The Trolls Are Back With A New Holiday Special Coming To NBC

It's been a while since "Trolls World Tour" was released — but if you were wondering when you might see the affable, colorful little creatures again, you don't have long to wait. NBC will air "Trolls Holiday in Harmony" this season as a half-hour animated special, with Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Kenan Thompson, and Rachel Bloom returning to the roles they played in the two films (via Deadline). 

The first "Trolls" movie released in 2016, and "Trolls World Tour" followed in April 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Actually, a holiday special already exists. "Trolls Holiday" was created in 2017 and you can catch it on Netflix. DreamWorks Animation also produced a TV series, "Trolls The Beat Goes On," the animated offering without the original voices: it has dropped eight short seasons so far, also available on Netflix. It's all part of NBCUniversal's continuing plan to turn "Trolls" into a major media franchise (via Fox Business) following its purchase of DreamWorks Animation in 2016 (via CNN). 

This holiday special will add to the "Trolls" growing library with a return of the A-list cast, new songs, and a sweet plot suitable for family viewing.

In "Trolls Holiday in Harmony," Queen Poppy (Kendrick) is planning a Trolls Kingdom Secret Holiday Gift Swap. She and Branch (Timberlake) draw each other's names, an incident that has unexpected consequences. A subplot features Tiny Diamond (Thompson) trying to create a holiday rap for his father, but developing writer's block. Naturally, the half-hour special will feature four original musical numbers.

In addition to the return of stars playing the characters Poppy, Branch, Tiny Diamond and Cybil, other "Trolls" and "Trolls World Tour" alums are returning to the DreamWorks Animation project. These include Ron Funches as Cooper, Kunal Nayyar as Guy Diamond, Anderson .Paak as Prince D, Ester Dean as Legsly, Anthony Ramos as King Trollex, Karan Soni as Riff, Walt Dohrn as multiple characters, and Da'Vine Joy Randolph, who played Sheila the Balloon and Bliss Marina in the franchise. 

"Trolls Holiday in Harmony" will air on Friday, Nov. 26 at 9 p.m. ET. But if you miss it, don't worry — you can purchase it digitally and on DVD from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment starting on Nov. 30. RCA will also release the digital soundtrack on Nov. 26, so you can keep the musical party going all season long.