By Karina Schink
’Tis the season for holiday cheer and a special photo of the ones you hold dear. Decorate your photos with a special sprinkle of that famous pixie dust with a little help from our photo lab! Add a dash of snow or a cheerful character or two, and dust off the perfect spot on the mantle for your newly decorated magical memory (and don’t forget to share it online!).
By Courtney Potter
Marvel favorites return to the high seas, and the search for America’s next singing sensation travels to Hawaii… Read more, along with other news from around Disney, in this week’s news briefs!
There’s so much happening in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we head into 2019 (y’know, like those two little movies called Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame… heard of ’em?), so it stands to reason that Disney Cruise Line wants to take part in the fun, too! Yes, our friends on the high seas are bringing back Marvel Day at Sea—and starting next month, cruise guests on the Disney Magic will be among the first to meet Captain Marvel herself when she makes her big debut on board. Take a look at all the Marvel merriment you can expect in the clip, above.
Marvel Day at Sea is a spectacular day-long celebration that’s set to take place on select five-night Caribbean and Bahamian cruises sailing from Miami in early 2019. For more information, make sure to visit DisneyCruise.com—and don’t forget to bring your best Super Hero gear to wear; you’ll fit right in alongside all your Marvel favorites.
| D23 and Walt Disney Archives January 25, 2018 Lunch with a Disney Legend: Dave Smith February 16, 2018 D23’s Happily Ever After Brunch February 16, 2018 D23’s Magical Screening Series: Sleeping Beauty on the Lot February 16, 2018 D23’s Magical Screening Series: Sleeping Beauty at Walt Disney World August 23-25, 2019 D23 Expo 2019 Parks January 25-February 17, 2019 Lunar New Year at Disney California Adventure March 1-April 23, 2019 Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival March 6-June 3, 2019 Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival Summer 2019 Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Opening at Disneyland Resort Fall 2019 Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Opening at and Walt Disney World Resort |
Studios March 8, 2019 Marvel Studios’ Captain Marvel opens in U.S. theaters March 29, 2019 Dumbo opens in U.S. theaters April 19, 2019 Penguins opens in U.S. theaters May 24, 2019 Aladdin opens in U.S. theaters June 21, 2019 Toy Story 4 opens in U.S. theaters July 19, 2019 The Lion King opens in U.S. theaters August 9, 2019 Artemis Fowl opens in U.S. theaters Television December 25, 2018 Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade airs on ABC (10 a.m.–12 p.m. EST, 9–11 a.m. CST/MST/PST, airtimes vary, check local listings) December 31, 2018 Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2019 airs on ABC (8 p.m. ET) |
With ABC’s American Idol readying a return to the airwaves, that means the hunt for America’s next great singing sensation is officially on! And for the very first time, the show will be heading to paradise to hear some sure-to-be-amazing early contestant performances…
As host Ryan Seacrest revealed on his radio show last week, American Idol will be heading to Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa in Hawaii to film its showcase rounds. In a fortuitous turn of events, current Idol winner Maddie Poppe was actually at the Aulani Resort—enjoying the trip she was given as part of her prize package—when Seacrest made his announcement. Naturally, Poppe just had to take a photo with Mickey and Minnie Mouse to celebrate such an auspicious occasion!
Look for American Idol when it returns for its second season—premiering Sunday, March 3, at 8 p.m. EST, only on ABC.
The time is finally here! Mary Poppins Returns has officially flown into cinemas across the world, and we couldn’t be more excited for folks to see the further adventures of that “practically perfect” nanny… who happens to have an eccentric cousin named Topsy, portrayed in the film by none other than Oscar® winner (and theater veteran) Meryl Streep. Meet Topsy and see what kind of shenanigans she’s up to in the featurette, above.
Mary Poppins Returns stars Emily Blunt in the title role and Lin-Manuel Miranda as her lamplighter pal Jack, with Emily Mortimer and Ben Whishaw as the now-grown Jane and Michael Banks; Julie Walters as housekeeper Ellen; and Colin Firth as banker William Weatherall Wilkins… with special appearances by Angela Lansbury and Dick Van Dyke. “Trip a little light fantastic” over to your local movie house now!
