We didn't see these changes in Disney live-action remakes coming. For this list, we’ll be looking at the most surprising ways new Disney movies deviated from the original animated versions.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00 "She is with the--"
00:01 "You say this one more time, I will feed you to the wolves!"
00:05 "Stun!"
00:06 Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks
00:10 for the top 10 most shocking changes in Disney live-action remakes.
00:14 "You stole what was left of my heart, and now I've lost you forever."
00:19 For this list, we'll be looking at the most surprising ways
00:23 new Disney movies deviated from the original animated versions,
00:27 from differences in visuals to additions to the story.
00:30 These are changes we didn't see coming.
00:33 In order to explain a few of our choices, we will be revealing some spoilers.
00:38 Which of these changes do you think worked the best?
00:40 Let us know in the comments below.
00:42 Number 10.
00:45 Sad Geppetto - Pinocchio
00:47 "Just how it really was when he was here."
00:55 "He was here with me."
01:01 Disney's live-action adaptation fleshes out Pinocchio's maker Geppetto
01:04 with a heartbreaking backstory.
01:06 Apparently, he had a son who died before the magical wooden puppet was created.
01:11 The emotionally charged addition is handled well by expert actor Tom Hanks.
01:15 However, it doesn't have much of an effect on the story overall.
01:19 "What do you think, huh?"
01:20 "Oh, really?"
01:23 "Well, I think he looks very much like him."
01:27 Besides Geppetto's son being the inspiration for Pinocchio's look,
01:32 his existence ends up feeling a little pointless.
01:35 Guillermo del Toro's take on the children's tale,
01:37 which premiered about a month after Disney's more recent version,
01:40 makes the same change, but with greater success.
01:43 "The boy you lost? Was he a very good boy, Papa?"
01:48 "Yes, he was."
01:53 "And you loved him very much?"
01:54 "I did."
01:56 Number 9. Lee Shang is absent.
02:00 Mulan.
02:00 Shang and Mulan are one of Disney's most classic couples,
02:04 so it's pretty surprising that he, like grandmother Fa and Mushu,
02:08 doesn't appear in the live-action adaptation.
02:10 "You forgot your helmet. Well, actually, it's your helmet, isn't it? I mean..."
02:16 "Would you like to stay for dinner?"
02:19 "Would you like to stay forever?"
02:21 One of the film's producers, Jason Reed,
02:24 explained that his character is essentially split into two,
02:27 inspiring both Mulan's commander Tung and another soldier named Hongli.
02:31 "You would believe Hua Jun. Why do you not believe Hua Mulan?
02:34 She risked everything by revealing her true identity.
02:38 She's braver than any man here."
02:42 In the wake of the #MeToo movement,
02:44 the filmmakers felt uncomfortable telling a love story
02:47 between a soldier and a commanding officer,
02:49 a decision that was met with mixed reactions.
02:52 That said, Shang is a bit of a queer icon among fans,
02:55 and his presence is sorely missed.
02:57 Number 8. Peter is kinda the bad guy.
03:08 Peter Pan and Wendy.
03:10 This film does something really unexpected.
03:13 It casts Peter Pan in the wrong and holds him accountable for his mistakes.
03:17 The mischievous child is controlling, stubborn,
03:20 and unwilling to accept help even when he could use it.
03:23 "All my bad form I learned from you."
03:25 "Don't flatter yourself. You've always been rotten.
03:29 A stinking, rotten, codfish."
03:33 In his single-minded pursuit of eternal childhood,
03:38 he alienates some people and holds others back.
03:41 From Wendy to the Lost Boys to Captain Hook,
03:44 Peter needs to make amends to practically every other character in the movie.
03:48 "I'm Peter Pan. I don't ever need help."
03:50 "You are a magical fairy that makes you fly.
03:54 And a gaggle of children that you're bidding with a princess
03:57 to clean up your messes while you're off gallivanting with pirates."
04:00 This new perspective allows for unexpected dynamics
04:04 to play out between Peter and the others,
04:05 and informs his story arc brilliantly.
04:08 Although we were surprised by this turn at first,
04:11 we're happy to say that in the end, Peter redeems himself.
04:14 "Apologize."
04:15 "For what?"
04:19 "For hurting you. For being a rotten friend."
04:24 Number 7. Gaston leaves Maurice to die. Beauty and the Beast.
04:29 Gaston's descent from pompous jerk to full-blown villain
04:32 is pretty gradual in the 1991 animated film.
04:36 He starts out not taking no for an answer,
04:38 then hatches a plan to get Maurice committed,
04:40 and lastly resorts to violence when he leads the attack
04:43 on the Beast's enchanted castle.
