# Has Disney ever had an original movie idea?



## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

For my own amusement I've been trying to think of a Disney movie that isn't based on some previous story.

Any suggestions?


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## Bluemount Score (Feb 4, 2020)

Well, not sure how far we can go if you are saying "based" on some previous story... what counts as copied and what as inspired?
What's about e.g. Pirats of the Caribbean?


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

Yeah I guess with pirates the ride is an original idea, but the movie is based on the ride.



> what counts as copied and what as inspired?


Well I didn't say copied, but you're right, I think everything has some inspiration behind it. What I'm really getting at is Disney coming up with an original story for a movie. Closest I've found so far is The Aristocats. Although it was inspired by a previous story the plot of the film seems to be original.


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## nolotrippen (Feb 4, 2020)

Even the first Disneyland was not a completely original idea. But what is?


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## gsilbers (Feb 4, 2020)

i think ALL movies derive from something else. 

also, its not like walt or the CEO says: i have an idea and bam gets done and its original. 
disney, who now owns fox, and marvel and lucasfilm also owns a lot of other companies and distirbutes other movies under the disney brand in other countries. plus they own movie studio productions in india and other countries. its more of a distribution thing than story thing. 

so here is a list of all the disney companies (w/o fox etc)








- IMDb







www.imdb.com




and each of those sometimes produces stuff. 

so technically speaking, JOJO Rabbit, which is pretty wierd and original is also a disney movie. 
and also random things like Mars needs moms. wrench it ralph, 

but here is a long list of disney movies









With co0243825 (Sorted by Popularity Ascending) - IMDb


IMDb's advanced search allows you to run extremely powerful queries over all people and titles in the database. Find exactly what you're looking for!




www.imdb.com












With Walt Disney Pictures (Sorted by Popularity Ascending) - IMDb


IMDb's advanced search allows you to run extremely powerful queries over all people and titles in the database. Find exactly what you're looking for!




www.imdb.com


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## gsilbers (Feb 4, 2020)

since i worked doing the audio and files for netflix of fox, disney universal titles etcx back when netflix was still sending out dvds, i can tell you that there a soooooooooooo much content from these studios. the vault they have is soooo freaking huge. i had to grab movies from the 1940 to 2010 and its just absurb how many movies there are... and how little original stories there are. or its an algamation of different stories. or similar stories in another setting etc. every period had its orignal and then they built on that. kinda like how now its about superheroes thanks to marvel and every studio wants to do its superhere thing. well, same thing with gangters, cowboys movies etc. man i hate soo much cowboy movies. actually, after having seen so much in a 4-5 year period.. i pretty much hate all movies since i can just see the trailer and know exactly the storyline :/


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## jbuhler (Feb 4, 2020)

I mean, Disney's brand (at least for feature animation) is rummaging through our cultural heritage and reselling it to us, so there's that. But I think quite a lot of their live action production from the 1960s and 1970s was based on mostly original properties, e.g., The Love Bug.


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> i think ALL movies derive from something else.


Oh definitely, everything is built on what's gone before it. But there is a difference between adapting a novel/short story into a movie, and just writing a movie based on whatever the screenwriter's ideas are at the time.


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

jbuhler said:


> e.g., The Love Bug.


It was based on the 1961 book _Car, Boy, Girl_ by Gordon Buford.


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## jbuhler (Feb 4, 2020)

d.healey said:


> It was based on the 1961 book _Car, Boy, Girl_ by Gordon Buford.


I had no idea, and certainly knew nothing about it when I saw these films as a kid. But then, too, once you start looking at the credits a surprisingly large number of films both today and in the studio era are based on short stories or novels.


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

Oh I think I found one.
The Nightmare Before Christmas


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## JEPA (Feb 4, 2020)

was Mickey Mouse a stolen idea I think? or not?


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## Symfoniq (Feb 4, 2020)

Watching the "new" Lion King with my kids the other day, I could only come to the conlusion that Disney thought the original film was perfect, as it was almost identical scene-for-scene.

Which begs the question: Why remake a perfect movie?


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## storyteller (Feb 4, 2020)

Tomorrowland is the first movie that comes to mind. Really good movie too.


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

storyteller said:


> Tomorrowland is the first movie that comes to mind. Really good movie too.


Like pirates, based on a ride I think.



JEPA said:


> was Mickey Mouse a stolen idea I think? or not?


The Fleischer brothers created Fitz the dog (which eventually became Bimbo the dog) a few years before Disney created Mickey. And Steamboat Willie was based on Steamboat Bill.



