Discover 20th Century Studios’ Avatar: The Way of Water with Items Inspired by the New Film!

Avatar: The Way of Water officially releases in theaters this Friday, December 16—but we couldn’t wait to share some amazing items inspired by the film! Don a Spirit Jersey and bucket hat; cuddle a large Ilu plush; or make your own transformation with a makeup collection by NYX. Whatever you choose, we hope you enjoy this long-awaited film and the epic adventure of the beautiful world of Pandora.

NYX Avatar: The Way of Water Collection Set
Discover the world of Pandora and create stunning, out-of-this-world looks with the NYX Professional Makeup Avatar: The Way of Water Set—with vegan formulas and packaging created from recycled materials! The collection includes the Pandoran Paradise Palette, the Color Palette, the Na’vi Paint, the Biolume Highlighter Sticks, the Bioluminescent Lip Glosses, the Paper Lipsticks, and the Metkayina Mist. Shop the entire limited-edition collection here!

Avatar Spirit Jersey for Adults at shopDisney
Immerse yourself in the underwater world of Avatar: The Way of Water with this gorgeous Spirit Jersey. The stunning all-over print depicts breathtaking images inspired by the film. Dramatic details include the embossed movie icon on the front and the Avatar logo printed in big, bold embossed letters across the back.

Avatar: The Way of Water Bucket Hat at shopDisney
Great style meets epic adventure with this Avatar: The Way of Water bucket hat. The gorgeous allover print captures the undersea beauty of Pandora. Turn off the lights and glow-in-the-dark ink makes it look like streaks of sunlight in the water. The powerful look is made complete with an embossed Avatar logo on the front. Inspired by Avatar: The Way of Water, this cool hat folds easily so you can have it at the ready anytime you want to grab a little attention.

Cariuma: Avatar Underwater Canvas OCA LOW Shoe
Dive back into the world of Pandora with this limited-edition collaboration, inspired by the expansive Avatar world. Plunge into the depths of Pandora’s alien and beautiful oceans to experience underwater life with a glow-in-the-dark interpretation of unique plants found in the Pandoran ocean.

McFarlane Toys Avatar: The Way of Water Products
McFarlane Toys has developed a collection of creatures and figures from Avatar: The Way of Water in amazing detail. Bring home your own life-like remote-controlled Akula and it swims through the water with the highly realistic agile movement and control of a real shark. Another amazing creature native to Pandora is the Skimwing; fully articulated with an incredibly high level of detail, the Mega Skimwing can be posed to swim as seen in the film Avatar: The Way of Water. With his full battle gear, final-battle Jake Sully is ready to leap into action featuring 22 points of articulation, premium sculpt and deco, and collector stand, plus special blacklight-activated bioluminescence.

LEGO Metkayina Reef Home
Travel to the alien moon of Pandora! Join Neytiri, Kiri, Ronal, and Tonowari at the Metkayina village, located by Pandora’s ocean reefs and suspended from the massive Pandoran mangrove-like trees. Paddle the Metkayina canoe and explore the colorful coral; recreate your favorite movie moments, play out scenes, and create your own storylines with this beautiful LEGO® Avatar set.

The Art of Avatar: The Way of Water Book
Packed with hundreds of stunning images and written in collaboration with the filmmakers themselves, uncover the incredible creative and technical skill that went into the making of Avatar: The Way of Water.

Ilu Plush at shopDisney
Like the Na’vi of Pandora, your child will love having an Ilu of their very own. Best of all, these large and small plush, inspired by Avatar: The Way of Water, are cuddly, soft, warm, and just as loyal.

Skimwing Plush at shopDisney
Racing across the waters of Pandora, the brave and fiercely loyal Skimwings carry the Na’vi far and wide. Now your child can have their very own. Large or small, they’ll love to cuddle and hold a Skimwing plush inspired by Avatar: The Way of Water—and they’ll carry their imaginations to places they’ve always dreamed about.

Avatar: The Way of Water MagicBand 2 – Walt Disney World – Limited Edition at shopDisney
With MagicBand 2, and a simple tap to a touch point, you can redeem Lightning Lane selections, enter the Walt Disney World Resort theme parks (with valid admission and a theme park reservation), charge food and merchandise purchases to your room (to the payment card on file at your Disney Resort hotel room during your hotel stay), and more. This design is inspired by Avatar: The Way of Water and is a limited edition of 3,880.

Looking for more? Be sure to check out the full shopDisney collection inspired by Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water, explore products from our collaborators and more! Check out Avatar: The Way of Water when it opens in theaters this Friday, December 16th.

D23 Gold Membership Card Selection

In 2023, D23 is offering the Ultimate Disney Fans the chance to celebrate the stories and characters they love most. And, for the first time ever, all new and renewing D23 Gold Members will have the opportunity to choose one of four unique membership card designs showcasing the worlds of Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars.