Sports fans, listen up: ESPN has announced that it’ll add two new late-night shows to its line-up late next month. Now or Never on ESPN2 (co-hosted by Steve Covino, Rich Davis, and Janelle Marie Rodriguez) and Ahora o Nunca on ESPN Deportes (co-hosted by ESPN Deportes’ Mauricio Pedroza, Herculez Gomez, and Rodriguez) will be dedicated to covering the intersection of sports and pop culture for young, diverse sports fans… and they’re set to debut on January 28.
Both shows will offer a new take on all things sports, with a fun, laid-back vibe that’s perfect for late-night TV fans. The co-hosts will not only report on the freshest sports headlines, but they’ll also be able to chat about all the latest news in movies, music, “E Sports,” celebrity culture, and so much more. Airing Monday through Friday, the two 30-minute shows will be produced from ESPN studios at L.A. Live in Los Angeles and air on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes at 2 a.m. ET/11 p.m. PT.
Okay, so chances are pretty high that you’ve already seen this teaser trailer for the fourth Avengers film—considering it was one of the most anticipated trailers ever released. (Like, ever.) But just in case you missed it the first time ’round, or you want to take another look, check out the clip above.
Not much is known about Avengers: Endgame—outside of some fairly tantalizing clues within the trailer—except that it’s directed once again by Anthony and Joe Russo, and will be unleashed onto movie screens worldwide in April. Mark those calendars!
By Jim Fanning
An eventful “Winds-day,” a bothersome rainstorm, a nightmare-full of honey-hungry hallucinations, and the first appearance of a very bouncy buddy—all of these elements combined to help create Walt Disney’s Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day. A whimsical sequel to Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966), Disney’s second visit to the Hundred Acre Wood was even more popular than the first. So break open a new “hunny” pot, watch out for Woozles, and savor nine smackerals of behind-the-scenes celebrating 50 years of blustery fun.
The Pooh-rade Marches On
Although Walt Disney first envisioned his animated adaptation of the books by A.A. Milne as a feature, the savvy showman ultimately felt that American audiences were not sufficiently familiar with the British stories, so he decided to split the burgeoning story into three parts and release each as a separate featurette. With the popularity of Pooh’s initial featurette, Walt looked forward to producing the second, certain it would be an even bigger hit. After Walt’s death in late 1966, Disney executives decided in late summer 1967 that Blustery Day would be the first animated film to be put into production without Walt, and so the new Pooh project commenced under the working title of Winnie the Pooh and the Heffalumps.
Five Nine Old Men Walk Into the Hundred Acre Wood
John Lounsbery and Eric Larson of the legendary team of the Nine Old Men, animated on the first Pooh featurette, which was directed by fellow Nine Old Man Woolie Reitherman. Lounsbery and Reitherman continued in their roles for the next installment, while signing onto a Pooh project for the first time were Ollie Johnston, Frank Thomas, and Milt Kahl. Thomas and Johnston were particularly happy to be on Team Winnie the Pooh as they were fans of the original books and the Ernest H. Shepard illustrations. “I liked the Shepard drawings very much,” said Johnston, “but you have to go with what you can do in animation that requires the characters to do things they don’t have to do in a story illustration.” The animators kept in mind Walt’s edict that Shepard’s illustrative charm be maintained in the featurettes. Said Thomas of the designs in general and Pooh in particular: “If you take a design like that as your model and then get the personality just right, and with all the help of Sterling Holloway’s voice as Pooh, the audience accepts it as being the same as the original design because they’re swayed by the way he moves and the way they thought he should move.”
