Last summer, Disney said, a plan was put into motion to give the ride a “Princess and the Frog” story line. The only difference would be that Uncle Remus would trigger this alternate reality, though it would be more than an alternate reality; Uncle Remus’s stories would also act as coming of age facilitators, helping the child to better cope and come to terms with his or her monstrous reality. Do you remember when we heard that Disney was opening up its vault and would put its entire motion picture library on its upcoming Disney+ streaming service? That signifier of contentedness is reinforced by the main black characters, including Uncle Remus, who also seem perfectly happy with their lot in life. The 1941 Disney film Dumbo, which recently got a live-action remake, will be on Disney+, but it will not include the controversial crow scene. The film stars Samuel L. Jackson as Uncle Remus, Chris Rock as Br’er Fox and Steve Harvey as Br’er Bear. Be sure to LIKE us on Facebook, FOLLOW us on Twitter, and tell everyone you know (plus a few strangers) how wonderful (and humble) we are! More than 21,300 people signed one asking Disney to remove the ride’s “offensive stereotypical theming.” About 26,300 people have signed a dueling Change.org petition demanding that Disney keep the “iconic classic ride” as it is. Disney said it began work on the new theme last year. Before it's here, it's on the Bloomberg Terminal. Let us know in the comments below! Song of the South won’t be the only omission from Disney’s catalog on Disney+. But like many recent Disney films (such as Maleficent, Frozen, and Lady Tremaine: a Love Story), the new Song of the South will retell the story from darker angles and the viewpoints of the original villains. A rendering of New Adventures With Princess Tiana, which will have a bayou theme. Therefore, Song of the South not making the jump to Disney+ should come as no surprise as Disney is just carrying over its previous policy regarding the film to the company’s new platform. But Disney is a huge part of how many people live their lives — how they make their memories — and even the smallest changes to the company’s theme parks can spark outrage. “It has been a year or more since we started talking about this particular concept,” Mr. Weis said in an interview posted on D23.com, a fan site run by Disney. Protests against police brutality and racism, sparked by the killing of a black man, George Floyd, in police custody in Minneapolis, have prompted a wide spectrum of companies to make long-overdue changes. Since its release, “The Princess and the Frog” has become a merchandising star for Disney, with Tiana princess dresses for young girls selling particularly well. Deceased AstraZeneca Trial Volunteer Didn’t Receive Vaccine, Gilead’s Remdesivir Is First Virus Drug to Get FDA Approval, Banks Lead U.S. Stocks Higher With Yields Climbing: Markets Wrap, Maxwell Denied Recruiting Girls in Newly Unsealed Testimony, Illinois, Ohio Hit Highs; FDA Approves Remdesivir: Virus Update. Moreover, that Uncle Remus ends up being a kind of surrogate father figure for the white boy Johnny would seem to be a kind of progressive thread but set during this time period when many black kids must have suffered greatly, one would think that Uncle Remus might use his time more valuably, by helping black kids instead of a white child whose only issue is that his father is spending some time away from the family. “While the film has received a lot of flack for expressing old sentiments, we’d like to retell the story of Uncle Remus with a twenty-first-century twist.”. In a progressive move, Disney has promised its new Song of the South remake will also feature a gay character. The beloved film, set in the southern U.S. during a time when all races lived together in peace and harmony, is one of only a handful of films that has not been remade by the studio. The story follows seven-year-old Johnny (Bobby Driscoll) who is visiting his … Disney eyeing live-action Song of the South remake. Let us know in the comments below! I say “arguable” because, apparently, the original meaning of “tar baby” is not racist though over time the term has seemed racist to many.). Disney’s streaming service is being positioned as a family-friendly offering in keeping with the brand’s reputation, and having Song of the South and Dumbo’s Jim Crow scene don’t exactly comport with that. Sparring over a theme park ride may seem silly, especially against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic, which is surging again. Be sure to LIKE us on Facebook, FOLLOW us on Twitter, and tell everyone you know (plus a few strangers) how wonderful (and humble) we are! For all the controversy, though, it actually portrays pretty advanced attitudes towards race relations, especially for the 1940’s. In this context, we would get a black child who must deal with the trauma of this place and time. *Much thanks to my daughter Peyton for planting the seed of this blog post and brainstorming with me on what a remake of Song of the South would look like! “So, pretty much like the original Song of the South.”. We have two parks that feature characters and imagery from the original Song of the South and we almost don’t admit that the movie even exists. Not that this would be a good reason to remake the film, but remaking Song of the South in a cutting edge, radically progressive way would make amends for this dark mark in Disney’s history, not to mention that they could finally release the original Song of the South for posterity, um, in the extras of a DVD/Blu-Ray release of the remake! All rights reserved. The humans from the film aren’t portrayed. If it’ll make money, controversy or no, it gets the green light.”. Posted By: Enrique Eguiguren February 19, 2019. TOPICS: disney Movies Racism ralph northam remake song of the south. The movie received strong reviews and was nominated for three Oscars. In terms of the white child and family, I suppose we could still have a white family and a white child, though of course the roles would be radically reversed, with the white family relegated to supporting players. The scene features a crow named Jim Crow, which is a reference to the name of the blackface character that was later appropriated as a term for laws that enforced segregation after Reconstruction. Splash Mountain is a classic log-flume ride that takes guests through several forest scenes featuring singing rabbits, bears and birds. For the same reason, the addition of a major attraction themed around a black heroine could have a positive impact on young visitors, in particular those of color. Also that year, Disney closed the popular Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, a hotel with wildly malfunctioning elevators, and turned it into a new ride based on Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy.”. A previous version of this story corrected the time period of “Song of the South.”. Watching it again after all these years, I just had the overwhelming feeling of how a film that is mostly just a nothing film has become infamous not just because of its racism but because Disney has refused to release it in America. One started on June 9 on Change.org and calling for a new theme has more than 21,000 signatures, but one started three days later aiming to retain the “Song of the South” elements has more than 31,000. Despite pushback from groups pointing out … Does The Mandalorian's New Season 2 Trailer Point Toward Star Wars Rebels Characters? And occasionally laugh-out-loud funny. Disney is expunging the “Song of the South” imagery — Br’er Rabbit and other animal minstrels — during a national reckoning on racial justice. Can you say … From Pocahontas to Song of the South, Disney Movies We Know Will Never Be Remade The Lion King is the latest project to undergo a full-blown makeover By … “We understand that times have changed, and we need to change with them,” said Disney publicist, John Smith. His life goal is to walk the earth, meet people and get into adventures. Walt Disney took great pains to compile the Uncle Remus stories in a loving way. © 2020 Uncle Walt's Insider. The “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” song/sequence would still work, though as a light amidst the darkness and/or replayed ironically, the black child singing it as a lament of what he or she doesn’t have instead of an affirmation of some faux happy state of being. In 2017, for instance, a bride auction and a scene where scofflaws chase women through a house were removed from Pirates of the Caribbean. 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