Disney is an indelible part of most of our childhoods, whether or not we ever visited a park in person. If your parents didn’t have the money for a trip like that, no problem – there were new films, all the time, being delivered to a movie theater right down the street.
Now, kids don’t even have to leave the house – Disney+ is right there, supplying time-honored favorites day and night.
There’s no way, then, that people aren’t going to gobble up these 15 cool bits of trivia, so hang tight!
15. The genie in Aladdin was written specifically for Robin Williams.
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The studio used recordings of Williams’ stand-up routines in place of the genie’s voice during the early stages of production.
14. The 101 Dalmations animators painted a lot of spots.
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Over 6 million, to be exact. According to one very dedicated fan, there are 6,469,952 in the movie.
13. The animators had fights over who would work on Pocahontas vs. The Lion King.
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The movies were produced at the same time, and the general thought was that Pocahontas would be the bigger hit, and therefore was the more desirable position.
That didn’t exactly turn out.
12. The vultures in The Jungle Book are based on a famous band.
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The Beatles were also asked to voice the musical birds, but John Lennon was a firm no.
11. Actual Parisian artists worked on The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
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100 animators from Disney Animation Studios in Paris worked to complete 10 minutes of animation that filmmakers hoped would add authenticity to the setting and architecture.
10. There’s a reason Tiana is left-handed.
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The actress who voiced Tiana, Anika Noni Rose, is left-handed as well, and asked for the change.
Both also have dimples.
9. Hercules is factually correct (in places).
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When the Fates show him a prophecy there are only 6 planets aligning, because the ancient Greeks were only aware of the planets that can be seen with the naked eye.
8. There’s also a reason Robin Hood was a fox.
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The reason behind your odd sexual feelings for foxes is that an adaptation of the fable Reynard the Fox was canceled previously, but animators didn’t see any reason to start a new character from scratch.
Plus, Robin Hood is foxy, in every sense of the word, so it’s kind of a no-brainer.
7. The wildebeest stampede in The Lion King took a long time to perfect.
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Three years, according to producer Don Hahn. The reason was that the movie was made during the early days of computer animation, and also because they were trying to figure out how to traumatize kids as nicely as possible.
6. The music from The Little Mermaid might sound familiar.
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That’s because it was written by Howard Ashman, who also wrote Little Shop of Horrors (and later, Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin as well).
5. Cinderella was nearly animated by animals.
Image Credit: Cinderella
Fox Carney, Disney’s Animation Research Library’s research manager, revealed the the original idea for Cinderella was to have the entire story related by crows, hens, and other barnyard animals who had seen it all happen firsthand.
4. The very first animated Disney movie to receive a PG rating was a huge flop.
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The Black Cauldron was aimed at teengers, who for some reason had no interest in viewing animated movies at that time in their lives.
So much for nostalgia, I guess.
3. The author of the book Tarzan was based on predicted it would be a big deal.
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60 years before the movie began production, they predicted that one day their story would be made into a Disney film – a lofty goal both then and now.
2. Belle was originally a bit more lusty.
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After the Beast transforms into the prince, Belle nearly asked him “Do you think you can grow a beard?”
Actress Paige O’Hara ad-libbed the line, but it was cut from the final version. You might recall Emma Watson adding it back in during the live-action remake, though.
1. The Atlantean language has something in common with Klingon.
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They were both created by linguist Marc Okrand.
Animator John Pomeroy’s character designs for Milo were inspired by the same man, who most of us wouldn’t know from Adam on the street. Weird!
I just love tidbits like these, don’t you?
Share your own favorite Disney facts in the comments!
