Disney Films Receive Nine Oscar Nominations
With the Oscar® telecast coming up this Sunday, pop culture junkies and office comrades around the country are passing around ballots to try to guess who will win on the big night.
D23 is all about giving a voice to the fans, so we decided, “To heck with guessing!"—we're going to let you vote!
Thanks for voting! See who won below.
Best Critter in a Supporting Role
Gus, Cinderella
Emile, Ratatouille
Meeko, Pocahontas
WINNER- Pascal, Tangled
Thumper, Bambi
Best Costume for a Ball or Special Occasion
Anna in her coronation dress, Frozen
Aurora in her magical pink and blue gown, Sleeping Beauty
WINNER- Cinderella in her ball gown, Cinderella
Charlotte in her masquerade ball gown, The Princess and the Frog
Giselle in her wedding gown, Enchanted
Best Special Effects by a Villain
Chernabog, Fantasia
Dr. Facilier, The Princess and the Frog
Judge Doom, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
Yokai, Big Hero 6
WINNER- Maleficent, Sleeping Beauty
Best Act of Bravery by a Hero in a Leading Role
Carl rescuing Russell and Kevin, Up
Hercules fighting the hydra, Hercules
Merida vowing to save her mother, Brave
WINNER- Mulan volunteering to fight on behalf of her father, Mulan
Quasimodo helping Esmeralda escape, The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Best Song Sung by a Leading Character About Their Hopes and Dreams
Disney Legend Howard Ashman called this the “I Want" song, where the main character sings about what they want, usually one of the first three songs in a classic fairytale musical.
“Almost There," The Princess and the Frog
“Belle," Beauty and the Beast
“Out There," The Hunchback of Notre Dame
WINNER- “Part of Your World," The Little Mermaid
“Someday My Prince Will Come," Snow White
Best Scenic Design of a Castle
WINNER- The Beast's Castle, Beauty and the Beast
King Candy's Castle, Wreck-It Ralph
The Palace of Agrabah, Aladdin
Rapunzel's Castle, Tangled
Sleeping Beauty Castle, Sleeping Beauty
The Oscars air February 22 on ABC.
Check out our Oscars study guide on Pinterest before you watch the telecast ►
Watch the New Age of Ultron Trailer & Preview Cinderella at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Watch the New Age of Ultron Trailer
They’re back! The Avengers are back!
Well, they might not officially be back until May 1, when Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron opens in theaters, but Marvel has released a new trailer that shows all of our favorite Super Heroes doing what they do best. Check out the video above, and here’s the official scoop on the film from Marvel:
Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron stars Robert Downey Jr., who returns as Iron Man, along with Chris Evans as Captain America, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, and Mark Ruffalo as The Hulk. Together with Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow and Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, and with the additional support of Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury and Cobie Smulders as Agent Maria Hill, the team must reassemble to defeat James Spader as Ultron, a terrifying technological villain hell-bent on human extinction. Along the way, they confront two mysterious and powerful newcomers, Wanda Maximoff, played by Elizabeth Olsen, and Pietro Maximoff, played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and meet an old friend in a new form when Paul Bettany becomes Vision. Written and directed by Joss Whedon and produced by Kevin Feige, Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron is based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series The Avengers, first published in 1963.
Save the Date!
Be sure to mark these upcoming Disney events on your calendar:
| D23 and Walt Disney Archives Fall 2014-2015 D23 Member Nights at Newsies—On Tour August 14-16, 2015 D23 Expo 2015 returns to Anaheim, California Television January 18 K.C. Undercover premieres on Disney Channel at 9:00 a.m. ET/PT February 6 Miles from Tomorrowland premieres on Disney Channel at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT |
Parks March 4–May 17 22nd Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival. May 15–June 14 Star Wars Weekends Returns to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Studios February 20 McFarland, USA opens in theaters. March 13 Cinderella opens in theaters. April 17 Disneynature’s Monkey Kingdom opens in theaters. May 1 Avengers: Age of Ultron opens in theaters. May 22 Tomorrowland opens in theaters. June 19 Inside Out opens in theaters (along with the short Lava). July 7 Ant Man opens in theaters. |
See a Sneak Peek at Cinderella On Screen and See Her Coach In Person
Cinderella opens in theaters exactly two months from today, and we’re having a hard time waiting. Luckily, Disney fans who find themselves at Walt Disney World’s Disney’s Hollywood Studios, starting January 17, can see an exclusive preview of the film at the park’s ABC Sound Studio. And that’s not all—beginning February 1, 2015, the film’s golden coach will be on display outside the movie theater façade on Streets of America. And while we don’t think the coach will turn back into a pumpkin, don’t delay because you’ll only be able to see it in person until April 11, 2015.