Collector Set 2023 - Membership Card - Disney

Disney
For the Ultimate Disney Fans, our signature D23 Gold Member Card for 2023 showcases some of the most iconic characters: Tiana, Baymax, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Stitch, Tinker Bell, Mirabel Madrigal, Maleficent, and Mickey Mouse.

Collector Set 2023 - Membership Card - Pixar

Pixar
You’ve got a friend in D23 with these inspiring Pixar Pals: Joy, Buzz Lightyear, WALL-E, Miguel Rivera, Meilin Lee, Kevin, Remy, and Mike Wazowski!

Collector Set 2023 - Membership Card - Marvel

Marvel
Prepare to assemble with an epic set of heroes. D23 is excited to feature heroes (and villains!) from across the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Captain Marvel, Loki, Groot, Wasp, Iron Man, Thor, and Black Panther!

Collector Set 2023 - Membership Card - Star Wars

Star Wars
You are sure to be strong in the Force with this card in your grasp, featuring friends and foes from the outer rim and beyond: Rey Skywalker, BB-8, Darth Vader, C-3PO, Chewbacca, Boba Fett, Ahsoka Tano, and Grogu!

Not a D23 Gold Member? There's No Better Time to Join!

VIEW BENEFITS

Select your favorite design with these easy steps:

1. Visit https://account.d23.com/, log into your D23 account and navigate to “My Profile”

2. Select “Available Plans” then “Update Membership Card Design”

3. Choose your favorite design and click “Update Member Card”

Preferred card design must be made at least two (2) days before your D23 Gold Membership plan renewal date. Members who do not select a design by this deadline will receive the Disney-themed D23 Membership Card.

Replacement membership cards may be ordered for a fee by contacting D23 Guest Services.

Where Disney Fans Belong

Where Disney Fans Belong

Membership Benefits

Membership Benefits

D23 Events

Special Events

Attend fan-centric in-person and virtual events throughout the year.

A D23 Gold Member Card being held in front of a cash register and Mickey Mouse plush.

Exclusive Discounts & Offers

Year-round discounts and offers on shopping, dining, and more!

D23 Merch

Merch

Add to your Disney collection with exclusive pins and limited edition merch.

VIEW PLANS

*Essential Plan:
Your D23 Gold Membership Kit (including your Membership Card, Membership Certificate, Member Pin & Magnet) will ship 8-10 weeks after enrollment or renewal.
Choice (with Pin Set, Spirit Jersey, or Fan Bundle as Premium selection) Plan:
Your D23 Gold Membership Kit (including your Membership Card, Membership Certificate, Member Pin & Magnet) and your One (1) D23 Membership Premium Item will ship 8-12 weeks after enrollment or renewal, unless otherwise noted by Disney.
Choice (with Book/Plaque selected as Premium selection) Plan:
Your D23 Gold Membership Kit (including your Membership Card, Membership Certificate, Member Pin & Magnet) and your One (1) D23 Membership Premium Item will begin shipping Spring 2025, or on your renewal date as applicable, whichever is later.
Complete Plan:
Your D23 Gold Membership Kit (including your Membership Card, Membership Certificate, Member Pin & Magnet) and Four (4) D23 Membership Premium Items will begin shipping Spring 2025, or on your renewal date as applicable, whichever is later.

Hollywood Transforms into Pandora for the Avatar: The Way of Water Premiere

By Jocelyn Buhlman

Avatar dazzled the silver screen with incredible imagery and groundbreaking special effects in December 2009. More than a decade later, the heroes we first saw soar on Banshees through floating mountains have returned. Yesterday, Hollywood transformed into Pandora as the cast and crew of Avatar: The Way of Water walked the blue carpet to celebrate the new film.

The entrance to the Avatar: The Way of Water premiere, which has been decorated to look like the rainforest of Pandora, with glowing flowers hanging from the ceiling. There is a wall on the right side with “Avatar: The Way of Water premiere” printed on it.

Avatar: The Way of Water follows Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña), who have made a life together on Pandora. Together, they have four children: Neteyam (Jamie Flatters), Lo’ak (Britain Dalton), Tukirey (Trinity Jo-Li Bliss), and Kiri (Sigourney Weaver). Kiri is adopted—as you may have noticed, she's played by Weaver, taking on a new role as a teenage Na’vi.

Jake and Neytiri would do anything for their family—even traveling across Pandora to live alongside the Metkayina clan. This is very different from their rainforest home, as the Metkayina clan lives in harmony with the surrounding oceans.

A three-quarters view of Sam Worthington, standing in front of the Avatar: The Way of Water step and repeat

Since the first Avatar film debuted, a lot of things have changed for the cast and crew—for one, Worthington is now a father, just like his character!  “You get instincts when you become a dad that you just can’t control, like protection,” he explains of the similarities between his character and himself; “The movie is about protecting your family—about protecting what you love.” While he and Jake have a lot in common, he claims his kids are “crazier” than the four Sully kids.