04:45 "I won't let you do this!"
04:46 "If you're not with us, you're against us.
04:48 Bring the old man! Get your hands off me!"
04:52 "We can't have them running off to warn the creature!"
04:54 Things play out pretty differently in the live-action adaptation.
04:58 His morality takes a nosedive halfway through the film
05:01 when he hits Maurice and leaves him to die in the forest.
05:05 "If Maurice won't give me his blessing, then he is in my way.
05:09 Once the wolves have finished with him,
05:11 Belle will have no one to take care of her but me."
05:13 Him getting physical so fast is shocking and feels a little out of left field.
05:18 We're not sure how attempting to kill her father
05:20 would help him in his pursuit of Belle's hand in marriage,
05:23 but we suppose that's the villain madness for you.
05:26 "No wonder Belle ran away. You need help, sir.
05:30 A place to heal your troubled mind.
05:33 Everything's going to be fine."
05:39 Number 6. Dark and muted colors.
05:42 Various.
05:42 "Are you listening to me?"
05:43 "Yes, uh…"
05:44 "You won't tell him, I won't tell him, and I will stay in one piece, you got it?"
05:49 "Got it. Sorry, what'd you say again?"
05:51 One thing we love about Disney's animation is the use of bright, bold colors.
05:56 The vivid hues suit the enchanting style well and always add to the film's fantastical vibes.
06:01 While we understand the more muted palettes for the realism of live-actions,
06:05 we can't help but feel some of the magic is lost because of it.
06:09 "Be our guest, be our guest, put our service to the test.
06:16 Tie your napkin 'round your neck, sherry, and we'll provide the rest."
06:22 To be fair, not all the live-action films are sucked dry of color.
06:26 That being said, many of our favorite animated scenes
06:29 are dramatically different in the more recent versions,
06:31 in part thanks to a dialed-down palette.
06:34 "Oh, I just can't wait to be gay. He just can't wait to be gay."
06:44 Maybe it's because Disney intended these films to be for an older audience,
06:48 but as adults, we're sad to see the new movies appear so lifeless in color.
06:53 Number 5. Scar's motivation.
06:56 The Lion King.
06:57 We never had a problem believing that Scar's hunger for power and his all-consuming jealousy
07:01 of his brother would be strong enough to make him kill not only Mufasa,
07:05 but also his young nephew.
07:07 After all, things are done differently in the animal kingdom.
07:10 "Run away and never return."
07:12 "Kill him."
07:21 The live-action film further fleshes out Scar's motivation,
07:25 adding a component to his jealousy that we didn't see coming.
07:28 It turns out, Scar has feelings for Mufasa's queen, Sarabi.
07:32 "As long as you resist, they will reject me.
07:34 Take your place by my side, and we will feast together."
07:39 "I will never be your queen."
07:43 Some Disney fans might recall a deleted scene from the animated original,
07:48 which would hint at this.
07:49 "A king alone is a sad situation indeed, but a king without heirs...
07:55 Now that's a tragedy."
07:58 "You can't be serious."
07:59 "I've never been more serious."
08:01 Other fans subscribe to the theory that Scar is gay,
08:04 which is rather complicated by this revelation.
08:07 Number 4.
08:08 The Grand Duke and Stepmother's Partnership, Cinderella
08:12 "So what do you want?"
08:13 "I should like to be a countess,
08:16 and I require advantageous marriages for my two daughters."
08:20 "Done."
08:23 The 2015 live-action film is significantly different
08:26 from its animated counterpart,
08:28 and the change that takes us most off-guard is a pretty big one.
08:32 Cinderella's stepmother, Lady Tremaine,
08:34 comes up with a plan to not only secure a good future
08:37 for herself and her daughters,
08:38 but also to ruin Cinderella's chance of being with the prince.
08:42 "You told no one else?"
08:43 "Not even my own daughters. No one need ever know the truth."
08:49 "You've spared the kingdom a great deal of embarrassment."
08:53 Shockingly, she involves the Grand Duke in her plan,
08:56 making him a secondary villain.
08:58 It further illustrates to what length Lady Tremaine would go to
09:01 in order to come out on top,
09:03 and involving a palace official is a great way to add
09:06 even more dramatic tension.
09:08 "Do with her what you will. She's nothing to me."
09:12 "Where?"
09:15 "Abandoned, on the side of the road."
09:17 "And have you found her?"
09:18 "The girl? No, she's disappeared."
09:19 Number 3.
