You might think that the age of the cinematic universe is dead. With the exception of Marvel, each attempt at a cinematic universe has failed, often before even getting off the ground. Ghostbusters, The Dark Universe and of course the DCEU are all prime examples. While the DCEU hasn’t failed per say, it certainly has hit some speed bumps.
Interestingly though, the buzz around a shared universe still seems to be alive and well in Hollywood. The Dark Universe hasn’t been abandoned it’s being ‘reshaped’ and you can bet somewhere in Sony headquarters theres a page stuck to the wall with the words Ghostbusters Universe under the title: Things To Do To Stop Us Being The Next Studio Buy.
Of course, if you want to look at the studio that has gained the most success from the cinematic universe model, the answer is obvious. Disney were triumphant when they purchased Marvel Studios and this was long before an Episode 7 of Star Wars existed outside the minds of rabid fanboys.
It’s curious then that Disney hasn’t pushed forward with their own fairy tale cinematic universe. Why is this, could the plans already be in place and what form would this shared universe filled with Disney heroes and villains take?
Perhaps it’s best to start with the notion that Disney has already planted a seed for their own shared universe.
There May Be Something There That Wasn't There Before
Millions flocked to the theatres to see Beauty and the Beast last year, but how many noticed a plot point seemingly pulled from thin air?
In the new live action adaptation of the classic tale, the Beast presents Belle with a book that will take her anywhere she wishes. The two immediately head to Paris where Belle learns a little more about her mother’s past.
Now, perhaps this magical item was used purely as a way to build a little more backstory and add some depth to what was originally a ninety minute cartoon. It is however, also possible that this is the first way more than one Disney fairy tale could be be linked.
And, before you dismiss this notion out of hand, it’s worth pointing out that whenever they’re asked, the cast of the film love to explore the possibility of a sequel which was, at one point, planned. As screenwriter Evan Spiliotopoulos explained, referring to Luke Evan's villain Gaston:
“The idea was not that he died in the end, but the enchantress would come and he would be cursed as the new beast,”
Playing Devil’s advocate, you could also put forward Beauty & the Beast as the prime reason why Disney simply don’t need the shared universe. After all, the film did land in Avengers box office territory with $1.2bn. Still, not every other live action adaptation has been so successful with Pete’s Dragon - a modern family film masterpiece - scraping together 143 million.
Disney’s next live action fairy tales aren’t necessarily going to be goldmines either. Both this year's Christopher Robin and 2019's Dumbo can currently be seen as considerable question marks. Neither are likely to provide any development towards a shared universe either, but another film slated for 2019 very well could.
27 Years Can Give You Such A Crick In The Neck
Disney’s Aladdin is arguably one of the most popular titles from the renaissance era. Originally, the plan for a live action adaptation was going to focus on Genie. As far as we know that film is still somewhere on the horizon, probably in development hell, and instead we’re going to get the more faithful adaptation, ‘Aladdin.’ But why could this film hold the key to a shared universe?
Well, anyone who remembers the original will know the Genie is quite like Deadpool. While it’s not clear whether the character knows he’s in a film, he does break the fourth wall a number of times and there are various cutaway gags to other Disney films. Accusing Al of lying, his head is replaced with Pinocchio's and he even pulls Sebastian out of a book.
Many people also believe that during ‘A Whole New World’ Aladdin and Jasmine fly through Hercules but this has since been rejected by the director. In the broadway version the Genie even sings a medley of songs from the animated classics including - wait for it - 'Tale as old as time.'
While Aladdin may not kick start the shared movie universe we may very well get hints that the new films do exist in the same world.
On the other hand - and this might be slightly too optimistic - is it possible that a certain game holds the key?
There Are Many Worlds But They All Share The Same Sky
While we wait for the final release of Kingdom Hearts 3 or the end of the world - at this point it’s a coin toss - it’s worth pondering whether Disney know the value of this particular IP.
Actually, we don’t need to wonder because the studio definitely does. Over the years, the studio has attempted and abandoned a cartoon adaptation of the game and spoken with the director about a possible computer animated movie. Speaking with the Mirror in 2017, creator and director of Kingdom Hearts 3 Tetsuya Nomura said:
"We do have a 15 year history so it has come up in discussions about doing some sort of cinematic piece, especially from Disney. They are interested in making a CG movie of sort, but again, it's difficult to make the call on how we want to execute it and how to form it."
But is it possible that they may also be considering linking the growing number of fairytale worlds that we’ve seen together with the Kingdom Hearts franchise?
Now, while this is an exciting prospect there are a number of reasons why it probably won’t happen. First, there’s the cost. With the amount of talent involved, it would cost a fortune to get everyone together and build up each of the worlds that is connected in the Kingdom Hearts games. Second, we don’t actually have all the seven Princesses of Heart as of yet, but that could quickly be corrected. Third, in the current version of Sleeping Beauty or Maleficent, the titular character isn’t an evil villain but rather an anti-hero.
Each of these separate issues could be worked around, but together they at least point to the conclusion that there is no secret plan for the Kingdom Hearts franchise to come to life.
If it did, it would likely be separate from the growing collection of films that Disney is currently focused on.
As well as this, many would argue that like Dragonball and Pokemon a live action version of Kingdom Hearts simply would not work. You only have to watch the honest trailer to see how convoluted and frankly insane the overarching story actually is.
Of course, with the right writer and director, Kingdom Hearts does have billion dollar franchise written all over it but it would certainly be a hell of a risk.
Let’s finish off then by looking at some of the other possibilities and the closest Disney ever came to a shared fairy tale universe.
Other Possibilities For The Disney Shared Universe
Back in 2012 Jon Favreau, the director of Iron Man, announced he was planning a live action film based on the Magic Kingdom theme park that would have been quite similar to Night at the Museum.
If it had come to fruition, this would have been like a Disney shared universe with various characters from different movies crossing over. However, the film never emerged, Favreau moved on and we’re still not sure what happened. One can only assume that it was too difficult to adapt which again calls into question a future Kingdom Hearts movie. As late as 2016, Favreau was still optimistic saying:
"Well hopefully now with this collaboration if it works out well we can explore what Magic Kingdom could be. Magic Kingdom is a story I’ve been developing. Michael Chabon wrote the draft about Disneyland coming to life, and all of the different lands and attractions all overlapping one another and creating a big adventure that a family gets caught up in. It’s something I feel very passionate about. Part of the reason I explored this technology I used on Jungle Book is because I was considering it for that film, and maybe it might be something we work together on."
Right Now however, it does seem as if that project is on hold.
We will get a mini crossover in Ralph Breaks The Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2 later this year when all the animated Disney princesses will be seen together, including the legendary Jodi Benson as Ariel. Who knows, perhaps we’ll also see a wink to Sora and the gang too.
We’ll just have to wait and see if Disney do have any other plans for a full fairy tale universe in the future. After all, if anyone can follow in the footsteps of Marvel and crack the shared cinematic universe model, it’s going to be the House of Mouse.