Speaking of the Sully kids, Bliss stopped by to tell us about her character—Tukirey, or “Tuk” for short—and the relationship she has with Weaver’s character, Kiri. “Kiri is always there for Tuk, and Tuk’s always there for Kiri,” she tells us. As the youngest in the family, Kiri feels a lot of pressure. As Bliss puts it, “She feels underestimated, but she doesn’t underestimate herself. She wants to prove that she can do what the older kids do.”

Kiri herself is still an enigma to fans—all we know so far is that she’s the daughter of Dr. Grace Augustine, Weaver’s character from the original film. While her history is still a mystery, Bliss can confirm that Kiri is awesome… at least in the eyes of young Tuk. “I think she wants to be Kiri when she grows up,” Bliss says of Tuk.

Jamie Flatters stands in front of a blue backdrop with a sign for Avatar: The Way of Water on it.

Flatters, who plays the eldest Sully child, Neteyam, also has a bond with one of the other Sully kids—both in real life and in the film. Flatters was eager to track down Dalton while on the carpet, but he paused his quest to tell us a little about the two brothers: “He’s his only brother by blood,” Flatters explains, “I personally think Neteyam just loves him and wants to protect him.”

Also new to the Avatar franchise are the members of the Metkayina clan. Ronal (Kate Winslet) and Tonowari (Cliff Curtis) lead the clan, and have two children of their own, Tsireya (Baily Bass) and Aonung (Filip Geljo). We had a chance to chat with Bass about her experience as part of the Metkayina clan—and in playing Winslet’s daughter! Bass described the actress as a “mama bear” and said she was “a great role model.”

Bailey Bass stands in front of a sign for Avatar: The Way of Water with a hand on her hip.

As a member of a water-focused family, Bass had to appear as a natural in the water. She spent quite a while training, “to make sure when I play Tsireya I know what it’s like to be underwater.” She considered this training to be “such a gift to have as an actor.”

Water is very important to this film (it is literally in the title), which meant much of the Na’vi cast needed to be SCUBA certified and undergo thorough training to film their underwater scenes. Bliss described the experience as “the most fun parts of filming”—declaring that “we got to learn ‘the way of water’!”

Duane Evans Jr. poses in front of the Avatar: The Way of Water step and repeat.

Another thing the cast learned: ate Winslet has an impressive lung capacity, apparently! Duane Evans Jr., who plays Metkayina clan member Roxto, told us, “Kate could hold her breath for a long time—somewhere around nine minutes, something like that? She can hold her breath a long time!”

CJ Jones stands in front of a sign for Avatar: The Way of Water

When it came to scenes underwater, there was another challenge for the filmmakers: How do they Na’vi communicate with each other? Through sign language, of course! CJ Jones was tasked with the challenge of making a unique sign language for the Na’vi vocabulary. “To create signs is not easy, because you have to think about how to fit the Na’vi world,” he explained, “I had to really immerse myself and develop underwater communication, as well as on land.” Jones worked for two years to create over 300 signs for Na’vi sign language. “My goal is to have this become the 201st signed language in the world,” he signed.

Avatar: The Way of Water is the second in a planned five-film story, which wasn’t always the case. Producer John Landau explained, “This went from being one movie to being five movies. Jim [Cameron] went out and wrote 1,500 pages of notes. And when we broke down those notes, there was five stories to tell!”

We’re about to discover the next chapter in the Avatar story when Avatar: The Way of Water arrives in theaters December 16. Until then, you can dive into this gallery of photos from the film’s Hollywood premiere.

Meet the Characters of National Treasure: Edge of History

By Zach Johnson

The Disney+ Original series National Treasure: Edge of History premieres Wednesday, December 14, with two episodes. An expansion of the National Treasure film franchise, the story centers on Jess Valenzuela (Lisette Olivera), whose life is turned upside down after a mysterious stranger gives her a clue to a centuries-old treasure that might be connected to her long-dead father. Jess has a knack for solving puzzles, and her skills are put to the test as she and her friends follow a series of clues hidden in American artifacts and landmarks. But can Jess outsmart a black-market antiquities dealer in a race to find history’s greatest lost treasure and unbury the truth about her family’s past?

Before the series debuts, allow the cast to introduce their characters:

Lisette Olivera poses for a National Treasure: Edge of History promotional photo.

Jess (Lisette Olivera)
Jess is a resourceful DREAMer who embarks on the adventure of a lifetime to uncover the truth about her family’s past and save a lost Pan-American treasure. “Jess is a bright young woman who’s living in Baton Rouge and at a standstill in her life after her mother passes away,” Olivera tells D23 of her “ambitious” character. “She discovers that her father has something to do with Pan-American treasure, so she decides to go on this treasure hunt, despite all the adversity and fear—and she rises to the occasion.”

