There are so. many. movies. on Disney+. Scrolling through the streaming service, you might even think it’s every Disney movie EVER — and there are more coming soon!
©Disney
Still, there are some shows and movies that aren’t on Disney+…and some of them probably won’t EVER be! We’re taking a look at some of the Disney-owned content that will likely never be on Disney+, and why we’re doomed to not see it streaming on our screens. Let’s dive in!
Song of the South and Other Culturally-Dated Films
You probably aren’t surprised by the fact that we’ll likely never see Song of the South come to Disney+. This 1946 film is widely considered to have negative racial undertones due to the fact that many have perceived the storyline, set in the Reconstruction Era South, as a glorification of slavery. For that reason, the film won’t be streaming on Disney+.
©Disney
According to Deadline, Walt Disney Company Executive Chairman Bob Iger confirmed that the film would not be re-released on Disney+ or in other capacities as it is, “not appropriate in today’s world.”
But Song of the South isn’t the only content that won’t be seen on Disney’s streaming service. Some of the Donald Duck Military Propaganda cartoons have been kept from the service for outdated depictions.
©Disney
Also, Disney released a film in 1981 titled The Devil and Max Devlin. Besides including a trip to hell (which, based on one of our favorite dark rides in Disneyland, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, Disney doesn’t deem all that damaging), the film also features Bill Cosby in the role of the devil. Due to the events surrounding the end of Cosby’s career, the title will likely never make it to Disney+.
THE DEVIL AND MAX DEVLIN, from left: Elliot Gould, Bill Cosby, 1981. © Buena Vista
Of course, not all the films on Disney+ are completely devoid of controversial scenes. You might remember the Asian stereotypes featured with Siamese cats in both Lady and the Tramp and The Aristocats.
When you pull up either of these flicks — or any others that have questionable cultural representations, such as with the crows in Dumbo — you’ll find a disclaimer: “This program is presented as originally created. It may contain outdated cultural depictions.”
Disney+ Dumbo Description ©Disney
There’s even a film that has had one culturally-outdated scene edited out. Toy Story 2 has a series of animated “bloopers” to watch during the credits, one of which contained a joke about the “casting couch” trope coming from Prospector Pete. That mini-scene has been removed for the Disney+ release.
To check out our Disney+ must-sees, click here!
Tom Holland’s Spider-Man Movies and The Incredible Hulk
Some films are kept from Disney+ simply because Disney doesn’t have the streaming rights.
If you’ve ever tried to undergo a Marvel marathon using Disney+, you might notice that a few films are notably absent. The most recent Spider-Man movies, Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home, have yet to be added to the streaming service, despite being a part of the Disney-owned Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Spider-man ©Sony
This is due to the fact that Sony still owns Spider-Man, and that includes streaming rights to the new movies. You might remember that Disney and Sony have had a bit of a tumultuous relationship in recent months that almost lead to Tom Holland’s Spidey being pulled from future MCU flicks. Luckily, they reached an agreement.
Update! And now, Sony and Disney have reached a NEW agreement to allow Spider-Man to be added to Disney+ after all.
Spider-man: Far From Home ©Disney ©Sony
The same is not true for The Incredible Hulk. This film featured Edward Norton in the title role and is only loosely connected to the other Marvel movies with a brief cameo from Iron Man at the end. Still, Sony holds the rights, so one of the (technically) OG Marvel films won’t be streaming.
Click here to learn more about the agreements between Sony and Disney!
The Lizzie McGuire Reboot and Anything Too Mature
You may have heard about Disney censoring Daryl Hannah in Splash, despite its PG-rating? In a bizarre move, Daryl Hannah’s bare bottom was covered with crudely rendered CGI effects to remove the nudity in the scene.
©Disney
Perhaps the highest-profile case of something being “too adult” for Disney+ was the Lizzie McGuire reboot. News of the reboot took the internet by storm and news of its halt on progress did the same.
In a statement on her Instagram, Hilary Duff explained that Disney wanted the show to go in a more kid-friendly direction. Duff did not believe that Lizzie’s adult story could be faithfully told under the PG umbrella.
Hilary Duff and Adam Lamberg ©Disney
She pleaded for a move to Hulu for the show. As of now, production is still on hold. Some more mature content and rated R films have been add since Disney implemented parental restrictions but it’s still ver limited.
To learn more about the Lizzie McGuire reboot, click here!
