Over the past five years, Disney has released ten live-action versions of previously released animated films. But why does Disney seem to be remaking so many already-loved animated films? Is Disney pandering toward its traditional audience? Could Disney be rushing through these movies, sacrificing the quality and their reputation? These are questions that frequent the minds of many lifelong Disney fans.
Disney is most known for the childlike sense of wonder that its movies create for families worldwide. Because of their past success, Disney has developed twelve global theme parks earning approximately $36.2 billion yearly.
For the people who have grown up with the animated movies, these remakes could appear to be changing something that doesn’t need to be changed or repaired. However, others believe these movies benefit a different demographic that might not have been represented.
While live-action Disney remakes often receive a lot of negative publicity, former Millbrook dance teacher Ari Cruz said, “No matter how you feel about the remake, you still watched it, which still means that you were curious enough to see the product and for Disney to make money back from the project.”
Sophomore Maeley Roach said, “Honestly, I think there’s been so many [remakes] recently because Disney doesn’t have as much new content to make so they are trying to take their most popular movies and remake them.”
While Disney may be creating these remakes for the pure reason of profit, the question is ‘are people are enjoying the films?’ There are many remakes that some may not even realize have been released. A remake of “Peter Pan” (1953) was released in April 2023 called “Peter Pan and Wendy.” This movie, directed by David Lowry, scored a 4.4/10 on IMDB and an 11 percent audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes. One IMDB review rated this movie a 4/10 and said, “The pacing was all over the place and too fast, the main characters were bland and unlikable, the camera angles were odd, the color scheme was washed out and depressing… so in conclusion, it’s unwatchable and boring, save yourself time and don’t watch it.”
Another film that went a bit under the radar to fans is the 2022 “Pinocchio” remake starring Tom Hanks. This film was given a 5.1/10 on IMDB and a 27 percent audience review on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics described this film as “lifeless” and “basic.”
Both of these examples are films that have done poorly after release but there are a few remakes that do well. For example, the 2017 remake of “Beauty and the Beast,” directed by Bill Condon, was awarded a 7.1/10 on IMDB and a 71 precent on Rotten Tomatoes.
Roach described her positive feelings towards this movie as she said, “That live-action was so good and Emma Watson played her role so perfectly.”
Disney has a difficult job upholding so many expectations given by so many fans. To one person, the movies could be even better than the originals and to the next, they could disappoint and even ruin a franchise.