Catherine Zeta-Jones poses for a National Treasure: Edge of History promotional photo.

Billie (Catherine Zeta-Jones)
“I play a semi-shady antiques dealer/black market trader who’s in search of a particular treasure and gets thrown into Jess’ world,” Zeta-Jones tells D23. “They have this kind of cat and mouse relationship. Who’s going to get this treasure first? Is the treasure real? Who’s good? Who’s bad? It’s a real romp.” And no one is having more fun than her: “When you play a so-called ‘baddie,’ it gives you the leeway to push it a bit more.”

Jake Austin Walker poses for a National Treasure: Edge of History promotional photo.

Liam (Jake Austin Walker)
The estranged grandson of former FBI Agent Peter Sadusky (Harvey Keitel), Liam is a struggling musician who wants to forge his own path. “Liam comes from a very long line of treasure hunters. He knows firsthand the damages that can come from that life,” Walker tells D23. “He wants nothing to do with it—until Jess convinces him otherwise.”

Jordan Rodrigues poses for a National Treasure: Edge of History promotional photo.

Ethan (Jordan Rodrigues)
“My character is the rule follower,” Rodrigues tells D23. “He is Jess’s best friend, so he’s very protective over her and doesn’t want her to get in trouble with the law. His objective, basically, is to keep her safe and protected at all times.” Ethan pines for Jess... but are his feelings unrequited? “There was an attraction from the beginning, a strong bond,” he says. “But they’re hesitant to see where things could potentially go.”

Zuri Reed poses for a National Treasure: Edge of History promotional photo.

Tasha (Zuri Reed)
“Tasha is a social media star!” Reed tells D23. “She runs a platform where she schools her audience on internet privacy and what it takes to keep the government out of your business. She thinks somebody is always listening. Because of that, she’s super anti-government, super anti-FBI. But it turns out she needs to tap into that to get to where they need to go. She’s forced to reevaluate some of her beliefs for the bigger picture, which is to help her best friend, Jess, and their other friends during this crazy journey.”

Antonio Cipriano poses for a National Treasure: Edge of History promotional photo.

Oren (Antonio Cipriano)

A sneakerhead and childhood friend of Jess, Ethan, and Tasha, Oren has a lot of energy. “Oren’s the cheerleader of the group,” Cipriano says. “He gets Jess excited after going through a traumatic experience, and he comes out the other side ready to go.” Audiences will also see Oren’s rollercoaster romance with Tasha play out. “They start off in rough waters, but throughout the show, Oren really tries to prove himself, and he does mature,” he tells D23. “They go through so much as a group and they get really close. There may be some rekindling, or there may not be. You’ll have to watch!”

Lyndon Smith poses for a National Treasure: Edge of History promotional photo.

Agent Ross (Lyndon Smith)
Smith describes her character as a “brilliant, brilliant FBI agent,” telling D23, “She was top of her class at Quantico, but she made a career mistake on her first big job and got kicked down to the Baton Rouge field office. She has to rebuild her professional reputation at the beginning of this season. And then in waltzes Jess and Tasha with this weird story about a treasure and a kidnaping, and she swats them out of there. What I find to be so interesting about her is that she has the emotional intelligence to take a step back and go, ‘I think I was wrong about this. I’m going to go on an adventure of my own to figure out what’s actually happening. Who’s friend? Who’s foe? Is there a treasure?’ She’s one step behind the gang and, eventually, turns into an ally for them.”

Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts Showcases a Treasure Trove

By Alison Stateman

Disney fans can glimpse stunning examples of 18th century French decorative art that inspired some of Disney’s most celebrated animated films and theme park elements through the exhibition Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts at The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California, which opened on December 10, 2022, and will run through March 27, 2023.

The international traveling exhibition, organized by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Wallace Collection in London in association with The Huntington, showcases a treasure trove of approximately 50 works of European decorative art and design alongside seminal hand-drawn production artworks and works on paper from the Walt Disney Animation Research Library, Walt Disney Archives, Walt Disney Imagineering Collection, and The Walt Disney Family Museum.

The exhibit coincides with the upcoming 100th anniversary of The Walt Disney Company.

“I grew up in Southern California. Disney is all around us. It was sort of in the water, in the air, maybe even in our DNA in Southern California… so I feel like this show here in this place is really special,” Melinda McCurdy, The Huntington’s curator of British art and the exhibition’s venue curator, said at a press preview for the exhibit the day before it opened. “My hope is that the interest that people everywhere have in Disney will bring them to The Huntington—and if those people come away with a newfound appreciation for historical decorative arts, then this project has done its job. This is a doorway. It’s a way to bring two very different art forms together by having them speak to each other. It’s so special to be able to see our objects, which are on view in our galleries normally, in a whole new context, telling a whole new story.”