Other examples of Disney announcing content only to pull it when the subject matter is revealed to be too adult include Love, Simon and High Fidelity. The Love, Simon was released on Hulu as Love, Victor. High Fidelity starring Zoë Kravitz was relocated to Hulu as the content appeared too mature prior to release.
So, you see? There are some shows and films that we’ll never get to see on the streaming platform. The fact is, Disney+ is a kid-friendly platform and that image is super important to Disney.
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Political Correctness gone wrong. I’ve got Song of the South on video from when I was a child several decades ago, it’s a great film.
I understand not releasing Song of the South on Disney+, my memory of the movie is clear enough to realize the upside is just not worth the downside. However, Disney can surely do two things – extract the Brer Rabbit animated sequences and edit them as a short (include, of course, their cultural relevance disclaimer) and make SotS available on DVD/BD/digital download! Let consumers decide by voting with their wallets – highly unlikely anyone will purchase a copy of SotS and not know what they’re buying.
When I watched song of the south I never thought it was racist but just a glimpse of another time like gone with the wind..but what do expect from the miss..they are too PC..
From the mouse autocorrect lol
You didn’t include Oliver and Company. Isn’t that another one?
There are quite a few Hayley Mills movies missing from Disney +, such as Summer Magic. Any info on whether those might be added?
Universal holds the rights to any solo Hulk movie(which is why we haven’t seen a Hulk 2) not Sony
Oliver and Company is on Disney+ right now
So dumb. Clearly Disney has never heard the expression those who don’t remember history are doomed to repeat it. Of course these films are culturally dated. Sitcoms from the 90s are culturally dated with more than a few cringeworthy jokes at the expense of the LGBTQ community upon rewatching. Should they be banned? Pulled from the air? Of course not!
@andrea
I’m so jealous! I saw it’s last release in the theater in the 80s. It was wonderful! I wish I had it on VHS. But no one has a problem with the storyline of Splash Mountain.
What about Angels in the Outfield?
Any chance we will see the New Mickey Mouse Club, with Brittany Spears, Justin Timberlake, and Christina Aguilera?
I am sure that these movies will be uploaded to Disney+. How are you so sure that these movies won’t be uploaded to Disney+? I need to know what your source is here because I am not sure it’s accurate.
What about Cinderella with Whitney Houston and Brandy?
I believe the article is incorrect about The Incredible Hulk. Rights are not held by Sony (as is indeed true with Spider-Man). It is my understanding that the distribution rights for The Incredible Hulk are with Universal. It is also my understanding that there have been some negotiations to get the rights back. I don’t think they’ve been successful as of yet, but a friend of mine disagrees with me. Nevertheless, Sony has nothing to do with either Hulk film.
There was a PG Disney film called “Something Wicked This Way Comes”. That should be fine for Disney Plus I would think.
Cinderella with Whitney Houston and Brandy IS available for streaming on Disney+
Disney being “woke” by erasing black history…James Baskett in Song of the South was the first black man to win an academy award, so they honor him by erasing his work. They haven’t even named him a Disney Legend. He’s a very talented actor and his work should be celebrated in the context and intention it’s meant to be. Just sad.
Is the glass half full or half empty? You can find the negative in any and every movie! I saw a song of the south as a child and I’ve shown it to two generations of grandchildren. In that movie it doesn’t matter to the children if they are rich, poor or of color. Also it teaches what happens to bullies! Uncle Remus was a kind man who helped little Johnny. I’m so thankful I have the movie. The scene where Johnny and the little girl give each other the gifts, the white lace collar and the little puppy, put the biggest smile on my grandchildren’s faces I’ll never forget. The only violence in the movie was the bull! And it’s a bunch of bull if they don’t show this movie again!
One of my favorite movies was “Something Wicked This Way Comes”. It was written by Ray Bradbary and stars Jason Robarts. Why isn’t this on + (at least at Halloween).
I think we need all the old Disney movies, Summer Magic, Big Red, and so on. Come on Disney Plus, you can put all your little disclaimers on the shows and let everyone enjoys the movies we all grew up with.
I believe that the respectful thing to do is to fully explain the stereotype and then own the offense, and sincerely apologize to the offended and us all. And present the original artwork, and we all will learn and evolve. We shouldn’t stick our fingers in our ears and our heads in the sand and pretend away our pasts.
and, my wishful programming suggestion … please bring back a Sunday night weekly serialization showing on the original Wonderful World of Disney. I’d really enjoy looking forward to a weekly release of an episode beginning with Tink and Walt and reprising an original hour of the weekly series from the 60s. Seems a no-brainer to me!
