Walt Disney Animation Studios, in a significant leadership shift, named Academy Award-winning filmmaker Jared Bush on Thursday as its new chief creative officer, effective immediately.

Lee is stepping down as Disney's animation chief and will return exclusively to filmmaking.

Lee is writing and directing “Frozen 3” and writing “Frozen 4” with Marc Smith — the sequels to Disney Animation’s 2013 “Snow Queen”-inspired cultural hit “Frozen,” for which she served as writer/director. The movie made $1.3 billion worldwide and earned two Oscars, for best animated feature and for earworm song “Let It Go.”

Walt Disney Animation Studios, in a significant leadership shift, on Thursday named Academy Award-winning filmmaker Jared Bush as its new chief creative officer, effective immediately.

Walt Disney Animation Studios is replacing Jennifer Lee, its chief creative officer, after an uneven six-year tenure.

Encanto' and 'Zootopia' director Jared Bush has been named chief creative officer at Walt Disney Animation as Jennifer Lee steps back and returns to filmmaking for 'Frozen 3' and 'Frozen 4.'

Director-writer Jared Bush is replacing Jennifer Lee as chief creative officer of the Walt Disney Animation Studios as Lee returns to filmmaking full time at the company and stewards the Frozen franchise, Disney announced Thursday. He’ll report to Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman, effective immediately.

Jennifer Lee has officially announced that she is stepping down from her role as chief creative officer at Walt Disney Animation Studios to return to filmmaking and will be directing both Frozen 3 and its follow-up,