Zootopia Wins Oscar for Best Animated Feature at 89th Academy Awards

Zootopia has won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature at the 89th Academy Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday night. The Disney film, a buddy comedy between a rabbit police officer and a fox con artist set in a city full of anthropomorphic animals, was the frontrunner at Hollywood's biggest night, having won the Golden Globe, Annie, and Critics' Choice awards previously.

"Thank you Academy, this is an incredible honour. About five years ago, almost six now, we got this crazy idea about humanity with talking animals, in the hopes that when the film came out, it would make the world just a slightly better place," Byron Howard, co-director on Zootopia, said in his acceptance speech.

"And we are so grateful to the audiences over the world who embraced this film, with this story of tolerance being more powerful than fear of the other," co-director Rich Moore added.

Zootopia was one of our favourite movies from last year, not just for its heartfelt storytelling, but more so for how it tackled a variety of topical themes - gender stereotyping, xenophobia, and racial diversiry - in a kids' friendly package.

The critical acclaim it garnered has helped the movie to its multiple award wins, but Zootopia was also the most commercially successful Oscar nominee with its $1-billion-plus at the worldwide box office, beating out Moana, Kubo and the Two Strings, My Life as a Zucchini, and The Red Turtle.

Directed by Byron Howard and Rich Moore, and co-directed by Jared Bush, the Disney animated adventure featured an extensive voice cast of Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba, Jenny Slate, Nate Torrence, Bonnie Hunt, Don Lake, Tommy Chong, J. K. Simmons, Octavia Spencer, Alan Tudyk, and Shakira.

The Oscars are still on-going in Los Angeles, with some of the biggest awards - Best Picture, and Best Actor/ Actress among others - yet to be given out. Mahershala Ali won the first Oscar of the night - Best Supporting Actor - for his work on Moonlight. Suicide Squad took home Best Makeup and Hairstyling, while Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them won Best Costume Design.