The sequel of a Disney Classic you fear the most!

[Prince Adam]

I agree-some sequels are great IMO (Return to NeverLand, B&B: X'mas, Rescuers Down Under, Toy Story 2, Lady and the Tramp 2), some are a bit of a disappointment (Pocahontas 2, Little Mermaid 2) and there are a few that I would deem horrible (Hunchback 2). But like I've said before, and Loomis agrees, there is still a lot of hard work and effort that goes into these sequels, and they should be given the respect they deserve. Many of the animators for the "crappy animation" do a lot better job than we could ever hope to do.

But as for Snow White 2, I would watch it for curiosity's sake, of course, but I'd rather boycott it: this one is completely unecessary, and should not be done. Walt Disney (you know that old guy who has his name on everything?), he didn't want a sequel to Snow White, and without him, there'd be no Disney at all, so I really don't think it's right to posthumously disregard his wishes-he may be dead, but Disney is still "his". I'm surprised Diane Disney Miller, Walt Disney Miller, and Roy Disney are doing nothing to stop the sequel.

But then again, are the rumours true that if Disney does not present its older characters in a new format, it could lose the copyrights to them? If so, then a sequel is completely necessary, or else someone may end up making "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs 2: Final Destination".

[jabroni76]

I fear most a Pinocchio sequel.. I know it's going to happen. Hopefully Eisner will die in the next few days, and it might not happen, if someone worthy of his job can take over...

But Messing with the original five can only trouble for them, minus Fantasia....

[herman_the_german]

Sequels are nothing new, just remember how many Andy Hardy, or Francis the Talking Mule movies were made. Even all the Herbie films (is Herbie the record for most Disney sequels?)

And for example, look at the Tarzan or Oz novels, didn't ERB and Frank Baum write like 20 sequels each?

My point is that there is plenty of good material in sequels that already exists. If Disney makes sequels with the same loving care as the original, it's bound to be as good or even better (Toy Story II). But if they crank 'em out like TV shows, they they're gonna suck no matter what. And that is a shame, for it takes a lot of effort to animate 80 or 90 minutes of film.

[Disneyfan79]

i dont think i would fear a sequel to snow white as i loved the movie Happily Ever After as well as a tv series called the charmings from 1987 -- but i do have to agree - any Disney sequel has a MAJOR fear factor! -- so far i notice that any sequel that goes to theatres has been better -- i kinda liked Peter Pan 2 and the Rescuers Down Under was greta - of course they were based on the Margery Sharp book series - so disney could do many sequels without ruining the feel for the film if they try to follow the books and put money into it. The worst part about the sequels is that they are low budget. I was very upset with the little mermaid 2 and i thought scamps adventure was very corny -- movies they could do sequels for are as follows: Great Mouse Detective ( great book series and i would like to see the second book in cartoon form) Black Cauldron ( there was a series of 5 books for this one. if they put a little effort into these films they would be greta. another disdainfull thing disney has done recently is trying to remake all of their original movies over again . I mean look at the NEW escape From Witch Mountain - it was an awful tv movie -- based on the original classics by Alexander Key. Why dosnt Disney start creating original stories? as well as other Fairytales not done before in animated form, such as an animated Princess and The Pea, Snow Queen, Rapunzel, etc.... or how about an animated Wizard of Oz that follows the book? - i mean Disney came out with an incredible movie in 1985 called Return To Oz Which is exactly how the books were ( there were 14 books to the series) THAT WAS AN AWESOME MOVIE! i was very impressed - anyway im glad we got to have a discussion on this topic!

[2099net]

But as for Snow White 2, I would watch it for curiosity's sake, of course, but I'd rather boycott it: this one is completely unecessary, and should not be done. Walt Disney (you know that old guy who has his name on everything?), he didn't want a sequel to Snow White, and without him, there'd be no Disney at all, so I really don't think it's right to posthumously disregard his wishes-he may be dead, but Disney is still "his". I'm surprised Diane Disney Miller, Walt Disney Miller, and Roy Disney are doing nothing to stop the sequel.

Disney also said he wouldn't have any of his productions on television. But he soon changed his mind when he needed ABC's money to help co-fund Disneyland (and now Disney owned ABC - how ironic!) Business means principles have to be buried at times.

But then again, are the rumours true that if Disney does not present its older characters in a new format, it could lose the copyrights to them? If so, then a sequel is completely necessary, or else someone may end up making "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs 2: Final Destination".

I have read something similar, but I think they are referring to the Trademarks, not the Copyright. The copyright extension has been extended again.

However Trademarks do expire (after 7 years I think for printed media - it may be different for other mediums) and must be reapplied for again to be renewed. As part of the renewal process, the company must show that it has done everything to police and protect the trademark over the time they had exclusive rights. If another company can prove the trademark owner has been negligent in policing their trademark it can be revoked.