Tigger Bounces Onto the Scene
For his Disney animation debut, Tigger was animated almost entirely by master Milt Kahl. Though the first Pooh book, Winnie-the-Pooh, was published in 1926, Tigger was not introduced until the second book, The House at Pooh Corner, was issued in 1928. The hyper tiger was inspired by a new addition to son Christopher Robin’s menagerie of stuffed toys, but Milne based the manic personality of Tigger on Chum, a Spaniel who was always jumping onto people and just about everything, causing all kinds of chaos for his owners. Walt had considered Disneyland Park performer Wally Boag for Tigger’s voice, but ventriloquist-actor Paul Winchell was ultimately cast as the voice of the trouncy, flouncy tiger. “Paul did a great job, his voice was full of life,” said Johnston. “His vocal performance really inspired Milt to get that real brisk timing into Tigger.” The bouncy critter’s famed so-long statement, “TTFN—ta-ta for now” was ad-libbed by Winchell.
Tigger Sings with a Spring
One of the most wonderful things about Tigger is his upbeat signature tune. “We wrote a song about Tigger which exemplifies exactly what he did,” said Richard Sherman about the Sherman brothers song “The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers.” “It was a fun song to write, especially that last line: ‘The most wonderful thing about Tiggers is I’m the only one.’” Though sung with infectious gusto by Paul Winchell in Blustery Day—and heard on some of the Pooh record albums as performed by Sam Edwards—the second verse of the Shermans’ “Tigger” song was never performed onscreen until The Tigger Movie (2000).
Milne or Sherman OR Gilbert and Sullivan?
The songwriting team of Richard and Robert Sherman composed the five songs heard in Blustery Day during 1963 and 1964, along with the other Winnie the Pooh songs. Said Richard: “The books are so charming and so filled with whimsy. We wanted to get that feel in our songs—that if Milne had written a song, he most likely would have written it that way. We wanted it to be Milnesque but it needed to be Disney, too. For the sequence featuring Pooh and Piglet swept away by the flood, we wanted a Gilbert and Sullivan quality. That’s very British and very apropos. So we had the words repeating—‘the rain, rain, rain came down, down, down’—a whole sequence of pure singing [by a chorus] with pictures. And the animators loved it.”
Trespassers William Would be Proud
Tigger wasn’t the only new character to join the cuddly citizens of Christopher Robin’s “enchanted neighborhood” in this new Pooh film. Pooh Bear’s very good and very timid friend Piglet swept onto the scene, sweeping leaves and being swept into the sky by the blustery wind. “To take something like a little rag doll, which is Piglet, and try to give him enough acting that communicates with the audience was a real challenge,” said Frank Thomas. The Disney animators gave Shepard’s Piglet design a rounder face complete with cheeks that could express emotion in animated movement. Piglet’s endearingly hesitant voice was performed by John Fiedler, perhaps most famous as one of the poker players in The Odd Couple (1968) and as Mr. Peterson, one of Bob’s patients, on The Bob Newhart Show. Fiedler performed the voice of Piglet longer than any of the other members of the original Pooh cast. His last performances as the very small animal included Piglet’s Big Movie (2003) and Pooh’s Heffalump Movie, released in 2005, the year this prolific, piglet-like character actor passed on.
They’re In, They’re Out, They’re All About!
Along with Piglet and Tigger, some imaginary honey-hoggers showed up, too. In the Milne original, the Heffalumps and Woozles were not described or shown (except one Shepard illustration of an elephant haunting Piglet’s dream), so the filmmakers had free reign to creatively convey these silly yet scary creatures dreamed up by Pooh. In composing the “Heffalumps and Woozles” song, Robert Sherman remembered that “there were no rules, really, so we could do whatever we wanted to do.“ Explained Richard Sherman: “We very much wanted to do kind of a fun, spooky kind of a thing. Heffalumps and Woozles were a wonderful concept of Milne’s. We loved the play on words.“ The Shermans’ imaginative song inspired Disney animators to new heights of surrealistic creativity in visualizing Pooh’s wild nightmare. “It’s an outstanding sequence,“ observed Richard Sherman.
Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day Blows Into Theaters
In anticipation of Pooh skipping back to the screen, Los Angeles Mayor Sam Yorty proclaimed October 25, 1968, as “Winnie the Pooh Day.” Direct from Disneyland Park, Pooh and his pals made personal appearances at Sears stores in 25 U.S. cities to tie in with its famous line of exclusive Pooh clothing and merchandise that began with Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree. In each of the cities lucky enough to have Pooh visit, including Seattle, St. Louis, Atlanta, Buffalo, Boston, and Washington, D.C.—the bear of very little brain and company arrived via the Disney company plane to attend tea parties and fashion shows, appear on local TV programs, and visit children confined to hospitals. Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day was released on December 20, 1968, on the same bill as The Horse in the Gray Flannel Suit starring Dean Jones and Kurt Russell. Advertised as “All-Nooh,” alerting audiences that this was not a re-release but a fresh visit with the lovable residents of Pooh Corner, Pooh’s latest big-screen adventure was a sweet sensation.
Winnie the Pooh Wins Big
Though production began after Walt’s passing in 1966, the story and songs had been created with Walt’s full engagement. According to Richard Sherman, who along with his brother was actively involved in the story sessions, “Every single note and every word was okayed by Walt.” On April 14, 1969, the new Pooh featurette was awarded an Oscar® as Best Cartoon Short Subject of 1968 at the Academy Awards® ceremony. Director Woolie Reitherman accepted the award on behalf of Walt Disney from presenters Tony Curtis and the Pink Panther, his voice cracking with emotion as he spoke of “another memorable moment we’ve all shared with Walt.” Winning an Oscar is quite the accomplishment for anyone, let alone a “silly old bear,” and Pooh and his plush pals were now firmly established in the Hollywood firmament—while at the same time winning Walt a final, posthumously earned Academy Award.
By Beth Deitchman
Whether you’re such a devotee of the 1964 film Mary Poppins that you can recite “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” backwards along with the beloved nanny herself—it’s “dociousaliexpilisticfragicalirupes,” for your information—or you just have an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia for the film, chances are you consider the film’s animated sequences to be among its most memorable. Disney’s Mary Poppins Returns, opening in theaters today, continues this wonderful tradition, as Mary Poppins, Jack the lamplighter, and the young Banks children are transported to a colorful and captivating animated world that exists within an exquisite (though cracked) Royal Doulton china bowl.
To shepherd this spectacular sequence from sketch to screen, director Rob Marshall enlisted animation veteran Jim Capobianco, whose more than 25-year Disney history includes stints in the story department on The Lion King and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, as well as work on Pixar films Ratatouille—for which he wrote the original story, and served as director and writer for Your Friend the Rat, which appeared on the film’s home entertainment release—and WALL•E, for which he animated the film’s end credit sequence. An expert in traditional “2-D” animation, Capobianco was a natural choice to serve as Animation Sequence Supervisor on Mary Poppins Returns.
Capobianco assembled a multigenerational team of more than 70 animators, many who came out of retirement for the chance to work on a new film featuring the beloved Mary Poppins. The team researched English music halls to discover how different stage curtains open and Royal Doulton china to learn how “crazing” or cracks develop in glazed surfaces. They also, of course, spent some time studying penguins.
A quartet of penguin performers in Mary Poppins Returns serve as a nostalgic nod to the 1964 film and its waddling waiters. According to Capobianco, the filmmakers wanted the new movie to stand on its own, but during an early meeting to discuss the animation, “We went around the table and I think, to a person, everyone said the penguins should be included.” Penguin behavior informed the animation of the birds, but what was even more valuable, Capobianco says, was all of the rehearsal footage that Marshall shot of the dancers who served as penguin stand-ins during the live-action filming: “We would use that as our research for the penguins. We’d just have to translate it to little stubby legs and those little bodies.”
Beyond the fact that they live within a Royal Doulton bowl rather than within a chalk illustration, the penguins in Mary Poppins Returns are very different from the penguins of 1964. Capobianco explains, “Topsy says in the movie, ‘I’m Mary’s second cousin removed several times.’ That’s kind of the same with these penguins. I think they’re related but they’re definitely their own group.” The animators named them after classic movie stars, so keep an eye out for Fred, named in honor of iconic dancer Fred Astaire; the tall, slender Cary, after leading man Cary Grant; the diminutive Charlie, who was originally Chaplinesque but who would come to be called “Hammy” for his tendency to draw the spotlight; and the bigger-boned bird, Ollie, who reminded the animators of Oliver Hardy.
The nostalgia for the original film carried off screen, as well as on screen, as Capobianco found himself pitching animation sequences to the filmmakers inside the Hyperion Bungalow on the Disney Studio lot, a storied building that had been moved to the Burbank lot from its original location. Capobianco would pin his drawings to the walls, and “I would go through the sequence just like I used to do way back at Disney when I worked on The Lion King and in my early days at Pixar.” As he would pitch his ideas, Marshall might suggest changes to the music, which would inspire composer, songwriter and co-lyricist Marc Shaiman to sit down at the piano and rewrite the melody. “I would pull out the paper and re-draw some things and we would work back and forth that way,” Capobianco recalls, noting that the experience felt like one that could easily have taken place on the lot 54 years ago with Walt, the Sherman brothers, and Don DaGradi—and made for a practically perfect way to create enduring movie magic.
By Karina Schink
The star is placed perfectly atop the brightly lit tree, you’ve got a hot cup of hot cocoa and are curled up on the couch ready to partake in one of the most quintessential holiday traditions, a viewing of Mickey’s Christmas Carol.
Thirty-five years ago, this classic Mickey Mouse cartoon featurette premiered, and what a merry occasion it was! Mickey’s Christmas Carol was Mickey’s great return to the theaters—his most recent cartoon appearance prior was in 1953. In honor of this milestone, let’s celebrate by taking a look at all the A Christmas Carol-themed shows and films (past and present) you and the entire family can watch (and re-watch) this holiday season.
Mickey’s Christmas Carol
Did you think we would start anywhere else? Our love affair with Mickey Mouse cartoons was reignited with this featurette back in 1983, and, as if propelled by the magic of Christmas, that love has never left us, even 35 years later. It’s the perfect place to start as we begin our journey down the path of Christmas Carols past.
Disney’s A Christmas Carol
In this 3D animated version of the classic Dickens tale, Jim Carrey takes on the role of Ebenezer Scrooge (and all three ghosts), with a couple of twists we all know (and love) so well. Watch as Ebenezer’s heart begins to thaw throughout this adaptation of the timeless Christmas story.
The Muppet Christmas Carol
This classic not only has you hooked to the screen, but singing along! Michael Caine, as well as some familiar Henson-esque faces, take the lead in this musical adaptation of A Christmas Carol. You can revisit this holiday classic either on screen or by listening to the soundtrack every merry day this season.
“Last Christmas” – DuckTales
It wouldn’t be A Christmas Carol without a healthy dose of Scrooge… McDuck that is! We all know Huey, Dewey, and Louie’s Uncle Scrooge, who so famously fit his flippers into the role of Ebenezer back in 1983. And this year, he gets another visit from the same merry ghosts on season 2 of DuckTales.
“The Suite Life on Deck: A London Carol” – The Suite Life on Deck
All of us who grew up watching The Suite Life wanted a mirror just like London’s. Free fashion advice with a sarcastic flair? Yes, please! Well, in this Dickensian-inspired episode of The Suite Life on Deck, London’s talking mirror does a bit more than compliment the heiress’ clothes. Go on a time-traveling adventure with London herself, while also taking part in the never-not-funny double trouble that are Zack and Cody.
“Girl Meets a Christmas Maya” – Girl Meets World
While many of us find ourselves in the merriest of moods during holiday time, that isn’t the case for everyone, and it certainly isn’t for Maya in this special episode of Girl Meets World. But, just like the other episodes on this list, the lessons of giving and Christmas joy find their way to Maya, but in this episode, it comes in the form of a Christmas Carol-inspired play.
“The Girls of Christmas Past” – Best Friends Whenever
Instead of being visited by a trio of timely ghosts, in this homage to Carol, Cyd is the one travelling. In an effort to up her skills and beat Shelby at her own excellent gift-giving game, Cyd takes a look at Christmases past. And, instead of being faced with a trio of ghosts, Cyd seeks inspiration for a perfect Christmas gift.