Star Wars Celebration News is Cause for Celebration
We love hearing any piece of news about Star Wars Celebration (April 16–19, 2015 at the Anaheim Convention Center)—it makes the event feel not so far, far away. Lucasfilm announced last week that Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith will make its 3-D debut during the event—which will no doubt also present opportunities to catch up on the other Star Wars films in advance of The Force Awakens‘ debut on December 18, 2015.
The Force is strong in 2015!
Disney Channel Announces New Adventures
If you grew up in the ’80s you probably have fond memories of the feature film Adventures in Babysitting. And if you’ve watched Disney Channel lately, you’ve probably already become a fan of Sabrina Carpenter of Girl Meets World. Disney Channel has announced that Sabrina will star alongside Sofia Carson (from the upcoming Disney’s Descendants) in Further Adventures in Babysitting, inspired by the classic teen film. And Girl Meets World fans can also look forward to watching the series’ Rowan Blanchard team up with Paris Berelc (Mighty Med) for the Disney Channel Original Movie Invisible Sister. Both of these movies are scheduled to begin production this spring.
Put a Pin in This One
We love Disney Pins for so many reasons. They’re souvenirs… We can wear them… We can trade them. And one of the best things about them is that every year brings a new assortment to add to our collection. The Disney Parks Blog gave us a preview of some of the new pins we can look forward to in 2015. New for this year is a “Best Friends” collection—perfect for sharing with a favorite fellow collector—and we’re also especially excited about the return of the “Piece of Disney History” collection of limited-edition pins that contain pieces of actual attractions, shows, or parades from Disney Parks. And you can always find out more about new and upcoming pins at DisneyPins.com.
Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows Now On Sale
With winter in full force, our minds keep drifting to something tropical—Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows. Sales for this newest Disney Vacation Club Resort began January 12 for current Disney Vacation Club Members, and they start February 9 for all guests. The first phase is scheduled to open April and will include Bora Bora Bungalows, two-bedroom accommodations that sleep up to eight guests each; as well as connecting Deluxe Studio. Visit the Disney Parks Blog for more information.
Marvel Entertainment and ESPN Films Team Up
One of the main reasons we think Marvel Super Heroes are so awesome is that they seem so real. And top athletes are probably as close to Super Heroes as most of us mere mortals get. A new feature-length documentary, 1 of 1—Genesis, explores the connections between Marvel’s mightiest Super Heroes and the world’s greatest athletes, and also ponders the question of whether top athletes are born or created. The documentary is currently available on Digital HD through select digital retailers. And this summer, Marvel Entertainment and ESPN Films will launch the short film series 1 of 1—Origins on SportsCenter and across ESPN’s digital platforms simultaneously. Each short film will spotlight a single athlete and his or her “origin story.” Both 1 of 1—Genesis and 1 of 1—Origins will feature interviews with athletes like Danica Patrick, Tony Hawk, and Colin Kaepernick, as well as experts and Marvel luminaries. Visit Marvel.com for more details.
Tsum-thing Special on Tuesdays at Disney Store
How adorable are the Disney Tsum Tsums? They’re so adorable that we’ve already collected the Mickey and Friends collection, the Pooh and Pals Collection, the Toy Story collection, and we still want more! To our great joy, Disney Store has launched #TsumTsumTuesday; on the first Tuesday of each month, a new plush collection will be revealed. The collection debuting in January is 101 Dalmatians, and mark your calendar for February 3 to be among the first to see the next collection. We’re sure it will be tsum-thing special!
D23 Gold and Silver Members can save 15% at Disney Store! Get your discount ►
When Mickey’s Career Turned a Page
It’s hard to imagine a world without an international icon as widely adored as Mickey Mouse. While the first series of Mickey cartoons brought instant fame to the cheerful personality in the late 1920s, it would take even more to elevate the new character on the block to his status as an enduring cultural symbol.
Enter the 1930s, when more than 100 Mickey shorts hit theaters, licensed Mickey products become the newest sensation in character merchandising, and upward of a million children gathered at local Mickey Mouse Clubs across the U.S. But just as important was Mickey’s first entry into families’ homes on a day-to-day basis via the Mickey Mouse comic strip, which made its debut 85 years ago today.
The popular Mickey cartoons piqued the interest of J.V. Connelly of King Features Syndicate, who proposed the release of a Mickey Mouse comic strip as early as June 1929. The Disney Studio soon went to work on extending Mickey’s adventures onto the pages of newspapers, with Walt Disney writing the stories and Ub Iwerks creating the drawings.
