitation.”
Kojima will take over from Josh Gad (the voice of Olaf in Frozen) who played Moldebrandt in the English version of Zootopia 2.
Zootopia 2 is already a box office hit and has smashed several records around the world by taking $497million in its opening weekend.
RecommendedLast month, Hideo Kojima was forced to debunk rumours he was set to create a video game adaptation of The Matrix. “There was no mention of an offer. “At that time, I was already extremely busy with Metal Gear Solid 2 and probably couldn’t have accepted the offer right away. But if someone had told me, maybe there could’ve been a way to make it work,” he explained on social media.
Kojima is currently working on a big screen adaptation of Death Stranding with A24 though won’t be directing it himself. He’s also developing a game with celebrated horror director Jordan Peele and has plans for a new stealth game, codename Physint, though that probably won’t be released until 2030.
In other news, gaming fans are speculating about a mysterious statue that’s appeared near Joshua Tree in California with rumours about a Diablo 4 expansion and a new God Of War already debunked.