In bringing the two radically different forms of artistic work together, the show’s curators hope to deepen viewers’ appreciation and understanding of the sometimes-overlooked art forms of decorative arts and animation.

“What this exhibition does is that it brings together two forms of artistic expression that at first seem worlds apart,” said Wolf Burchard, curator for the exhibition at The Met and Associate Curator of Decorative Arts in that museum’s department of European sculpture and decorative arts. “On the one hand, you have hand-drawn animation made for a large, international audience, and on the other you have Rococo, decorative works of art that are made for a small European elite. Yet, when you bring those two worlds together, you will find that there are many areas of overlap in their artistic intuition and their workshop practices and the advances they each pushed in design and technology…. What we’re looking at here is really a journey of creativity, both in the 18th century and in the 20th century.”

A view of the interior of the exhibition Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts leading into the first two galleries featuring original artwork by Disney artists as seen from the entryway.

Photo Credit: The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens 

The show begins by exploring the origins of Walt Disney’s love of France, where he served as an ambulance driver immediately following World War I, and his early encounters with Europe and European art, including home movie footage of Walt, his brother Roy, and Roy’s wife Edna in Paris and exploring Versailles. Whimsical French and German Rococo porcelain figures are displayed alongside story sketches for The China Shop (1934), part of Disney’s “Silly Symphony” series of music-based cartoon shorts, that showcase the artistry of both and how Disney artists seem to have brought the inanimate to life in their early work.

Cinderella in front of a mirror, concept art for Cinderella (1950) by Mary Blair, from the 1940s. Courtesy of the Walt Disney Animation Research Library. © Disney.

The section that follows focuses on the artistry of two early animated classics—Cinderella (1950) and Sleeping Beauty (1959)—and includes gorgeous guache prints done by Disney Legend Mary Blair for Cinderella, medieval tapestry, artwork that Disney artists consulted for Sleeping Beauty, and newly restored pages from the Walt Disney Archives’ Sleeping Beauty prop book.

Rococo teapots with intricate designs and anthropormorphistic features are displayed in a gallery case in front of Disney animation art of Mrs. Potts from Beauty and the Beast at the exhibition Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts on view at The Huntington.

Photo Credit: The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens 

Beauty and the Beast (1991), which heralded a renaissance in Disney animation with its beloved cast of household objects come to life, takes center stage in subsequent galleries. Original artwork from the film, including the level-headed teapot Mrs. Potts, memorably voiced by the late Disney Legend Angela Lansbury, and charismatic candelabra Lumiere, are displayed alongside Rococo decorative porcelain—including anthropomorphistic teapots—and ornate candlesticks and grandfather clocks.

The audio guide for the exhibit includes an introduction by Lansbury, which Bouchard believes was her last recorded artistic work.

Pair of tower vases attributed to Etienne-Maurice Falconet and Sèvres Manufactory is seen in front of a print of concept art by Frank Armitage for Le Chateau de la Belle au Bois Dormant, the castle in Disneyland Paris.

Photo Credit: The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens 

The pièce de résistance of the show features the first bird’s-eye view illustration drawn by Herbert Ryman under the guidance of Walt Disney over one weekend in the fall of 1953 as well as the only two known pairs of so-called tower vases made by Sèvres around 1762-63. It’s easy to see the parallels between the porcelain potpourri pots, designed to look like miniature fortified towers complete with high-shingled roofs and intricately painted brickwork detailing, and the representations of fairy tale castles found in Disney parks around the world.

First Look: See Paige O’Hara, Richard White, and Alan Menken’s Cameos in Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration

By Zach Johnson

Oh, isn’t it amazing!

Later this week, ABC will broadcast the animated and live-action blended special Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration... but before you can say “bonjour,” D23: The Official Disney Fan Club can exclusively announce that Disney Legend Paige O’Hara and Richard White will cameo in the star-studded spectacle! Presented by The Wonderful World of Disney, the two-hour reimagining of the beloved story Beauty and the Beast was taped in front of a live audience at Disney Studios and will air Thursday, December 15, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and will be available stream on Disney+ Friday. (Pre-save music from the special before the album debuts on Thursday, December 15.)

In a still from ABC’s Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration, Paige O’Hara, wearing a brown and orange striped dress, a blue and white apron, and a white shawl, stands in front of Woolverton’s Books. H.E.R., wearing a blue dress, a white shirt, and a blue bow in her hair, peruses the book selection. She carries a white wicker basket in her arm.

