Despite all hopes and crossed fingers, Disney once again watched another studio walk away with the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature as indie darling Flow swiped it away from Pixar's Inside Out 2. Although this was a major win for the independent film world, it was a knife through the mouse's heart.
This marks not only another loss for The Walt Disney Company but a third consecutive year that the animation juggernaut hasn't taken home a best feature award. With audiences feeling skeptical about the studio's next batch of features, it might be time for some serious reworking.
Back to the drawing board (again)
Disney has been working through some major identity issues for the past few years. In fact, the studio hasn't made waves at the Academy Awards since Encanto, and that's proving to be a massive problem.
Some fans believe that the once proud studio's animated features show a massive decline in quality, resulting in lackluster films and troubling box office numbers. And that's where the studio directors and executives are going to hurt the most. However, this latest upset might be the spark that finally ignites change.
TikTok user @cinemacrab shared a very interesting perspective after the dust of this year's Oscars finally settled. After Pixar's beloved sequel failed to live up to predictions, the user stated what most of us were likely thinking.
"Since the Oscars first introduced the Best Animated Feature Award in 2001, 15 of the awards have been won by The Walt Disney Company. The Academy loves Disney, and there's been a long history between the Oscars and Disney... Disney is falling behind in quality, and when you look at their slate of upcoming films, I'm not sure if there's much hope for originality."
One word: Ouch. However, the user also makes one major point that will undoubtedly have tremendous results. There's no greater motivator than failure.
To reiterate, Disney has not won this award since 2022. For a studio that was once synonymous with animation as an art form, its reputation is starting to spiral. Although Inside Out 2 was considered a return to the traditional Disney values, it wasn't enough to pull them back on top. So what happens now?
In this writer's opinion, we're about to see a massive wave of change on both the creative and corporate levels. This isn't just the loss of a coveted golden statue but a reflection on the legacy of the Walt Disney Company.
The Disney name was built on animation excellence, and it's practically been the golden standard for the past century. However, the house of mouse might soon learn that all that glitters is not gold. Only time will tell.
Do you think Disney can recover from yet another loss?