Disney’s next animated movie must be in 2D

Disney’s last (non-Pixar) animated film, Wish, was supposed to be a triumphant celebration of the studio’s 100th anniversary. And it truly should have been: despite any complicated feelings you might have about the monstrous mega-corporation Disney has become, Walt Disney Studios has innovated animation time and time again.

Unfortunately, Wish is less than excellent. It tried to pay tribute to Disney’s legacy by forcing itself to stay afloat and have a plot beneath a whopping 100 Easter Eggs—there were so many references that its directors needed to create an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of them all. But as someone who grew up in a Disney household, I didn’t want my Disney centennial celebration to be founded on Easter Eggs. I wanted it to be a return to Disney’s roots.

Wish had beautiful watercolor backgrounds, marrying 3D and 2D. It was a nice gesture, but like Ariel in The Little Mermaid, I wanted more. I wanted Disney to celebrate its centennial by making its first 2D-animated film since 2011.

Dear Disney, please go back to 2D

Disney’s last 2D-animated film was Winnie the Pooh, which came out in 2011 and unfortunately had the same opening weekend as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. Back then, not even Pooh Bear could rival the final confrontation with Voldemort.

But things have changed—and not just in our complicated feelings about Harry Potter. Namely, anime has become mainstream. Just last year, Suzume and The Boy and the Heron were historically both nominated for Golden Globes. Disney, it should be noted, was responsible for releasing five of Studio Ghibli’s most iconic films in the States, including Spirited Away. I, personally, learned about Spirited Away explicitly because former Pixar-then-Disney exec John Lasseter championed it so much that my dad decided that we must watch it.

There are a number of reasons why Western audiences have begun to show a widespread interest in anime. More nuanced and emotionally grayscale storytelling is often cited. But given how much people freak out over, say, the gorgeousness of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, I would venture that anime’s current status as the bastion and innovator of 2D animation (with or without 3D techniques) adds to its appeal.

Back in the 2000s, Disney’s 2D animated films were doing significantly worse at the box office than their 3D films, like Tangled and Wreck-It Ralph. CG is also cheaper and faster to make than 2D animation—a fact that I cynically believe is a key reason Disney hasn’t gone back to 2D.

But if they did go back, if the studio looked out of their wallets and stockholder meetings for one moment and into the trajectory of the art form of animation itself, it would be an incredible moment. It would feel new now, and therefore I think it would generate a ton of excitement.

So do it, Disney. Give 2D animation one more go, and look forward to the future by honoring your legacy properly.