O’Hara and White’s cameos should delight fans of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ 1991 animated feature film Beauty and the Beast, as they voiced Belle and Gaston, respectively. In Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration, O’Hara will play a librarian, while White will play a baker. The two stars will appear in the opening number, “Belle.” Keep an eye out for some additional Easter eggs, like the sign for Woolverton’s Books (above), which is named after Linda Woolverton—who wrote the screenplay for the classic film.

In a still from ABC’s Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration, Paige O’Hara, wearing a brown and orange striped dress, a blue and white apron, and a white shawl, hands a book to H.E.R., wearing a blue dress, a white shirt, and a blue bow in her hair. Behind them, a man caresses an illustration of a pig.

Not only that, but Disney Legend Alan Menken, composer of the original animated film, will also makes a fun cameo in “Belle.” Look for him playing piano on the song!

Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration has no shortage of superstars. As previously announced, five-time Grammy®- and Academy Award®-winning singer-songwriter H.E.R. will play Belle, Josh Groban will play the Beast, Joshua Henry will play Gaston, Martin Short will play Lumière, David Alan Grier will play Cogsworth, Shania Twain will play Mrs. Potts, Leo Abelo Perry will play Chip, Rizwan Manji will play LeFou, and Jon Jon Briones will play Maurice, while the imitable Rita Moreno will serve as the narrator.

In a still from ABC’s Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration, Richard White, wearing an apron, a chef’s hat, bloomers, and brown buckled shoes, walks with H.E.R., wearing a blue dress, a white shirt, and a blue bow in her hair.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of when Beauty and the Beast became the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. The film went on to win the Golden Globe® Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, while the song “Beauty and the Beast” won the Oscar® for Best Original Song in 1992.

Jon M. Chu, who is in an overall deal with Disney Television Studios, executive produces Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration, with Hamish Hamilton directing and executive producing. Caitlin Foito, Raj Kapoor, Richard Kraft, and Katy Mullan are also executive producers, and H.E.R. is a producer. Done+Dusted, in association with Walt Disney Television Alternative and Electric Somewhere, are producing the special. The creative team for Beauty and the Beast: a 30th Celebration includes set designer Julio Himede, choreographer Jamal Sims, and costume designer Marina Toybina.

“Beauty and the Beast is a timeless story and we’re so fortunate to work with creative mastermind Jon M. Chu and veteran director Hamish Hamilton to bring a modern twist to this beloved classic for an unforgettable night of Disney magic,” Craig Erwich, president, Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment, said earlier this year. “Stacked with unforgettable performances, this will be a must-see special event for fans of the original and for the new generation being introduced to this cherished tale.”

“Beauty and the Beast was always a game-changing cinematic experience for me,” Chu added. “When the animated movie came out, I watched it multiple times in the first weekend. It showed me the outer limits of what animated artists and storytellers could achieve, so the fact that I get to executive produce a tribute to all the creatives that made this masterpiece through our Electric Somewhere company is a dream I didn’t even think was possible. With world-class creatives and talent to reinterpret the classic musical numbers (with a few surprises), I can’t wait for the audiences, in person and at home, to experience what we have in store for them. It’s a true celebration of creativity.”

Disney Wins 16 Emmy® Awards at the Inaugural Children’s & Family Emmy Award Ceremonies

The Walt Disney Company won 16 Emmy® Awards this weekend at the inaugural Children’s & Family Emmy Awards across its content brands and studios: Disney Branded Television, Disney Junior, Disney Television Studios’ 20th Television, Pixar Animation Studios, and Walt Disney Studios. Disney’s streaming platforms Disney+ and Hulu earned 13 wins and one, respectively.

A complete list of Disney’s Emmy Award wins follows:

Sneakerella (Disney+/Disney Branded Television)
4 wins

  • Outstanding Fiction Special
  • Outstanding Music Direction and Composition for a Live Action Program
  • Outstanding Editing for a Single Camera Program
  • Outstanding Choreography

The Mysterious Benedict Society (Disney+/20th Television/Disney Branded Television)
2 wins

  • Outstanding Directing for a Single Camera Program
  • Outstanding Costume Design/Styling

The Quest (Disney+/Disney Branded Television)
2 wins

  • Outstanding Directing for a Multiple Camera Program
  • Outstanding Special Effects Costumes, Makeup, and Hairstyling for a Live Action Program

Rueby Wood stars as Nate in 20th Century Studios’ Better Nate Than Ever Wood wears a white suit jacket, a white shirt, black pants, and a black bowtie. He is standing center stage. Behind him are male dancers on one side and female dancers on the other, as well as a marquee that says NATE in block letters.