“sANTa’s Little Helpers” – A.N.T. Farm
Join the entire A.N.T. family as Chyna, Olive, and Fletcher have a little A Christmas Carol story of their own. While the episode doesn’t completely follow the famed plotline from Charles Dickens, we may see some familiar characters hidden in there. Here’s a hint: Who does Susan Skidmore remind you of?
By Beth Deitchman
The holidays are upon us, and the upcoming season of gift giving means one thing for Disney fans everywhere: a trip to the Disney store. It’s our one stop shop for all things Disney merchandise perfect for friends and family of all ages.
For the first time ever, Disney store and shopDisney.com have created a Holiday Toy Book that establishes Disney as the toy destination this holiday season. From Belle to Buzz, Hulk to Han, fancy tea sets to action figure playsets, there’s truly something for every Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, and Marvel fan.
The products themselves are sure to make kids and kids-at-heart giddy with excitement, but the magic doesn’t stop there. The Holiday Toy Book also includes festive character stickers to mark favorites, plus an opportunity to look for 42 hidden Mickeys placed carefully throughout the book. (Have you found them all?)
For those who aren’t quite sure what to get the Disney fans on their holiday shopping list, Disney store and shopDisney experts have compiled a list of the most wished-for toys this holiday season. Take a look at the Top 15 Holiday Toys below, and let the gifting begin!
1. Cinderella Castle Playset
With four levels of imagination, lights and sounds, it’s a Cinderella dream come true from Walt Disney World!
2. Buzz Lightyear Talking Action Figure
Buzz does plenty of talking and is in full protection mode with light-up details and karate chop action!
3. Mack Carrier with Six Die-Cast Cars Set
Mack features lights and sounds, plus space for an additional two vehicles.
4. Disney Parks Holiday Train Set
All aboard! Towards the North Pole we go in our festive remote-control toy train gift set, including animated character surprises, plus more than 20 feet of track!
5. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Playset
Mickey is joined by his Clubhouse friends in this colorful set that features interactive light and sound effects.
6. Disney Animators’ Collection Doll Gift Set
Discover 13 classic characters together in one gloriously gift-boxed mini doll collection.
7. The Incredible Remote Control Vehicle
This detailed remote-controlled replica of The Incredibiles features working headlights and a light-up hood.
8. Millennium Falcon—Star Wars Toybox
Part of the Star Wars Toybox collection, the Millennium Falcon Playset includes sound effects and light up features to guide you all the way through the dangerous Kessel Run.
9. Marvel Universe Mega Figure Set
Join forces with 20 of Marvel’s most iconic characters, complete with detailed sculpting and metallic detailing.
10. Spider-Man Talking Action Figure
This talking action figure has plenty of fighting words to battle his enemies. And, if that doesn’t work, he can use his two web slingers!
11. Minnie Mouse Farmer’s Market
This cart is full of fun produce and products, and play money makes every imaginary shopping trip a delight.
12. Incredibles 2 Deluxe Figure Set
The 10-piece set includes the five members of the Parr family alongside other familiar faces.
13. Minnie Mouse Brunch Cooking Set
Minnie is serving up a fine feast (and everyone’s invited) with her 30-piece brunch play set.
14. Disney Princess Doll Gift Set
Featuring 11 of Disney’s most beloved heroines (plus Pua and Hei Hei!), this gift set celebrates the princesses that have captured our hearts.
15. Belle Tea Cart
Your little princes and princesses will always be prepared for an enchanted tea party with this delightful Beauty and the Beast Singing Tea Cart.
By Karina Schink
For 20 years, the magical pastry elves at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa have whisked, baked, and decorated to create the magical gingerbread house that warms guests’ hearts and tempts their taste buds. Sweet smells of ginger and sugar fill the lobby of the hotel every holiday season, as this larger-than-life house is constructed. But, while it’s always a sight to behold (and quite a whiff to sniff), there’s more to all that sugar than meets the eye.
Constructing Christmas
The gingerbread house stands 14 feet tall, using more than 60 sheets of plywood in its foundation, which is the first part of the house to be built. With 1,000 feet of trim, this molasses mansion stretches 100 square feet.