Mickey becomes inspired to build an airplane in the first Mickey Mouse comic strip, first distributed Monday, January 13, 1930.
The first comic strip arrived on January 13, 1930 and, incidentally, followed a similar storyline to the first Mickey cartoon produced—Plane Crazy (1928), which Ub had animated all by himself. In the strip, our ambitious hero is again inspired by Charles Lindbergh to pursue the building of his own airplane. (How could anything go wrong with that idea?)
After drawing the first 24 strips, Ub’s responsibilities were given to inker Win Smith. By May, aspiring in-between artist Floyd Gottfredson had taken over the comic strip, and he would continue the series until his retirement 45 years later!
“Floyd played a major role in getting Disney’s new character, Mickey Mouse, known throughout the world by producing Mickey’s daily comic strip,” recalls Walt Disney Archives founder and Disney Legend Dave Smith. “Of the early Disney employees I met, Floyd was probably the greatest gentleman of them all.”
By the summer of 1930, the comic strip appeared in up to 40 newspapers across nearly two-dozen countries, helping to usher in Mickey’s golden age and establish the mouse as the foundation and universally recognized symbol of the Disney organization.
Browse the rest of the first week of the Mickey Mouse comic strip below:
Make Your Disney Fan Resolutions for 2015
This week we asked D23 Members what Disney resolutions they have for the New Year, and found out that a lot of you have big goals!
Amber wants to dine at Club 33 at Disneyland.
Dennis from Boras, Sweden wants to finish eight Disney books, buy Disney Infinity (2.0 Edition), and save up for a trip to Disneyland.
Ruud from Rotterdam, Netherlands is excited to celebrate Halloween at Walt Disney World Resort!
Jakob from Tampa, Florida wants to improve his art skills so that he can be a Disney animator someday!
Miriah from Easton, Pennsylvania set the goal of finishing the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend 5K and 10K runs, and still be standing on her own two feet!
Kristin from Long Beach, California is going to visit Disneyland Resort at least 100 times!
Matthew is going to watch the entire Star Wars saga in one week before The Force Awakens comes out.
Sarah from Brookhaven, Mississippi is going to try to ride every attraction at Magic Kingdom Park in one day in March.
Derek from Seattle, Washington can’t wait to go to D23 Expo 2015, his first D23 Expo! We’re excited to see you there, Derek!
Denise from Denver, CO plans to visit The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco.
Good luck with all of your resolutions, and make sure to share them with us as you achieve your Disney goals! We love seeing your photos on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Happy New Year!
Resolutions Disney Characters Might Consider Making for 2016
Happy New Year from D23!
We’ve enjoyed learning about D23 Members’ New Year’s Resolutions, some of which are pretty ambitious and inspiring! That got us thinking about some of our favorite Disney characters, and we couldn’t help but ponder some resolutions they might consider making in 2016.
Donald Duck—Take anger management classes. Donald can always be depended on to say what’s on his mind, but he’s been known to cause some mayhem with his quick temper from time to time. Maybe Timon and Pumba could teach him a little Hakuna Matata?
Cruella De Vil (101 Dalmatians)—Switch to faux fur. Faux is all the rage this season, and let’s face it, if there’s one thing you know about, it’s rage.
Gaston (Beauty and the Beast)—Consider a little less excess. Instead of eating five dozen eggs, maybe think about a three-egg omelet with some veggies? How about one set of antlers for decorating, tastefully placed? It must be exhausting to love yourself that much. You’ve got that swell cleft in your chin—work with that, and forget about the rest.
Elsa (Frozen)—Take Olaf to the tropics. We already know she has a warm heart, but after so much work defending her kingdom and learning to control her powers, we feel it’s time for a nice Caribbean vacation. May we suggest a Disney Cruise? And please take Olaf—we’re sure he’d like to see a place where it’s summer year-round!
Dory (Finding Nemo)—Keep a journal. We’ve all made resolutions to start a blog or keep a diary, but Dory is a Disney character that could really benefit from it. Imagine how much easier her life would be if she could look back at what she did yesterday! We can see it now: “January 9, 2016—Just kept swimming, just kept swimming…”
Charlotte (The Princess and the Frog)—Learn to cook. Charlotte won’t be able to depend on Tiana for “man-catching beignets” forever! And besides, a girl can only survive for so long on PB&J and frozen dinners (trust us, we’ve tried).
Sebastian (The Little Mermaid)—Take it easy once in a while! It’s obviously a huge responsibility to be an advisor to King Triton, but Sebastian needs to learn to relax before he turns into a steamed crab! Maybe a few days of pampering in Prince Eric’s castle would do him some good (as long as the chef’s not around).