Symfoniq said:


> Watching the "new" Lion King with my kids the other day


Lion King was based on Hamlet

It's quite hard to find any movie (not just Disney) that isn't an adaptation of an earlier work - and we worry so much about being original!


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## storyteller (Feb 4, 2020)

d.healey said:


> Like pirates, based on a ride I think.


I’m pretty sure Brad Byrd‘s original screenplay came first, then the ride was designed as the film‘s production got underway. But it is the only completely original movie I can think of...


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

storyteller said:


> I’m pretty sure Brad Byrd‘s original screenplay came first


Before 1955?


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## storyteller (Feb 4, 2020)

d.healey said:


> Before 1955?


Wait... what? Ha. Maybe I’m completely wrong. I thought there was a modern ride developed. Wasn’t aware of an old ride...


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

storyteller said:


> Wait... what? Ha. Maybe I’m completely wrong. I thought there was a modern ride developed. Wasn’t aware of an old ride...


Yeah there's been a bunch of them - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomorrowland


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## robh (Feb 4, 2020)

The Apple Dumpling Gang, maybe?


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

robh said:


> The Apple Dumpling Gang, maybe?


Novel


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## gsilbers (Feb 4, 2020)

d.healey said:


> Oh definitely, everything is built on what's gone before it. But there is a difference between adapting a novel/short story into a movie, and just writing a movie based on whatever the screenwriter's ideas are at the time.




so im guessing all the different prodcution companies under disney dont count. and we are basing it on a more strict user perspective view point of the word orignal. so no pixar but yes for anythign under "Walt disney pictures"


then i would say maybe zootopia? the incredibleS? 

does disney channel count? 

there is a TON of movies from disney channel. 








List of Disney Channel original films - Wikipedia







en.wikipedia.org





As for disney picures then these









List of Walt Disney Pictures films - Wikipedia







en.wikipedia.org





and a few that might be original... (i didnt say good...but originals)

lilo and stitch 
fantasia
saludos amigo
the three caballeros
make mine music
fun and fancy free
melody time
the aritocats
the fox and the hound
the emperors new groove
tron
dinosour
duck tales the movie
honey i shrunk the kids
air bud
flight of the navigator
herbie the love bug
the computer who wore tennis shoes
the shaggy dog


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

@gsilbers That's a good list! You've definitely found some that I would call original: Tron, Dinosaur, Lilo and Stitch, and probably most of the others (I'll have to check that wiki link you provided). I'll add Brother Bear to the list too.

The fox and the hound is based on a novel I think, as is Herbie.


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## I like music (Feb 4, 2020)

JEPA said:


> was Mickey Mouse a stolen idea I think? or not?



I know Itchy from Itchy and Scratchy was!


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

Iswhatitis said:


> Bad score though.


I thought the opposite, I liked the score but not the movie.


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## Mike Fox (Feb 4, 2020)

Yeah, Lilo & Stitch (one of my favorites) seems like a pretty original idea.

But whenever i think I've found something original, there's always something else I discover that pre-dates it.

Nightmare Before Christmas (also another favorite, and originally Touchstone, but still technically Disney) takes a very popular story, and turns it into something incredibly original. I honestly think it has one of the best scores too. Elfman spent 3 years working on it.


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## givemenoughrope (Feb 4, 2020)

Probably not


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## reimerpdx (Feb 4, 2020)

Symfoniq said:


> Watching the "new" Lion King with my kids the other day, I could only come to the conlusion that Disney thought the original film was perfect, as it was almost identical scene-for-scene.
> 
> Which begs the question: Why remake a perfect movie?


copyright ?


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## d.healey (Feb 4, 2020)

reimerpdx said:


> copyright ?


Thanks to Disney (and others) copyright in the US doesn't expire until a million years after the creator dies, so they probably did it for profit, or perhaps they did it for the love of the art (I'm guessing profit).


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## jbuhler (Feb 4, 2020)

d.healey said:


> Thanks to Disney (and others) copyright in the US doesn't expire until a million years after the creator dies, so they probably did it for profit, or perhaps they did it for the love of the art (I'm guessing profit).


Ancillary income perhaps. Disney can no longer rely on rereleases to sell the merchandise.


