Disney sparked fan outrage on social media after it was revealed that it had removed a story involving a transgender character from its upcoming Pixar series, Win Or Lose.
The show, which will premiere on the Disney+ streaming service on February 19, would reportedly feature a trans character in a later episode of the eight-episode first season.
However, some dialogue was removed from that episode to obscure the character’s gender identity, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
A source close to the production stated that Disney decided to edit the episodes months ago.
In a statement, a Disney spokesperson addressed the report: “When it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognize that many parents would prefer to discuss certain topics with their children on their own terms and schedules.”
However, the company declined to comment on further details about the episode.
Disney sparked fan outrage on social media after it was revealed that it had removed a story involving a transgender character from its upcoming Pixar series, Win Or Lose.
The show would reportedly feature a trans character in a later episode, but some of the dialogue was edited to hide the character’s gender identity, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Each episode of Win Or Lose focuses on a member of a high school softball team, according to the show’s logline.
However, there was reportedly no entire episode dedicated to the trans character.
The latest news of Disney editing out LGBTQ content comes after the company came under fire after people who worked on the Disney Channel animated series Moon Girl And Devil Dinosaur claimed on social media that the studio abandoned an episode featuring prominently to a trans character.
However, Disney denied that the episode had been ‘banned’ and said the decision not to air it had no relation to the trans character.
Notably, the studio claimed that the decision had been made more than a year earlier, echoing Win Or Lose’s source’s claim that dialogue about the trans character had been edited months earlier.
The Disney+ series was originally scheduled to launch in December 2023, before it was delayed a year to December 2024.
The series then swapped release dates with another Pixar series, Dream Productions, for a February 19 release date, although it is unknown if the edited episode played any role in those delays.
The animated series is created, written and directed by Carrie Hobson and Michael Yates, who also serve as executive producers, along with David Lally, Pixar chief creative officer Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton and Lindsey Collins.
In a statement, a Disney spokesperson addressed the report: “When it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognize that many parents would prefer to discuss certain topics with their children on their own terms and schedules.”
A source close to the production stated that Disney decided to edit the episodes months ago
The move comes after people who worked on the Disney Channel series Moon Girl And Devil Dinosaur claimed the studio banned an episode for featuring a trans character, which Disney has denied.
On social media, Disney’s changes were met with outrage from fans.
“Disney does what Disney does best, appealing to profits over people who struggle simply to exist,” wrote one user on X (formerly Twitter). ‘Transphobes will praise him. Meanwhile, I dislike their praise more than I hate trans people.’
Another person criticized Disney and Pixar for having the “power to do anything” related to the LGBTQ community and choosing not to for years.
They also said the company was reckless for allegedly trying to attract people who couldn’t be convinced.
‘They are running away scared from the people who are already boycotting them because Snow White is not white. Someone tell them they can’t win this,’ the user wrote.
Some fans pointed to Disney’s pro-LGBTQ statements as evidence of hypocrisy on the brand’s part, including one person who reposted a photo shared by Disney’s account of its popular cartoon characters in front of a rainbow background.
One user decided that the “era of prominent LGBTQ+ representation” was over at Disney due to the brand’s commitment to “getting money from the community and not kindness toward them.”
Another fan accused Disney of “prioritizing the comfort of conservative parents over educating families about a real minority, whose rights and acceptance are constantly questioned everywhere (sic).”
On social media, Disney’s changes sparked outrage among fans.
Another person criticized Disney and Pixar for having the “power to do anything” related to the LGBTQ community and choosing not to for years, as well as for supposedly trying to appease right-wingers who couldn’t be won over.
Some fans pointed to Disney’s pro-LGBTQ statements as evidence of hypocrisy on the brand’s part.
One user decided that the “era of prominent LGBTQ+ representation” was over at Disney due to the brand’s commitment to “getting money from the community and not kindness toward them.”
Another fan accused Disney of “prioritizing the comfort of conservative parents over educating families about a real minority, whose rights and acceptance are constantly questioned everywhere (sic).”
Some fans also took a lighter approach to their criticism. One person included stills from the 1983 Mickey’s Christmas Carol short film to illustrate the brand’s changing priorities.
Some fans also took a lighter approach to their criticism. One person included stills from the 1983 Mickey’s Christmas Carol short film to illustrate the brand’s changing priorities.
‘Disney in 1983: “let’s show Mickey burying his son,” they wrote to accompany the heartbreaking images of the famous mouse next to a tombstone. ‘Disney in 2024: “I don’t know, guys, maybe kids knowing about trans people is too much.”‘
Disney has been the target of social conservatives and right-wing pundits after former CEO Bob Chapek criticized Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
The studio has also had recent films that have included gay characters that underperformed at the box office.
Pixar’s Toy Story spinoff Lightyear featured a same-sex kiss and only earned $226.4 million, while Disney Animation’s Strange World included an openly gay main character and earned just $73.6 million. of dollars worldwide.
It’s unclear whether those instances of LGBTQ inclusion had a significant effect on the films’ box office, but the failure of Lightyear and Strange World may have contributed to Disney’s apprehension around LGBTQ content.