It’s no lie that Disney has made so many great contributions to the animation industry. However, people have started to feel that their winning streak is coming to an end. Why is that? After all, isn’t Disney making similar content in the animation industry than in their earlier days? The plotlines are similar, the morals are similar, the target audience hasn’t changed, they still work in basic themes. So what about the world has changed to cause this? Is it just the world going farther and farther in the 21st century? Maybe it’s because there's just more animation studios to look at, like Sony or Netflix? Or is it deeper still?

The Disney animated movie that has grossed the most money is Inside Out 2 (2024, refer to figure 1). The movie itself grossed $1,698,863,816 worldwide, and was even nominated for an Oscar in 2024, which was won by Gints Zilbalodis’s Flow. Yet some of their films before like Wish, and Elemental didn’t do so well. So what was different about this movie? It’s the target audience. Inside Out 2 has a very specific target audience: younger teens. Disney is famous for making films that relate to all audiences, however that can stretch the quality too thin. After an interview with Kailani Weir, she stated that she did find the movie relatable: such as concepts like being nervous and anxious at new places, or feeling pressured to do things that are bad or wrong. So having a specific audience served Disney well.

But where did it not? Turning Red (2022, refer to figure 2) is a great example of this. Directed by Domee Shi, this movie talks about similar issues-growing up, feeling uncomfortable, etc. So why didn’t it do as well? After all, it uses a similar animation style too. So it can’t be that either. The conclusion is many people felt as if the film was unoriginal and unorganized, and that it didn’t have characters with enough development. However, many people argue that the film managed to relate to them. The focus on the main character rather than the side characters made people feel more comfortable and seen.

The animation style itself is a good thing to focus on. Often described as the ‘Pixar bean mouth’, the style consists of thin line work, bean shaped mouths, and simplified features. It has received hate in both 2D and 3D animation, the focus goes to 3D. Although some people find it objectively ugly, others find it cute and charming. Yahoo News writers claim that it even “ruined”  Disney’s Elio (2025, figure 3). Although the style is simple and adorable, diversity is important in any field. However, one thing that seems to be fading from Disney, and other animation industries lately is 2D animation. It’s nostalgic and beautiful, and is a really great way to express character design and gives off a diverse air.

What about their successes? Disney has had so many great successes, from Frozen (2013), to Cars (2006), to Big Hero Six (2014) to even their classic films like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, Beauty and the Beast, and Cinderella. So what made these films such hits? For films from the 21st century, the general quality in the storytelling, animation, and voice acting is just so clear. As for films like Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty (1937, figure 4), the idea of color animation for kids’ movies was so foreign and fascinating, it captured the attention of the world. There were few animation studios in that time, and most well known animators were working by themselves or in pairs like Gregory La Cava, Tony Sarg, or Hebert Dawley. Most of these works were done in black in white. Disney’s new ideas were bold and bright.

After interviewing Jesse Rogers, the animation teacher here at Reed, he gave me some opinions on this. Although Mr. Rogers’s knowledge mostly states, “One of Disney’s big competitors is independent animation.” Indie animation is defined as independent companies, outside of a major industry, making animation projects. Because of this, they are able to take more risks because they don’t have much to lose.

As for now, opinions on Disney and animation in general are diverse. It’s an everchanging medium, especially in the 21st century with introductions of new technology.  The world of animation will change with us.

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Shi, Domee, et al. “Turning Red.” IMDb, 11 Mar. 2022, www.imdb.com/title/tt8097030/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_Turning%2520Red.

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Lee, J., Lee, J., Buck, C., Smith, M., Anderson-Lopez, K., & Lopez, R. (2019, November 20). Frozen II. IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4520988/

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Perrault, Charles, et al. “Cinderella.” IMDb, 4 Mar. 1950, www.imdb.com/title/tt0042332/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_3_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_cinderella. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.

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“Beauty and the Beast.” IMDb, 22 Nov. 1991, www.imdb.com/title/tt0101414/.

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IMDb. “The Lion King.” IMDb, 23 June 1994, www.imdb.com/title/tt0110357/.

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“DIS Stock Price | Walt Disney Co. Stock Quote (U.S.: NYSE) | MarketWatch.” MarketWatch, 7 Oct. 2025, www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/dis?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=ASWzDAiGYfBXhvrpKp9WvBSvH-0XmE0VZygbbftqB-hYTmOtalDZKSu0RpJY&gaa_ts=68e46716&gaa_sig=67wnwXocsb7UjTGtgCJfh9KJlb0gv3qQW6GysvfJtKYOlEfSUJdAt4pMGXxvCBbq9TZ0z7U2RQhKhwJXO7H9wg%3D%3D. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.

‌ CBC. “Did “Bean Mouth” Really Kill Pixar’s Elio at the Box Office?” CBC via Yahoo News, Yahoo News, 28 June 2025, ca.news.yahoo.com/did-bean-mouth-really-kill- 080000230.html. Accessed 13 Oct. 2025.

‌ “Advanced Search.” IMDb, 2025, m.imdb.com/search/title/?keywords=indie-animation&explore=keywords.

Image credits: 

All-Disney