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## j_kranz (Feb 4, 2020)

Was 'The Lion King' Copied From A Japanese Cartoon? Here's The Real Story


Was 'The Lion King' Copied From A Japanese Cartoon? Here's The Real Story




www.huffpost.com


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## gsilbers (Feb 4, 2020)

they re do these for both tech reasons and social inclusion reasons.
now the tech is there to make it look the real thing.. or look very good.


but there are some other less obvious reasons.. since i work in distribution these are some of the other ways.

the sales teams sell the old version to international braodcasters and streaming. and they up the price. there is an excuse to buy the old material. the marketing from the remake help sell the old titles. at $200k-500k a pop, per country, its good extra income. there is tons of content out there so the remakes help weed out the sales noise.
that includes regular syndication, AVOD, VOD, DVD (big in japan btw), SVOD, paytv and free tv.
these all could be competing at the same time so multiple units per market could happen.

the merchandise. there is more options to keep selling tried and true toys. 
they sell licenses to sell merchandise. something like lion king remake will a lot more sucesful selling merchandise than say... New octopus flamenco player original story. (that i just made up)
so thats why they keep hashing out old material btw.
a large amount of random companies will try to get the rights to sell anything from iphone cases and tons of walmart prodcuts to in car stereo system or whatever. this is one of the top income earners. disney doesnt do anything, just a contract.

their parks and attractions. cruise ships, disney ventures all around thr world have these old characters or they coordinate to get them in and keep it relevant. something liek changing genders or race will bring in a lot of new crowds. and parents can relate withtheir kids.
and simple..

Whites in the USA under 18 are a minority race. just think about that for a bit and now think of all those movies where it seems odd they hired a non white actor. like the little mermaid.
so for disney its a simple push on their characters to get a whole crowd of new raising demogrpahics.

copyrights are 75 years after the death of the author.
and no, a new copyright doesnt get inked by a release. those are license agreements they have. like a new spidderman movie needs to get made every 5 years or the studio looses their license. or more apt is the last fantastic four that bomb. if fox didnt release something they would of lost the rights.
thats withthe intent of the studios to exploit the copyright of course.


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## rollasoc (Feb 5, 2020)

Wreck it Ralph?


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## d.healey (Feb 5, 2020)

rollasoc said:


> Wreck it Ralph?


Video game, but I suppose the story is original.


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## JohnG (Feb 5, 2020)

Most of Shakespeare also is based on previous material. 

Humans repeat themselves, with variations, so I suppose stories (and some music) gets recycled with a new coat of paint for succeeding generations. 

Been reading Plutarch’s Roman histories, which, apart from being unexpectedly funny in places, put some perspective on history’s long arc and, for me, Trump’s goofy run. Without minimising the damage he wreaks, it’s nice to think that he’ll be gone soon.


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## Loïc D (Feb 5, 2020)

TRON ? (fresh out of my mind, didn’t check previous replies)


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## d.healey (Feb 5, 2020)

LowweeK said:


> TRON ? (fresh out of my mind, didn’t check previous replies)


Yeah, someone beat you to it


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## purple (Feb 6, 2020)

Has anyone ever had an original idea?


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## erica-grace (Feb 6, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> i think ALL movies derive from something else.





d.healey said:


> Oh definitely, everything is built on what's gone before it. But there is a difference between adapting a novel/short story into a movie, and just writing a movie based on whatever the screenwriter's ideas are at the time.



Not Disney, of course, but not adapted from something else:

Inception
Star Wars
Terminator
Matrix
Pulp Fiction
Fast And Furious (maybe?)

There have to be more. There aren't a lot, that's for sure!


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## ism (Feb 6, 2020)

erica-grace said:


> Not Disney, of course, but not adapted from something else:
> 
> Inception
> Star Wars
> ...


Several of those are notably incredibly dense hommage to what has come before. 

Not that they aren’t original, of course. But originality is always a kind of remix.


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## Fredeke (Feb 15, 2020)

d.healey said:


> For my own amusement I've been trying to think of a Disney movie that isn't based on some previous story.
> 
> Any suggestions?


The original Tron ?
Ok, the director came to them with his own script and burgeoning CG/animation studio, and Disney "only" provided the money and distribution network, but... at least it was an original idea.



JohnG said:


> Most of Shakespeare also is based on previous material.
> 
> Humans repeat themselves, with variations, so I suppose stories (and some music) gets recycled with a new coat of paint for succeeding generations.
> 
> Been reading Plutarch’s Roman histories, which, apart from being unexpectedly funny in places, put some perspective on history’s long arc and, for me, Trump’s goofy run. Without minimising the damage he wreaks, it’s nice to think that he’ll be gone soon.


To the risk of trolling this thread into the drama zone, i'd add that even parts of the Bible, some of the most ancient books in History, were adapted from earlier material. So, yeah, you're right.


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