Statler and Waldorf (Muppets)—Try to look on the bright side! You guys may not think Fozzie’s comedy routines are funny, but we’re sure you can find something to like about them. Hey, at least it’s not Miss Piggy up there, right? And if his jokes put you to sleep, be grateful you got a good nap out of it.
Oogie Boogie (The Nightmare Before Christmas)—Give Valentine’s Day a try. Based on the Sandy Claws kidnapping incident, it’s clear that Oogie Boogie needs to visit a holiday that’s more focused on love and less focused on being scary. We suggest Valentine’s Day, and maybe a quick stop at Christmastown to apologize on the way back home.
Disney’s Other “Practically Perfect” Nanny Returns for a Fourth Season of Jessie
Disney Channel’s hit series Jessie stars Debby Ryan as a young girl who’s left Texas to pursue big dreams in New York City, while working as a nanny to the Ross family and their four kids, Emma, Ravi, Luke, and Zuri.
The show returns for its fourth season this Friday, January 9 (8:30 p.m. ET/PT) with an episode that has the Ross kids convinced that Jessie is headed to Africa to rekindle her relationship with her ex-fiancé, Brooks. In an effort to stop her, the kids make the trip to Africa and quickly find themselves on a wild adventure.
D23 sat down with the cast in the Ross family’s screening room soon after their special appearance on an episode of Marvel’s Ultimate Spider-Man: Web Warrior—as animated versions of themselves. We talked to them about what other animated Disney movies or TV shows they’d like to appear in, as well as about what a certain other iconic Disney nanny might make of their characters.
D23: You recently had the seemingly once-in-a-lifetime experience of being animated for an episode of Marvel’s Ultimate Spider-Man: Web Warrior. If you could be animated again for any other Disney movie or TV show, which one would it be, and why?
Karan Brar (Ravi): You know what I think is cool? They have the little Mickey Mouse shorts. I think those are hilarious—I think I’d stick myself in there. Who doesn’t want to hang out with Mickey Mouse?
Cameron Boyce (Luke): The Jungle Book. Mowgli and I would be besties!
Skai Jackson (Zuri): I would like to be in Snow White. Or even Cinderella, to maybe be one of Cinderella’s friends and be a princess. That would be pretty cool!
Peyton List (Emma): I just learned recently that Snow White was one of the first Disney movies to be nominated for an Academy Award® and that would be so cool, to be a part of that as something—as any one of the voices. But my favorite Disney movie will always be The Little Mermaid, just because that was my favorite when I was little. I grew up with that one.
Debby Ryan (Jessie): I would love to work background in The Lion King. I’d just love to be wandering the savanna; like maybe holding a map and wearing a fanny pack. Just in the back of some scene. I think that would be epic. And no one talks about it. It would be great. It would be like, “Well, she wandered away…”
D23: Jessie and Mary Poppins are probably the two most famous nannies in the world of Disney. What do you think Mary Poppins would make of your character?
Cameron Boyce: Julie Andrews was really pretty. Luke would probably crush on Mary Poppins just as hard as he does Jessie! Mary Poppins is probably a lot more strict than Jessie… Luke might actually learn some manners or bathe every once in a while.
Karan Brar: I think Mary Poppins might be very intimidating when you first meet her. But Ravi gets geeky, and I think sometimes he gets a little bit insecure about that. But I think Mary Poppins would encourage him to go out there and be himself, because he’s already a respectful kid and he’s also very curious. I think Mary Poppins would just encourage that!
Skai Jackson: I think Mary Poppins actually would have a hard time with Zuri, because Zuri can be really sassy. But I think that she would eventually get used to Zuri and have fun taking her on adventures, which would be pretty cool.
Peyton List: All of the kids kind of give a little sass to Jessie. We always joke about it, but I think that Mary Poppins would be like, “Uh-uh—not going to happen!” I feel like she’s a little bit more proper. I think she would definitely make us eat more vegetables. Although she did say that just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down…
D23: What might Jessie learn from Mary Poppins?
Debby Ryan: Jessie could use one of those bags, for sure! I feel like I never have enough hands for all of the things that I need to carry. I think that there’s a certain no-nonsense quality about Mary Poppins, that people trust that she has their best interests in mind. So even if she says to do something like “Take this medicine,” or whatever it is that people wouldn’t necessarily want to do, people know that she has such conviction in wanting the best for them.
