Disney—the same studio behind Lightyear—has cut a Pride-related, gender-focused storyline from Pixar’s forthcoming series Win or Lose. In an astounding about face, the company stated that parents should have the freedom to address such topics with their children when they feel it’s appropriate.
This move comes as a shock, considering that the Walt Disney Company has often embraced identity politics, injecting divisive content into children’s programming at nearly every opportunity.
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Win or Lose is a Disney Pixar original series following a middle school co-ed softball team called The Pickles as they prepare for a championship game. Each episode of this limited series explores the home life of a different character, including coaches, umpires, and the middle-school-aged players themselves.
One of the eight episodes originally featured lines focusing on a character who identifies as a gender different from their anatomy. However, Disney confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that it has cut those lines and the character’s pride-centric storyline from the show.
“When it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognize that many parents would prefer to discuss certain subjects with their children on their own terms and timeline,” a Disney spokesperson said in a statement to THR.
The coach and players of The Pickles on Win or Lose – YouTube, Pixar
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The character remains in the show despite the removed storyline. Sources close to the production say Disney made this decision several months ago, though the company declined further comment.
Disney’s stance surprised many, given how the company landed in hot water with the Florida State Government for publicly opposing the “Parental Rights in Education Bill.”
This legislation aimed to give parents more influence in their children’s education by limiting teachers from sharing divisive content in the classroom. Disney’s opposition to the bill earned the ire of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who dissolved Walt Disney World’s special Reedy Creek Improvement District.
Ron DeSantis via News4JAX The Local Station YouTube
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Analysts estimate that this loss will ultimately cost Disney upwards of $1 trillion.
Disney’s about-face on this topic likely has little to do with an ideological shift. Rather, the company learned costly lessons by trying to push this kind of content in children’s programming.
The 2022 Pixar film Lightyear featured a same-gender kiss and performed poorly at the box office, earning just $226.4 million worldwide against a $200 million budget.
MAKING SPACE – Disney and Pixar’s “Lightyear” introduces Alisha Hawthorne (voice of Uzo Aduba), Buzz’s long-time commander, fellow Space Ranger and trusted friend. Directed by Angus MacLane (co-director “Finding Dory”) and produced by Galyn Susman (“Toy Story That Time Forgot”), the sci-fi action-adventure opens in U.S. theaters on June 17, 2022. © 2022 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
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Later that same year, the Disney Animation film Strange World included similar content and earned a total of $73.6 million against a $180 million budget. Analysts estimate that Strange World lost the Walt Disney Company nearly $200 million with marketing costs factored in.
However, 2024’s Inside Out 2 reportedly removed divisive content from its story and achieved massive financial success, generating $1.699 billion on a $200 million budget.
Mother Aniseya (Jodie Turner-Smith) in Lucasfilm’s THE ACOLYTE, season one, exclusively on Disney+. ©.
Disney has also seen Star Wars and Marvel properties that push divisive themes fail spectacularly at the box office and on Disney Plus.
Perhaps Disney has finally seen the writing on the wall.
Is the company ready to change its position on divisive content in children’s programming to win back conservative families? Will Disney be rewarded by audiences for these changes to Win or Lose? Sound off in the comment section below!