Pounds of Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice
Creating something of this merry magnitude doesn’t come without pounds of all that sugary sweet stuff. It takes 1,050 pounds of honey, 700 pounds of chocolate (Anna and Elsa would be reeling), 600 pounds of confectioner’s sugar, and 35 pounds of spices to create the structure. That’s a bit more than your average gingerbread house!
Whisked Away
While it takes more than 400 hours to bake and 160 to decorate, it can’t be done without all of the essential baking ingredients. Eight hundred pounds of flour mixed with 140 pints of egg whites are the bread and butter of this holiday creation. And while all of this is used to create the delicious edifice, you can bring some holiday goodness with you when you leave the hotel: The house doubles as a sweet shop, where gingerbread cookies, shingles, ornaments, and cookie bags are available to take home.
By Courtney Potter
The voice cast for Disney•Pixar’s Onward is revealed, and we find out who’ll be playing The Mandalorian … Read more, along with other news from around Disney, in this week’s news briefs!
The folks over at Disney•Pixar never sit still for long… now that Toy Story 4 is just over the 2019 horizon, they’re already readying their next sure-to-be-amazing film: Onward, set for release in 2020!
And just this week, Pixar Animation Studios revealed four members of Onward’s voice cast: Chris Pratt (Guardians of the Galaxy), Tom Holland (Spiderman: Homecoming), Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep), and Octavia Spencer (The Shape of Water). Set in a suburban fantasy world, the film introduces us to two teenage elf brothers who embark on an extraordinary quest to discover if there is still a little magic left out there…
Onward is directed by Dan Scanlon and produced by Kori Rae, the team behind 2013’s Monsters University. “At Pixar we try to create stories that come from some kind of personal truth,” Scanlon recently said. “This film was inspired by my own relationship with my brother.”
Look for Onward in a theater near you on March 6, 2020.
| D23 and Walt Disney Archives December 15, 2018 D23’s Grand Gingerbread Workshop January 25, 2018 Lunch with a Disney Legend: Dave Smith August 23-25, 2019 D23 Expo 2019 Parks January 25-February 17, 2019 Lunar New Year at Disney California Adventure March 1-April 23, 2019 Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival March 6-June 3, 2019 Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival Summer 2019 Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Opening at Disneyland Resort Fall 2019 Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Opening at and Walt Disney World Resort |
Studios December 19, 2018 Mary Poppins Returns opens in U.S. theaters March 8, 2019 Marvel Studios’ Captain Marvel opens in U.S. theaters March 29, 2019 Dumbo opens in U.S. theaters April 19, 2019 Penguins opens in U.S. theaters May 24, 2019 Aladdin opens in U.S. theaters June 21, 2019 Toy Story 4 opens in U.S. theaters July 19, 2019 The Lion King opens in U.S. theaters August 9, 2019 Artemis Fowl opens in U.S. theaters Television December 25, 2018 Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade airs on ABC (10 a.m.–12 p.m. EST, 9–11 a.m. CST/MST/PST, airtimes vary, check local listings) December 31, 2018 Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2019 airs on ABC (8 p.m. ET) |
The first-ever live action Star Wars series, The Mandalorian, is currently in production—and we just learned which actor will be inhabiting the title role. Get all the scoop on executive producer and writer Jon Favreau’s highly anticipated project (which will feature episodes helmed by the likes of actress Bryce Dallas Howard and Thor: Ragnorak director Taiki Waititi) right here.
Listen up, Milo Murphy’s Law super-fans! The Disney Channel fave is returning to the airwaves for a second season on Saturday, January 5, at 7 a.m. PST/EST—debuting on both Disney Channel and Disney XD (and the next day on DisneyNOW). But that’s not all… the brand-new, one-hour episode is a crossover with Phineas and Ferb! Both series are from the hilariously weird minds of producers Dan Povenmire and Jeff “Swampy” Marsh—who will both reprise their Phineas and Ferb roles (as Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Major Monogram) in addition to voicing time travelers from the future, Vinnie Dakota and Balthazar Cavendish, in Milo Murphy’s Law.
To celebrate such an auspicious 60 minutes of brand-new television (the episode is entitled “The Phineas and Ferb Effect”), a super-funny video podcast was just released—featuring Dr. Doofenshmirtz interviewing his very first celebrity guest: the legendary satirist Al Yankovic… who also happens to be the voice of Milo himself.
Check out the clip, above. And make sure to tune in for the big crossover—it’ll be the best way to kick off the new year in the entire Tri-State area!
Just imagine: You’re sitting on the bank of a lush river, deep in the jungle, sipping on a luxurious libation and indulging in a few delicious dishes. Sounds like a dream vacation, right? Well it’s closer than you think—in fact, you’ll soon be able to do all of the above right in the middle of Adventureland at Disneyland park. See some colorful photos and read up on what’s to come from The Tropical Hideaway, an all-new marketplace set to open next door to Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room—here at D23.com.
There are a host of new attractions and experiences coming soon to Disney Parks across the globe, and we just learned a little bit more about what to expect. Check out the latest on how the good folks at Walt Disney Imagineering plan to create this amazing new global Avengers Initiative right here.
Can you believe that Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, at Walt Disney World Resort, has been delighting guests with its incredible life-sized Gingerbread House for 20 years? Two full decades of sweet-smelling holiday fun! If you’ve ever wanted to see how the house was built from the ground—well, lobby floor—up, take a gander at this cool time-lapse video from our friends at the Disney Parks Blog, above.
It takes the talented pastry chefs at the Grand Floridian a whopping 400 hours (plus!) to bake the 10,000 gingerbread pieces this behemoth baked good needs for its display. And it’s so big, it actually doubles as a sweet shop, selling all manner of freshly baked items from the Grand Floridian kitchens to guests young and young-at-heart.
A word of warning, however: Watching the above video may make you hungry! Have some festive snacks nearby just in case…
In the decades since its original 1950 release, Disney’s Cinderella has become an enduring classic—and now, it’s joining other iconic Walt Disney Animation Studios films (including Steamboat Willie, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and Fantasia) in the prestigious National Film Registry. Find out what makes this honor so special here at D23.com.
Come February 15, you’ll finally be able to see Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable in glorious live-action… The all-new Disney Channel Original Movie, based on the fan-fave animated series, will debut in just a few weeks’ time; catch the film’s awesome trailer right here.
By D23 Team
With a little bit of pixie dust (and some cheerful elves), we’ve created some special cards just for you to send to someone especially wonderful in your life.
Each e-card is themed to Mickey’s Christmas Carol in honor of its 35th anniversary this year. So, check your list (and do it again) and make sure everyone on it gets a little something special to display atop their fireplace this year.
This campaign has ended. Check out D23.com for more Disney fun!
By the D23 Team
Just in time for D23’s 10th anniversary, the fan-favorite Official Walt Disney Studios Tours return in 2019 with a wide variety of experiences and most importantly… more tours! The D23 Gold Member-exclusive tours of the historic Studio lot return on four weekends in 2019, and our April tour date will be exclusive to Gold Family Members, sold as a “Family 4-Pack.”
As recently announced at D23’s Destination D, the Official Walt Disney Studios Tours will be offered monthly starting in March! For the first time, these weekday tours will be available to Gold, Gold Family, and General Members. Just like the tours that take place on the select weekends in 2019, Guests are able to take a look inside the Walt Disney Archives and see Walt Disney’s office suite during the tour, which offers fans a unique perspective on historic moments from Disney films, television shows, and theme parks.
In addition, D23 Gold and Gold Family Members won’t want to miss the ultimate Disney Studio opportunity: D23’s Behind-the-Scenes Experience: A Day on the Studio Lot! This event will take place in Spring and Fall 2019 and features one-of-a-kind experiences including a visit to the Ink and Paint Department and lunch in a private dining room at The Rotunda—the executive dining location inside Team Disney Building. The first one will be this March—just in time for the 10- year anniversary!
Keep an eye on D23.com for more information regarding The Official Walt Disney Studios Tours in 2019.