A trademark can be anything from a name, to a specific font for common words to an image (such as the design for Disney's animated Snow White). While I don't really think that there's much chance of a big company like Disney loosing any trademarks, having a fresh, new animated film will certainly not decrease the chances of this happening (it's arguable if it would actually help Disney though).

If Disney did loose the trademark for their Snow White in filmed media, somebody else could probably make "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs 2: Final Destination" with designs very close to Disney's originals. I doubt they could actually use Disney's designs.

In fact there is probably an argument for allowing "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs 2: Final Destination" being made now, as it would obviously be a parody - and not just of Snow White - which is covered by "fair use" in the law courts of America. But I doubt anyone would want to go up against a major company like Disney, who would do anything to protect their intellectual property - as it is their greatest asset.

There's more information in the link below:

http://www.aipla.org/html/whatis.html

Federal trademark registrations are valid for ten years and can be renewed for like periods, provided the mark is constantly used. Failure to use a mark can cause the rights in the mark to be lost. Such abandonment of the mark causes the mark to lose its significance to the public as an identification of a single source and a standard of quality.

Perhaps the 10 year limit helps explain Disney's traditional 7 year release/vault cycle?

[Porce]

Song of the South II

[jesus_brer]

alice in wonderland 2

[Prince Adam]

Actually, as I think about it, I'm starting to open my mind a little towards sequels. I really don't dread them-I'm more excited about Mulan 2 and Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas than I am about Home on the Range. I don't think the animation or the music matters.

Walt Disney used to say that the three most important things for making an animated feature are "story, story, and story". It's the story that draws you into this universe of fantasy and happily-ever-afters. If it's a good story, it will engage you, draw you into it, make you want to never leave. A good story will touch you, make you laugh, and make you cry. You'll laugh with Buzz and Woody, or you'll cry with Simba. If it's a good story, all the negativity about the crappy animation or the uninspiring music will just...go away.
If it's a good story, and it draws me into that world, then I call it a good movie. I enjoyed "Return to NeverLand" a lot more than "Hercules", and for the simple reason of: one had a better story than the other.

[2099net]

Well, you know. I've always said I can enjoy a good Scooby Doo or Powerpuff Girls episode more than certain Disney animated movies - "classics", "masterpieces" or whatever.

It just depends on what sort of mood I'm in at the time. But the quality of the animation is not the only criteria for judging an animated movie/tv series a sucess or not.

[gwilly13]

Usually I wouldn't care about a sequel, most of the time they aren't up to the quality of the original but its ok cause you get to further a storyline or character that you may have enjoyed in the original. But making sequels for every single movie is a bit ridiculous. With all the time that has passed since some of these Classics why do they feel that have to add to the story?
The happily ever after endings work. They let you imagine what might have been...I don't need to know what is going on with all of the children of each of the characters. If they want to expand on the lives of the character's children, start a series similar to the Muppet babies, stick them all together and let them have adventures together. It may be ridiculous but at least it doesn't detract from the original, the way a movie does when it is tagged a sequel.

[TheBionicWoman]

I feel that the originals are the best, and those are the only ones I buy. Ive noticed that the sequels do not have the same animation quality as the original, and I like the way the originals end that's it. Do we really need to know that ariel has a daughter in lm2? no, leave it our imaginations! Other people can disagree, but this is my opinion.

[Plane Crazy]

I am also curious when a new sequel is released on DVD. It's fun to see the familar characters agin but then in a (sometimes slightly) different story. Some movies like beauty and the beast or Alladdin, i have seen a hundred times and then it is nice to see the characters in a new story. The fun is complete when the same voices are back in the sequel. The only thing I think is bit easy, is when they make a few animated series in to a feature (like Tarzan &Jane and Atlantis, Milo's Return) I know they are not realyy sequels but they are sold and put on the market as sequels. And i don't think that's showing respect to the original.

[Uncle Remus]

i hope i dont see a sequel to Song of the South because that will not be a good sequel. I hope they can make a sequel to The Great Mouse Detective since that was a good movie but i dont think they can get back the original cast for the movie. also i hope they have a Fantasia 3 (maybe in 3-D ) and the Rescuers 3 sounds great but im not to sure if Bob Newhart and Eva Gabor would want to do it. and also i remember they were going to release a film called The Search for Mickey Mouse but then suddenly they stopped. but to me Kingdom Hearts sounds exactly like The Search for Mickey Mouse with only Donald and Goofy looking for Mickey.

[wobble-the-witch-cat]

If Di$ney ever makes a sequel to Snow White then two tender parts of the anatomy of Michael Eisner should end up in the Wicked Queens heart box!!

In the sequel the Witch having been despatched by the lightning bolt manages to grab a branch and clambers all the way back up the top of the mountain, and the black magic begins all over again........