Disney’s neophobia to new IP's
Criticism arose following Disney Animated Studios announcing the list of up and coming animated movies. Half of which are sequels to existing animated movies including “The Incredibles 3,” “Coco 2” and “Zootopia 3.” It begs the question of if the Mouse House has lost the magic when it comes to creating original stories.
“I am not happy that most of the animated movies now are sequels because I feel like most of the time it ruins the previous movies,” said Alexa Bolte, a King’s Academy junior and member of the Advanced Visual Arts. “I would like to see them explore different concepts and styles so that they would stand out more.”
A major contention surrounding Disney, as it pertains to their animated movies, is the lack of original stories or original ‘intellectual properties’ (IPs) in recent years. Ask anyone what their favorite Disney animated movie is and answers such as “Aladdin,” “Snow White” and “Lion King” will be paired to modern classics; such as “Frozen,” “The Incredibles” and “Zootopia.”
“My favorite [Disney movie] is either Tangled, because I wanted her hair when I was little or Cars; I like Owen Wilson a lot and it’s a really funny movie with a good plot,” said Bolte.
Imagine being asked what was most memorable about a recent Disney animated movie, if nothing comes to mind, one could conclude that the quality of Disney’s story writing and character writing has slipped since its Golden Age.
“I hope that they are a different plot and not the same story just with a different name,” said Bolte. “If they’re truly original then they will convince Disney to use their imagination more instead of constant sequels and remakes.”
According to IMDb, the classic Disney movie “Inside Out” was made on a budget of $175 million and worldwide grossed to $859 million. Compare that to Disney’s recent original movie “Elio” which was made on a budget of $150 million and bombed at the box office, failing to gross worldwide above $153 million. Considering these statistics, some might suggest that Disney is being pragmatic, releasing sequels they know will do well and turn a profit.
“I think that they are playing it safe, remaking and doing sequels of movies to keep the money flowing. Sometimes if you introduce a new idea there is a chance that the audience won’t take it well and instead of making money they lose it,” said Bolte.
While playing it safe does seem to be Disney’s strategy, whether it is the right one ought to be contested. In contrast to Disney’s failing original IPs, Sony Pictures Animation’s “K-Pop Demon Hunters” became a cultural-phenomenon by growing from a direct-to-streaming movie to the most watched original animated film on Netflix. Historic rivals such as DreamWorks Animation have seen success with original animated movie IPs, with “The Wild Robot” made on a budget of $78 million and shoveled in a $334 million world wide; all whilst never letting go of its high-quality animation.
While it may be risky to bet a profit on an entirely new IP, the risk does not minimize the potential reward seen when success is struck. In tandem with Disney’s lack of creative originality, the once too-big-to-fail Disney has fallen into the quagmire of monotony when it comes to its own animation style.
“I’d like to see them do something different like Sony did with ‘Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse’ because I really like how fun and comic that style is. Disney’s style is a fabricated realism—you can tell the characters are people and it has really good shading, but not symmetrical enough to look extremely realistic,” Bolte said.
The only true escape for Disney, when it comes to their animated movies, is to press pause on the sequels. Rather, embracing the imagination and creativity which it had founded itself upon could turn the tide of Disney’s fortune; and more importantly pave the way for modern classics deserving of future generations of animated movie fans.
Comments