09:21 Maleficent's Tragic Backstory.
09:23 Maleficent.
09:24 Disney's 1959 film Sleeping Beauty got a Wicked-esque spin
09:34 with this 2014 live-action film.
09:37 Starring Angelina Jolie as the titular character,
09:39 it tells Maleficent's origin story,
09:41 which is more heartbreaking than we could have ever imagined.
09:45 "Maleficent often wandered alone,
09:47 and sometimes wondered where Stefan might be,
09:50 for she had never understood the greed and envy of men."
09:54 From a star-crossed romance to a brutal amputation,
09:57 the fairy goes through a lot,
09:59 experiencing both emotional and physical pain.
10:02 In this version, it's easy to understand her resentment
10:05 against Aurora and her family,
10:07 especially her father, the king.
10:09 We never expected to find ourselves sympathizing with the villain.
10:12 Yet, here we are.
10:13 "I was so lost in hatred and revenge.
10:19 Sweet Aurora."
10:20 Number 2.
10:22 Not Being Musicals.
10:24 Various.
10:25 The music from Disney's animated films is top-notch,
10:28 and essentially the soundtrack of our childhoods.
10:31 "With all the force of the greats,
10:33 we'll tide the league along.
10:35 With all the strength of the raging fire,
10:38 mysterious as the dark side of the moon."
10:44 "I'm the one."
10:48 That's why whenever a live-action remake skips the musical numbers,
10:52 we can't help but feel a bit sour.
10:54 The newer versions of The Jungle Book,
10:56 Sleeping Beauty,
10:57 Cinderella,
10:58 and Mulan lack all the integrated musical numbers
11:01 their animated originals have.
11:03 "Keep your mind strong.
11:04 Don't stop."
11:07 "Is he crying?"
11:12 To be fair, many of the newer films take a more serious tone
11:15 and don't lend themselves to being musicals.
11:17 Plus, audiences are likely to be more partial to the original soundtracks,
11:21 so if people are going to try to recreate these beloved songs,
11:25 they need to bring their A-game in order to compete.
11:28 "Forget about your worries and strife.
11:31 I mean the bare necessities of Mother Nature's recipes
11:37 that bring the bare necessities of life."
11:41 Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
11:46 The Genie Falls in Love - Aladdin
11:48 We never considered that the lovable side character
11:50 would get a love interest of his own.
11:52 "That I would love to travel the world with,
11:55 if she'll have me."
11:58 "When do we leave? Also, I want children."
12:05 Alice is the Chosen One - Alice in Wonderland
12:08 We absolutely love seeing her as the heroic knight.
12:11 "There's a place called Wonderland.
12:12 Six. I can slay the Jabberwocky."
12:18 Tramp's Backstory - Lady and the Tramp
12:22 This stray's past breaks our hearts.
12:24 "It all changed.
12:25 I waited in that spot all day."
12:39 New story arcs for side characters - Peter Pan and Wendy.
12:42 The villain gets a tragic origin story and practically everyone gets a new ending.
12:48 "And do you know after all that I never did find her?
12:50 I never made it home. I never saw my poor sweet Mama ever again."
12:56 Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified about
13:02 our latest videos. You have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them.
13:08 If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.
13:13 Number 1. Realistic-looking animals - Varius
13:17 "Not full hibernation, but I nap a lot."
13:20 "Listen to me, you con artist. He may not know your game, but I do. He's leaving now."
13:26 "But I don't wanna leave."
13:27 "You don't have a choice!"
13:28 Add Flounder to the list of lovable animal characters who shocked us with their appearance
13:33 in a live-action adaptation. When it comes to animated Disney films, we're used to seeing
13:38 anthropomorphized creatures. Heck, we're even fine with an entire cast composed exclusively
13:43 of animals. However, the prioritization of realism in newer adaptations strips animal
13:48 characters of what makes them so endearing in the original films.
13:52 "It means no worries for the rest of your days."
13:56 "Yeah, sing it kid."
13:58 "It's our problem-free philosophy. Hakuna Matata."
14:06 They may be anatomically accurate, but they lose pretty much all of their appeal.
14:10 They don't move or emote the same, which takes away pretty much all of their expressive
14:15 personalities. And they end up existing somewhere in the uncanny valley, next to Will Smith's
14:20 appearance as the Blue Genie.
14:22 "You had a thousand tales, but master you're in luck because up your sleeve you got a genie
14:28 that never fails!"
14:29 "Woo!"
14:31 "I'm the best."
14:35 Do you agree with our picks? Check out this other recent clip from MsMojo.
14:40 And be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos.