'Strange World' Disney's 2022 Animated Film

[Andrew C]

I just want a return to good animated features....

 

[Phroobar]

I just want a return to good animated features....

That is what Illumination is for.

 

[DKampy]

Remember, as of today Wakanda Forever still hasn't earned a profit. It cost $250 Million to produce, and it's global box office hasn't yet broken the 3X The Budget threshold of $750 Million. That will happen sometime this weekend, but it's already petering out at the box office. Wakanda Forever may only make $100 Million or less for Burbank.

And you want them to continue making flops like Lightyear and Strange World just to prove a point?

That's not realistically or financially sustainable, no matter how lofty the ambition.

so 100 million in profit net gain is a flop…here’s to me flopping

 

[Phroobar]

Agreed 100% they also c

so 100 million in profit net gain is a flop…here’s to me flopping

It still doesn't make expected returns. Breaking even is not expected for a Marvel movie no matter how much they hype up the death of last movie's star as part of their marketing.

 

[DKampy]

Well, it may be worth asking yourself why you feel that way.

As a gay man, I’m delighted that young queer people are finally able to see people like themselves in Disney productions. Perhaps it’ll help them to feel better about themselves than I did growing up. Hurrah for progress!

Agreed…my nephew just came out..and I know it has been tough on him…you know who you are attracted to by your teen years…how does one even go about being honest with your peers at that age…the more we normalize it… the less stigma there will be…it takes all different people to make this world go around…your a narcissist if you think everything revolves what make you up as a person

By the way the largest suicidal group is gay teens

 

[MrPromey]

I used to feel this way. Then I realised the importance of allyship, particularly given that those who dislike us tend to group us all together as deviants anyway. We are stronger together.

I'm not sure your age but these are people from an "older generation" - not the ones everyone focuses on with this kind of stuff, these days, it seems.

They became adults in a time when it wasn't talked about, when it was something they were taught to be ashamed of, etc. and that was broadly accepted as okay by the wider culture at large - not just something you had to be careful of in certain towns or parts of the country (obviously, this is very specific to the US) - when certain subjects in media, if addressed at all, were punchlines - like Three's Company.

They're point, I believe, wasn't so much that they didn't feel for these other people as it was "see me as an individual". They never signed up for any culture war and seemed tired of people assuming what they are and aren't for, just because they've been in an almost 30 year same-sex relationship.

... and I get that.

As I get older, I find myself a lot less passionate about "causes" in general than I was when I was younger and more about making my way through life and trying to raise a self-aware confident son who doesn't fall into any of the traps I see around him - things like nine year olds committing suicide. (His cousin had one in her school last year and I had to talk about it with him because she'd told him about it)

I understand that in the broader sense, the world around him that he will live in still matters but I see a strong point of diminishing returns when it comes to spitting into the wind for change in that world when I could put that same energy and focus into helping him become stronger and better learn to navigate it.

He'll have his own time for the causes he chooses, just like I did mine.

For them, they have no children and maybe you could consider them selfish for not wanting to pay it forward more but I think that comes down to perspective from a generational standpoint.

Things have already changed more in the last 10-15 years than all of human history combined. They've gone from not sharing their relationship openly with people they aren't close to, to being able to legally get married with equal respect in the eyes of the law within a single decade.

I remember when the person in question came out to me, he was anticipating some form of shock and actually seemed a little disappointed when he didn't get it but when you really know a person, it's hard for them to hide who they are... and I had an unusual childhood. Most kids don't get taken to see Trockadero by their grandmother when they're seven years old - so I didn't particularly care about the non-shocking reveal.

There will always be progress to be made with everything but there are only so many years in a human life and at some point, when the reality of that sets in, you have to start thinking about how you want to spend what you have left of them.

For a younger more passionate person, that may seem selfish but again, I get it - everyone has their time.

 

[DKampy]

It still doesn't make expected returns. Breaking even is not expected for a Marvel movie no matter how much they hype up the death of last movie's star as part of their marketing.

Except it is not breaking even..it will make 100 million in profit at the very least

Edit: It is still ahead of Strange MOM at this point in it’s run and that made close to a billion

 

[Ghost93]

But I will be watching very closely for Elemental and Wish and future family animation from Burbank to see if they try shoehorning in more gay characters into family films. I'm thinking they're going to pause and pull back on that for now.

She's not always reliable, but Grace Randolph from Beyond the Trailer said she's heard that Wish will have "strong" LGBTQ representation.

However, she made this statement before the box office failure of Strange World. Ariana DeBose, who is voicing the main character, is "openly queer," so it could have been seen as an opportunity by Disney to have its first lesbian princess voiced by a queer actress. We shall see next November.

 

[Heppenheimer]

But some of you are misidentifying the issue and therefore hoping for a kind of change that I find totally objectionable, because it's basically asking Disney to pander to reactionary fearmongering. Wherever we stand on the issue ideologically, we all know that Disney is never going to go back to making films that don't feature queer characters and romances. The shift has happened, and it's permanent.

I agree that lessons should be learnt from the poor reception of Lightyear (which I found extremely boring) and Strange Word (which I haven't seen yet and so can't really comment on). But those lessons have to do with storytelling, marketing, etc. Representation and diversity are not the problem here.

I just hope Disney Feature Animation stays away from science fiction. They really do no have a good track record with the genre, but to be fair, most other animation studios don't either.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

I’m surprised you would draw the line at a welcome-home kiss. Classic Disney animated films often depict full-on snogging:

Would you consider this inappropriate for an eight-year-old? (I’m asking sincerely, by the way, not to catch you out or anything!)

Perhaps should have just said a kiss, many movies have a kiss or two in some form.

 

[LittleBuford]

The problem is, and this is a real issue. Disneys reputation has changed. They used to be known for making creative, funny, exciting, family movies. Now, they are known for diversity and inclusion in film making. Not both. Just the latter.

“Used to” suggests a long time ago, yet most of Disney’s recent animated films have been pretty well received. Does the failure of Strange World undo the success of Encanto that easily for you?

 

[Andrew C]

Except it is not breaking even..it will make 100 million in profit at the very least

When a studio forecasts a move to return a certain amount and it doesn't, it is a problem. I imagine the expectation was for it to make well above a 100 million profit. They were projecting a certain amount of money to be there, and not it seems it won't be. We will see where it lands.

 

[LittleBuford]

Have you ever met a four year old?

Yep. My niece and nephew, for example. Both saw me with my partner from their infancy onwards. If they had any questions, their parents simply answered, “Some men love other men instead of women.” They dealt with it just fine.

 

[LittleBuford]

Agreed…my nephew just came out..and I know it has been tough on him…you know who you are attracted to by your teen years…how does one even go about being honest with your peers at that age…the more we normalize it… the less stigma there will be…it takes all different people to make this world go around…your a narcissist if you think everything revolves what make you up as a person

By the way the largest suicidal group is gay teens

Congratulations to your nephew! Coming out can be a difficult process, but also an exciting and uplifting one!

 

[LittleBuford]

I just hope Disney Feature Animation stays away from science fiction. They really do no have a good track record with the genre, but to be fair, most other animation studios don't either.

I admit to enjoying both Treasure Planet and Atlantis. I rewatched them recently and think they’re both much better than their reputation suggests.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I used to feel this way. Then I realised the importance of allyship, particularly given that those who dislike us tend to group us all together as deviants anyway. We are stronger together.

Okay, two things, depending on what you mean by "us."

Thing 1, if by "us" you mean LGBT people: Not everyone who disagrees with you on certain things dislikes you. I think you need to allow some room for bona fide disagreement, especially when it comes to public policy debates. For example, do you acknowledge that parents might have some legitimate interest in understanding how a public school's guidance office might handle a student who comes to them saying they want to medically transition to another gender? Do you not see that this is a matter of grave importance to parents? Do you not recognize that calling every parent a bigot if they don't immediately react with enthusiasm to gender affirmation treatment for children whose minds and bodies are nowhere near fully developed pushes them into a reactionary anti-LGBTQ position even if they would otherwise be allies?

Thing 2, if by "us" you mean everyone who identifies as LGBTQ+: There are actual deviants who use the rainbow flag as a shield from criticism. There are people in your camp that it would be best to kick out because they allow the opposition to paint to the whole movement as freaks. It's the "Libs of TikTok" problem. The Internet allows the clickbait sites to amplify the most shocking behavior and frame it as typical of a much broader group of people.

 

[LittleBuford]

Thing 2, if by "us" you mean everyone who identifies as LGBTQ+: There are actual deviants who use the rainbow flag as a shield from criticism.

And it should be clear as day that I unequivocally disavow such individuals, if by “deviant” you’re referring to those who sexually abuse others. It’s absurd to suggest that I’m somehow allying myself with them by default.

The rest of your post isn’t something I can respond to without getting more political than the moderators will allow (several of my posts have already been removed), but suffice it to say that you are putting a lot of words into my mouth and reductively mischaracterising my beliefs.

 

[Consumer]

I rewatched Frozen the other night. First time I watched it since probably 2014. What a great movie. Disney needs to go back to making cinema like that again.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Yep. My niece and nephew, for example. Both saw me with my partner from their infancy onwards. If they had any questions, their parents simply answered, “Some men love other men instead of women.” They dealt with it just fine.

Right. And that's wonderful. I'm sincerely happy that there's no pressure in your family to hide who you are or lie about your relationship with your partner.

Now... At some point your niece is going to approach puberty and her parents are going to have to prepare her for what's going to happen to her body, lest she feel shame or panic or some other horrible psychological effect when she has her first period. The conversation about menstruation is probably going to lead to a conversation about ovulation... which might further result in a conversation about intercourse and fertilization and implantation and pregnancy. And then your niece, who might be 9 or 10 years old at this point, is going to be thinking through all of this new information along with other things she knows and ask "wait... what about Uncle Buford and Uncle Partner?"

There's nothing wrong with any of that. But it's not a conversation that parents want to be thrust into out of nowhere just because they took their kid to a Disney matinee.

 

[LittleBuford]

Right. And that's wonderful. I'm sincerely happy that there's no pressure in your family to hide who you are or lie about your relationship with your partner.

There was pressure. For years. Many of you seem to think that I’m speaking from some liberal pedestal rather than as someone with direct experience of the attitudes under discussion. It took over ten years for my dad to finally come to terms with my sexuality.

Now... At some point your niece is going to approach puberty and her parents are going to have to prepare her for what's going to happen to her body, lest she feel shame or panic or some other horrible psychological effect when she has her first period. The conversation about menstruation is probably going to lead to a conversation about ovulation... which might further result in a conversation about intercourse and fertilization and implantation and pregnancy. And then your niece, who might be 9 or 10 years old at this point, is going to be thinking through all of this new information along with other things she knows and ask "what... what about Uncle Buford and Uncle Partner?"

There's nothing wrong with any of that. But it's not a conversation that parents want to be thrust into out of nowhere just because they took their kid to a Disney matinee.

But those conversations are going to happen anyway. Young people today are inevitably going to encounter depictions of queer love, if not actual queer people expressing affection for one another out there in the real world.