Is Disney Moving Back Toward Family Values?

I am a big fan of Disney.  I had season passes to Disney World when I lived in Florida and I even wrote a book entitled "If Disney Ran Your Children's Ministry."

Over the years, I have gleaned much from Disney's approach to engaging kids and families.

Walt built Disney on the values of faith, family, and virtue. An example of this is the movie "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs."  He released the movie in 1937. It contained themes about good triumphing over evil, love, and redemption.  It was a huge success and helped launch the Disney empire.

Walt said this - "The important thing is the family. If you can keep the family together—that’s the backbone of our whole business, catering to families—that’s what we hope to do."

But over the years, Disney has drifted away from their primary focus of families and family values. Here are a few of the articles I have written about this.

Disney Night of Joy was cancelled while Pride Nite was invited in

Same Sex Kiss in Disney Movie

Disney Intros Gay Character in Beauty and the Beast 

But it seems the ship may be turning. For the first time in 20 years, Disney has introduced an openly Christian character in their new animated series "Win or Lose" on Disney+. Her name is Laurie, and in one scene, she prays: "Dear Heavenly Father, please give me strength. I have faith, but sometimes the doubt creeps in." 

The entrance of Josh D'Amaro as Disney's new CEO also seems to bring hope of a return to family values.  He is leading Disney to distance itself from corporate policies tied to inclusive language and identity-related debates. 

Over the years, several of the experiences inside Disney parks had began replacing traditional expressions like "ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls" with neutral expressions such as "dreamers of all ages" or "friends." D'Amaro is leading the way back to the traditional expressions.

For years, Disney has produced progressive content and diversity-focused messaging. But there appears to be a clear effort to reduce the perception that Disney operates as a politically activist company.

Here are some more examples of moving back toward family values.

Disney branded television has been rebranded as Disney Kids & Family, streamlining its identity to better reflect its focus on children and families. The division now oversees Disney+, Disney Junior, Disney Channel, and other family-targeted content Inside the Magic.

They have shelved DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) initiatives linked to “inclusion” and “diversity” roles, eliminating around 1,000 positions. This includes stopping the deconstruction of classic fairy tales for “correct” identity politics messaging.

Disney has also begun reinstating traditional values in its parks and studios, reversing some of the more controversial changes made after 2020. This includes restoring classic attractions, addressing backlash over perceived political overreach, and aiming to rebuild trust with long-time fans.

What do you think about this shift? Are you a fan of Disney? Why or why not?  Would like to hear your thoughts in the comment section below.