Better Nate Than Ever (Disney+/Walt Disney Studios)
1 win

  • Outstanding Cinematography for a Live Action Single Camera Program

Ciao Alberto (Disney+/Pixar Animation Studios)
1 win

  • Outstanding Editing for an Animated Program

Endlings (Hulu)
1 win

  • Outstanding Visual Effects for a Live Action Program

Mickey and Minnie Wish Upon a Christmas (Disney Junior/Disney Branded Television)
1 win

  • Outstanding Voice Performance in a Preschool Animated Program – Daniel Ross

Val, a furry monster with orange, red, and yellow ombre fur and incredibly long legs, drives a car in a darkened hallway. In the passenger seat is Tylor, a tall, scaly purple monster with blue stripes on his shoulder, short blue hair, and two long horns that extend horizontally from the top of his head.

Monsters at Work (Disney+/Disney Branded Television/Disney Television Animation)
1 win – Juried Award

  • Individual Achievement in Animation – Character Design – Ron Tolentino Velasco

Muppet Babies (Disney Junior/Disney Branded Television)
1 win

  • Outstanding Writing for a Preschool Animated Program

Muppets Haunted Mansion (Disney+/Disney Branded Television)
1 win

  • Outstanding Art Direction/Set Decoration/Scenic Design (tie)

The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder (Disney+/Disney Branded Television)
1 win

  • Outstanding Casting for an Animated Program

5 Fantastic Things to Watch This Week

By Andie Hagemann

From a time-traveling limited series to a reimagining of a beloved Disney film, you won’t want to miss all the spectacular titles coming to your TV (and assorted streaming devices) this week. On Tuesday, all episodes of FX’s new limited series Kindred launch on Hulu. The first two episodes of National Treasure: Edge of History premiere Wednesday on Disney+. ABC’s Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration special premieres Thursday on the network. Last but not least, Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Prep & Landing airs Friday on Freeform as part of the network’s “25 Days of Christmas” festivities, and Disney Original Documentary’s If These Walls Could Sing debuts that same day on Disney+.

In a scene from the FX series Kindred, actor Mallori Johnson portrays Dana James and sits at a wooden table with each hand resting on the top. Johnson looks to her left with wide, teary eyes. Johnson wears a tan, long-sleeved sweater. On the table is a single metal candle holder covered in wax. Johnson sits inside a dimly lit wooden cabin. Behind Johnson are an old metal candelabra on the wall and a wooden rocking chair with a multi-colored quilt draped on the back of the chair.

Kindred—Tuesday, December 13, on Hulu
Adapted from Octavia E. Butler’s celebrated novel of the same name, the FX series—intended only for mature audiences—centers on Dana James (Mallori Johnson), a young Black woman and aspiring writer who is ready for a new life in Los Angeles. But, before Dana can settle into her new home, she finds herself being pulled back and forth in time. She emerges at a 19th-century plantation—a place connected to Dana and her family—where she learns unknown family secrets. The limited series also stars Micah Stock as Kevin Franklin, Ryan Kwanten as Thomas Weylin, Gayle Rankin as Margaret Weylin, Austin Smith as Luke, David Alexander Kaplan as Rufus Weylin, Sophina Brown as Sarah, and Sheria Irving as Olivia. All episodes are available on the streamer at launch.

In a scene from the Disney+ Original series National Treasure: Edge of History, from left to right, actors Lisette Olivera as Jess Valenzuela and Harvey Keitel as Peter Sandusky stand face-to-face inside a dimly lit room covered with wood paneling. Olivera wears a brown leather jacket on top of a long-sleeved cream top. Keitel wears a charcoal long-sleeved top, a charcoal sweater vest with a black argyle design, and a silver watch on his left wrist. Behind Olivera and Keitel are a large wooden bureau—topped with old books, an antique glass lamp, and two daggers in a jar—and a large landscape painting with an ornate golden frame.

National Treasure: Edge of History—Wednesday, December 14, on Disney+
The all-new Disney+ Original series—an expansion of the National Treasure film franchise—follows Jess Valenzuela (Lisette Olivera), whose life is turned upside down when a stranger gives her a clue to a centuries-old treasure that might be connected to her late father. An avid puzzle-solver, Jess puts her skills to the test as she and her friends follow a series of clues hidden in American artifacts and landmarks. Can she outsmart an antiquities dealer who is also on the hunt for the lost treasure? The first two episodes debut at launch, followed by new episodes premiering weekly on Wednesdays thereafter. The series also stars Catherine Zeta Jones as Billie, Jake Austin Walker as Liam, Jordan Rodrigues as Ethan, Zuri Reed as Tasha, Antonio Cipriano as Oren, and Lyndon Smith as Agent Ross.

In a scene from the ABC special Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration, musical performer HER portrays Belle, smiles, and stands center. HER holds a book with a royal blue book jacket against her chest. A white wicker basket dangles on her right arm. H.E.R. wears a white blouse, a blue jumper, and a white apron adorned with several red flowers, and brown leather booties. Behind HER are a crowd of townspeople dressed in colorful period ensembles and a large backdrop painted to resemble a small town with cream buildings and red-tiled roofs.

Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration—Thursday, December 15, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC
This year marks the 30th anniversary of when Disney’s Beauty and the Beast became the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars®, and the theme song “Beauty and the Beast” won the Academy Award® for Best Original Song. To commemorate the milestone anniversary for this “tale as old as time,” ABC will present an animated and live action-blended special with a star-studded cast. Award-winning singer-songwriter H.E.R. will play Belle, while Josh Groban will portray the Beast. The special also stars Joshua Henry as Gaston, Martin Short as Lumière, David Alan-Grier as Cogsworth, Rizwan Manji as LeFou, Jon Jon Briones as Maurice, Shania Twain as Mrs. Potts, Leo Abelo Perry as Chip, and Rita Moreno as the narrator. The special will be available to stream the following day on Disney+.

In a scene from the Walt Disney Animation Studios feature film Prep & Landing, elves Wayne and Lanny stand inside a brick fireplace with their arms extended outward and surrounded by a cloud of smoke. Wayne and Lanny both wear round goggles with neon green lenses over their eyes, a pointy green hat with red round balls on the end, a green coat with green fur around the collar and piping the edges, a pair of green leggings with red and green stripes, and shoes with curled toes. Above their heads hang three red Christmas stockings with white fur and a green garland with white lights. A poinsettia in a green pot is on the hearth next to a plate of cookies and a glass of milk. Opposite is a green Christmas tree decorated with white lights, red and white candy canes, and red Christmas ornaments.

Prep & Landing—Friday, December 16, at 9:30 a.m. ET/PT on Freeform
After working in Prep & Landing for 227 years, Wayne (voiced by David Foley) is upset when he doesn’t receive an expected promotion to be the Director of Naughty List Intelligence. Instead, Wayne is partnered with Lanny (voiced by Derek Richardson)—a rookie with neverending excitement for Christmas. During their Christmas Eve mission, Wayne and Lanny are dealt unexpected challenges that test their limits, but will the elves be able to guide Santa’s reindeer through an intense snowstorm?

In a scene from the Disney Original Documentary If These Walls Could Sing, musician Paul McCartney sits in a red-padded chair inside a recording studio. McCartney wears a dark blue button-down shirt with an abstract light blue design and a pair of black pants. Surrounding McCartney are a piano, guitars, an organ, amps, speakers, and large microphones.

If These Walls Could Sing—Friday, December 16, on Disney+
For more than 90 years, Abbey Road Studios has been at the heart of the music industry. Fans journey every year to have their photo taken at the famous crosswalk, and artists aspire to follow in the footsteps of their heroes. In this Disney Original Documentary film, Mary McCartney guides viewers through nine decades of music magic and interviews iconic musicians including Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Disney Legend Elton John, John Williams, and many more.

Enter for a chance to win a stellar iPad Mini from Disney Mirrorverse!

Looking for a way to play Disney Mirrorverse in style this holiday season? Enter the D23 Season of Magic Sweepstakes today for a chance to win an Apple iPad Mini, courtesy of Disney Mirrorverse! Act fast; entries close at 11:59 p.m. ET on December 12.

Last month, D23 fans got an exclusive first look at the Beast’s upcoming release. Well, we don’t need a clock (or a candlestick!) to tell us that the hour has come for the Beast to officially roar into action.

In Disney Mirrorverse, stellar magic has amplified the Beast’s protective spirit, helping him to defend his fellow Guardians. Now united with the powerfully evolved Belle, these two stand strong, shoulder-to-shoulder against the threat of Fractured foes.

Don’t miss the “Beast of Intentions” event, live now through December 26. In this special event, Beast meets fellow Mirrorverse Guardian Elsa and must learn to work together with her in order to protect the townsfolk of Port Royal from disaster.

Collect the Beast, available for a limited time, and many other powerfully amplified Disney and Pixar characters, in Disney Mirrorverse today, and create unexpected match-ups of Guardians. Your dream team awaits in the Mirrorverse! And don’t forget, Olaf, the Elemental of Heart and Hearth, will be available starting December 27!

Download and play Disney Mirrorverse today, on the App Store or Google Play!

Rules
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Sweepstakes start at 12:00 a.m. ET on December 8, 2022, and end at 11:59 p.m. ET on December 14, 2022, conducted as 7 separate and distinct entry periods and drawings. Open to legal residents of the 50 United States and D.C. who are at least 18 years of age or older at the time of entry (or the age of majority in their jurisdiction of residence, whichever is older). 7 prize packs are available to be won (ARV: $105-$500). Void where prohibited. For eligibility requirements, entry instructions, prize pack descriptions, odds and limitations, see full Official Rules at http://d23.com/seasonofmagic-rules. Sponsor: Disney Worldwide Services, Inc., dba D23 Worldwide, 500 S. Buena Vista Street, Burbank, CA 91521- 8440.