Disney Storytelling Timeline
This is going to be an ongoing and frequently updated post intended as a timeline to document the various changes in Disney storytelling. If you have additions, comments, concerns, or disagreements, please leave them in the comments. Thanks!
Beauty and the Beast - 1991
Heroine reads, love books, and rescues the prince
Aladdin - 1992
Heroine fights against arranged marriage; seeks marriage based on love
Reverses overcoming class obstacles a la Cinderella by making the female royalty and the male underclass
Pocahontas - 1995
Non-white heroine
Mulan - 1998
Non-white, non-US-centric heroine
Dip of the toe into gender issues re dress & military abilities & expectations
Lilo & Stitch - 2002
Feature Pacific Islanders
Siblings parenting siblings/absent parents
Features songs in native non-English language written/performed by a member of the represented group
The Princess and the Frog - 2009
Black heroine
Black love interest
Tiny recognition of whites intentionally trying to prevent blacks from moving up through the bankers’ actions
Brave - 2012
Heroine has no interest in romantic love
Frozen - 2013
Challenges the idea of marrying someone you just met
Villain isn’t obvious at the beginning
Big Hero 6 - 2014
First to deal with the various expressions and responses to grief/death/loss
Sibling loss
Inside Out - 2015
Trauma of moving
Utility of emotions—they are neutral; neither bad nor good
No villain
Zootopia - 2016
Directly addresses racism & bigotry, through allegory
Moana - 2016
No love interest/plotline for the heroine
Frozen 2 - 2019
Acknowledgment of family’s past bigoted/hurtful actions and being proactive to fix the harm, with knowledge and acceptance of personal sacrifice that will occur
Raya and the Last Dragon - 2021
Heroine and antagonist are both female, smart, and capable
Examines the competitiveness, fakeness, and backstabbing sometimes inherent in female friendships
Voice-casting was more representative (East Asian—but see concerns that not Southeast Asian)
Encanto - 2021
Set in Columbia
Female leader without royalty/governance lineage