Have you seen Hoppers? The 2026 Disney and Pixara release stars Piper Curda as animal-loving Mabel Tanaka. She hijacks a new technology meant to study animals to save their habitat. She transfers – or “hops” her mind into an animatronic beaver. It’s like Avatar, but not.
Critics are hailing Hoppers as one of the studio’s best new releases in years. Better still: there are Production Babies.
WHAT ARE PRODUCTION BABIES?
Ever since the very first Pixar movie, Toy Story, debuted in 1995, the studio has followed a fascinating tradition. Disney adopted the practice, as have plenty of other animation studios over time.
They’ve listed the names of any babies born to the staff responsible for the movie in that film’s credits.
Those names appear at the very end, under the heading Production Babies. Because, well, these babies arrived during the movie’s creation.
That’s 30 lists from Pixar alone, if you’re counting.
After all, animated movies take a long time – sometimes years – to go from early concept to finished product. The team involved with the process is considerable, big enough to guarantee at least a few new arrivals. If your family grows while you’re focused on a movie, well, inevitably you’ll think of Toy Story 4 or Elio as part of those memories.
For lots of reasons, Snow White and Peter Pan credits didn’t include a list of Production Babies.
Still, the first Toy Story movie was released in 1995, it’s not exactly a new phenomenon. But it’s easy to miss unless you’re eagerly watching to the very end of the film.
Also worth noting: these aren’t exactly birth announcements. Production babies lists don’t share gender, date – or even year – of birth, or the parent’s role on the film. A handful of lists might note twins. Occasionally, if two Production Babies share a first name, the initial of their surname (presumably) is also included.
It’s nicely egalitarian, too. It doesn’t matter if the production baby’s parent was the A-list celebrity or the junior accountant, their names appear in alphabetical order.
Past commenters have confirmed that parents decide how their children’s names appear. A name listed as Ellie, for example, might be short for something, or not – but we only know what the parents choose to share.
But that really doesn’t take anything away from the sheer delight of getting a peek at the names chosen by the talented creators behind the movies.
ABOUT THE MOVIE HOPPERS
Released in March of 2026, Hoppers is the story of principled, fearless Mabel Tanaka. We meet her in elementary school, as she tries to free the class pets. Later, she’s a crusading college student, intent on saving a local glade from the developers eager to build a new highway.
Warning: Mild Spoilers Ahead
Mabel cares about the Glade because she wants to protect animals, but it’s more than that. It was the place she and her beloved grandmother spent time together.
The solution comes when Mabel hijacks tech meant to study animals at a distance, and uses it to organize them into an army. For most of the movie, Mabel is wearing a quite convincing beaver suit.
WILL NAME MABEL RISE?
The character’s name is an intriguing choice. It ultimately comes from Amabilis, a Latin name meaning “lovable.”
Disney has given Mabel a boost before, with one of the main characters in animated series Gravity Falls.
While other characters have names, some of them are merely titles: Insect Queen, for example. Others are pretty basic: Sam, Ellen, George. Even the shark is called Diane.
Fun fact: in the German dub, Heidi Klum voices the shark, who is renamed Hai-Di. Hai is a Chinese name that can mean ocean.
Since returning to the US Top 1000 in 2013, the baby name Mabel has steadily risen in use. It’s one to watch.
HOPPERS PRODUCTION BABIES: THE LIST
Hoppers lists just 19 production babies – a very small group, compared to 33 for Elemental or KPop Demon Hunters’ 25 names. But it’s a fun list, nevertheless – almost reading like a roster at a Bay Area kindergarten, blending stylish favorites with surprises.
- AIDEN
- ARIE
- ATLAS
- COSIMA
- EMILIA
- ETHAN
- GRANT
- GUSTAVO
- ISAIAH
- LILY
- MATEO
- NASH
- OLIVER
- OLLIE
- RYAN
- SIMONE
- SOPHIE
- STELLA
- TAKUYA
ABOUT THE HOPPERS PRODUCTION BABIES NAMES
A wide range of styles is represented by the Hoppers production babies.
FAMILIAR FAVORITES
Aiden, Ethan, Isaiah, Oliver, Ryan are familiar go-tos for boys.
On the girls’ side, Emilia, Lily, Sophie, and Stella are heard across the English-speaking world and beyond.
SOLID SONS
Two names that leapt off the screen: Grant and Nash. They’re not traditional, in the Robert and James sense. But they’re rock solid choices, substantial and well-liked without being trendy.
IMPORTS
It feels unreasonable to call Mateo an import when it ranks in the US Top Ten. Spanish is as much an American language as English for much of the country. But it is the romance language version of Matthew, which was the dominant form in the US until recently, so let’s keep it here.
Gustavo, too, is a Spanish language classic.
Perhaps the most fascinating choice on the list is Takuya. A traditional masculine Japanese name, Takuya comes from elements mean “to expand.” Appropriately enough, one of the most famous bearers of the name is Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi, who spent time at the International Space Station in 2025. The meaning feels incredibly right for a Pixar baby, and given Mabel’s Japanese heritage, it’s a thrill to see that represented on the production babies’ list, too.
Speaking of all things space, Italian girl’s name Cosima comes from the same root as cosmos, referring to the universe. It has a vague British aristocrat vibe, too, but in this company, it reads like a little global citizen.
Impeccably French Simone is part hero name (thanks to the extraordinary Simone Biles), an alternative to Charlotte, and just a little bit of an import, too.
NEWCOMERS
These last three names are plenty familiar circa 2026, but still have a bit of novelty to them.
Oliver and Olivia are Top Ten favorites, but just Ollie is fun and carefree, a brother for Scottie, a sister for Dash.
Arie reads as strongly unisex, a midpoint between Ari and Ariana that’s ethereal and strong.
As for Atlas? It suggests adventure, with a hint of mythological favorite. And it’s poised just outside of the current US boys’ Top 100, making it very much a Pixar production baby kind of choice – fresh, interesting, and not quite mainstream just yet.