Watch a Teaser for Ant-Man During Tonight’s Marvel’s Agent Carter Premiere
Watch the Debut of Marvel’s Agent Carter Tonight—
And Get a First Look at Ant-Man
Tonight is the night we’ve been waiting for—the two-hour series premiere of Marvel’s Agent Carter. But leave it to our friends at Marvel to take a special event and make it even more special! After literally teasing us last week with an ant-sized version of the first teaser for Ant-Man, they’ve announced that we can put down our magnifying glass (Oh, yes we did!) and watch a human-sized teaser for the film tonight. Marvel’s Agent Carter airs at 8 p.m. ET/PT (and 7 p.m. CT) on ABC, and Ant-Man opens in theaters July 17. And in the meantime, enjoy the teaser preview above!
Save the Date!
Be sure to mark these upcoming Disney events on your calendar:
| D23 and Walt Disney Archives Fall 2014-2015 D23 Member Nights and Upcoming Events August 14-16, 2015 D23 Expo 2015 returns to Anaheim, California Television January 6 Marvel’sAgent Carter premieres on ABC at 9 p.m. ET January 18 K.C. Undercover premieres on Disney Channel at 9:00 a.m. ET/PT February 6 Miles from Tomorrowland premieres on Disney Channel at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT |
Parks January 7 Frozen Fun celebrates its official launch at Disneyland Resort. March 4–May 17 22nd Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival. May 15–June 14 Star Wars Weekends Returns to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Studios February 20 MacFarland, USA opens in theaters. March 13 Cinderella opens in theaters. April 17 Disneynature’s Monkey Kingdom opens in theaters. May 1 Avengers: Age of Ultron opens in theaters. May 22 Tomorrowland opens in theaters. June 19 Inside Out opens in theaters (along with the short Lava). July 7 Ant Man opens in theaters. |
Midnight Changes Everything!
The most iconic midnight of the year—New Year’s Eve—featured a glimpse at one of the most iconic midnights ever with the official sneak peek at the teaser for Disney’s Cinderella. But you can see even more of the stunningly beautiful film and its stunningly beautiful cast, which includes Lily James, Richard Madden, and Cate Blanchett, in this new featurette. The film opens in theaters March 13, 2015.
Go Deeper Into the Woods with This New Featurette
Have you seen Into the Woods yet? Are you singing the title song over and over again in your heads, like we are? In this new featurette, you can hear the cast sing the song again—and also hear director Rob Marshall, author James Lapine, composer Stephen Sondheim, and actors James Corden, Emily Blunt, Johnny Depp, and Meryl Streep talk about expanding the world created in the original stage production into an even bigger, thoroughly cinematic experience.
To Infinity and… Walt Disney World!
Actor and comedian Tim Allen paid a visit to Walt Disney World on December 31, 2014 and, of course, he couldn’t help but stop by the Pizza Planet restaurant at Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park, where he was photographed alongside the character he’s voiced in all of the Toy Story films, Buzz Lightyear.
Zendaya Goes Undercover and Miles Blasts Off in New Series Coming to Disney Channel
The new year is starting with two new series premiering on Disney Channel. First up is K.C. Undercover, which first airs Sunday, January 18 (8:30 p.m. ET/PT) and stars Zendaya in a live-action, spy-comedy series for kids, tweens, and families. Zendaya plays K.C. Cooper, a high school math whiz and karate black-belt who learns that her parents (played by Kadeem Hardison and Tammy Townsend) are spies when they recruit her to join them in the secret government agency, The Organization. Using the latest spy gadgets, K.C. and her parents try to balance everyday family life while on undercover missions, near and far, to save the world.
Miles from Tomorrowland follows a family on a different kind of mission.
The animated Disney Junior series, debuting on Disney Channel Friday, February 6 (9 a.m. ET/PT), incorporates real space and science facts into storylines that chart the outer space missions of young adventurer Miles Callisto and his family as they help connect the galaxy on behalf of the Tomorrowland Transit Authority. Experts from NASA, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and Google serve as consultants; and the stellar voice cast includes Olivia Munn, Adrian Grenier, and Mark Hamill.
Why Hayley Atwell Knows Disney Fans Will LOVE Marvel’s Agent Carter
Hayley Atwell, the star of Marvel’s Agent Carter, tells D23 what’s new and different about the show, and why Disney fans will love it.
Plus, she filled us in on how many times she’s been to Disneyland lately! Don’t miss the two-hour premiere of Marvel’s Agent Carter, Tuesday January 6 at 8|7c on ABC!
Happy New Year From Pleasure Island
At Pleasure Island, every night was New Year’s Eve,
… and we brought it back for a special performance at Destination D: Attraction Rewind. To celebrate New Year’s Eve 2015, we’re taking you back to The Adventurers Club and Comedy Warehouse to dance, sing, and laugh the night away one more time.