Currently (mid 2022) Disney IS adding three R rated movies to Disney+.
What about “The Barefoot Executive” starring Kurt Russell?
We have had R rated movies since 23rd Feb 2021 over here in NZ with the star service being added on Disney plus. It also meant the price went up as well. All adult movies, adult animation, R16 R18 everything. Disney plus is for everyone now.
But Deadpool is okay?
Who left Polly off of Disney+? The 1989 version of Pollyanna? It’s a made for Disney TV movie with an all star cast.
When they first announced Disney+ they originally said ALL Disney movies would be added to the channel. I’m waiting for such classics as Summer Magic and all the other Haley Mills movies they are sitting on. The classic movies are classics. Slam on the disclaimer and let us decide what we want to watch.
I think keeping the Song of the South movie off the streaming service was a good move. I am going against the other comments. Song of the South is extremely offensive even by old movie stands. It is also very boring. Disney is better off keeping locked tight in the vault. Comparing it to Song of the South doesn’t help. Song of the South is similar, and it is also extremely offensive. It disgusts me. It is unwatchable. Most. Overrated. Movie Ever. Seriously dude, I don’t know which streaming service has Gone with the Wind. Whatever it is, it should pull the movie from it’s catalogue or at least put in a disclaimer. Criticizing or even pulling both of these movies is not PC going too far. It is not SJW or whatever. If these movies were any worse, they may as well be KKK propaganda. Disclaimers could help with most problematic old content. However I have no problems with banning the worst of the worst. There are Disney shows that make steps in the right direction for black representation. There is Princess and the Frog, Strange World and Soul. There is also the Star Wars sequels especially Force Awakens. I would rather focus on that.
On another note, the R rated stuff is iffy. The Disney company has been around a long time. Even Walt Disney himself passed away ages ago. So plenty of viewers are adults. Adults can handle R rated movies. Pulling R rated movies from the service isn’t fair for them. I know a good solution. Disney Plus already has multiple users on one account. So the can be a main account for a parent or other adult. Then that person can set up parental controls. They may need an extra password. They can put settings for all people on the account. All adults can get any movie even the R rated stuff. The teenagers can get the R rated content blocked on their profile. The children can get all PG-13 and R rated movies blocked. PG is a real gray area. Some PG movies are really tame, like Frozen and Moana. Some G movies are really harsh, like Hunchback of Notre Dame and Hercules. Maybe in this case, there can be an option that parents can choose individual movies or tv shows as exceptions to the rule. So for their child, they can let Frozen through but block Hunchback. Disney owns Fox now. I think Rocky Horror Picture Show is a Fox show. Watching that on Disney Plus would be cool. However due to the R rating, this would be a fun film for adults only. This isn’t a fun for all the family. It ought to get a disclaimer for transphobia too. The only kind of material that should be banned completely would be porn. Disney doesn’t make porn, so they can leave it off. I know HBO streaming service has Game of Thrones. That is the closest to porn I could think of in a major streaming service. Even then the sexy parts are few and far between.
I misspoke and I can’t figure out how to edit. I mean that comparing Song Of the South with Gone with the Wind doesn’t help. Both movies are extremely offensive in their depiction of black slaves. It is very hard to ignore that problem and enjoy the show.
History is still history no matter if ignored or not. Bring all the movies to streaming, let the consumer choose, and maybe learn something. If you are offended, don’t watch it, but don’t think for others. If you enjoy it, then watch it, but don’t say it “is something” or “is not something”. For the time being we are a free society to think on our own, forcing one’s view on another is wrong. Let’s all be adults and decide for ourselves if we want to, and let our children, watch them. Let’s be tolerant of all views and discuss, not bind, the views of others .
By the way, “Darby O’Gill and the Little People” and “The Gnome Mobile” were fun movies, too.
Song of the South is hardly offensive. I don’t know what show you were watching. There was talk of releasing it in the old Disney Treasures tin box edition, which is designed for the adult collector, with background special features including one on James Baskett. What happened to that? And for anyone who thinks the Song of the South is racist, why not check out the Disney Treasures Mickey Mouse in Black and White edition with his several blackface appearances.
Five Mile Creek in its entirety!! Also Kidnapped.