The future of Walt Disney Studios is set — well, at least, the next couple of years are, and the lineup of upcoming titles showcases that the production studio’s next set of movies could be unsatisfying for many viewers. The 2024 and 2025 animated and live-action films are mostly known, with a handful of untitled (and unknown) projects that have already been given premiere dates. Unfortunately, the ones that do have titles are underwhelming for the most part.
Disney’s projects have taken a hit in the last few years due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the battle between theatrical and streaming releases. The multimedia company’s box office numbers have been subpar compared to what they were before 2020. As a result, Walt Disney Studios (and most of Disney’s subsidiaries) has taken a new approach regarding its content strategy for the near future. It could pay off in the long run for the company if it brings its total earnings back to pre-COVID times, but it also means that the studio’s movie lineup appears unpromising and boring.
Disney Is Only Releasing Sequels & Pixar Movies Through 2025
After looking at Walt Disney Studio’s movie lineup for 2024 and 2025, it seems the production company is only dropping sequels and Pixar films in the next two years. The studio likely does not want to take any more risks by releasing additional original projects following the failure of a handful of movies in recent years. It is getting more difficult for Disney to market new stories to audiences, so the company’s executives are returning to what has worked in the past, including film series that audiences thought were finished. Plus, they are banking on the success of original (and old) Pixar movies.
Disney’s upcoming 2024 and 2025 films include Inside Out 2, Mufasa: The Lion King, Snow White, Elio, and Moana. Plus, Toy Story 5, Frozen 3, Frozen 4, and Zootopia 2 are in development but do not have release dates yet. Mufasa: The Lion King, Snow White, and Moana are all live-action versions of popular Disney animated movies, which is a faction of the studio that has grown in recent years. It appears as if every successful Disney animated film is getting a live-action remake. Elio is an original Pixar feature, which will hopefully be a breath of fresh air amongst the sequels (including Inside Out 2 and Toy Story 5) and remakes. Related: 10 Disney Sequels As Good As (Or Better) Than The Original
Why Disney Needs More Original Movies
Disney cannot rely on its previously successful franchises forever. It would be exhausting if the production company’s 2045 lineup consisted of Frozen 13, Toy Story 56, The Incredibles 11, Tangled 5, and so on. The studio needs to find a way to produce exciting and entertaining original movies, and it must construct a different marketing approach to ensure that numerous people show up at the theaters to watch them. Otherwise, most will get bored with Disney‘s slate of movies as the company fails to reinvent itself and keep up with other film studios.
