Disney Films, Disney Theme Parks, and Disney Fans

Disney films have been popular with parents and children since the release of Walt Disney’s first animated classic in 1937. Disney theme parks have attracted millions of visitors since the opening of Disneyland in 1955. For many, the Walt Disney Company is synonymous with quality family entertainment. However, in 1996 the largest denomination of conservative Christians in the United States launched a boycott of Disney, arguing that the company promulgated anti-Christian and anti-family values in its films and corporate policies. Although the financial impact of the eight-year long boycott is debatable, the accusation that Disney advocates a religious and moral vision in its film, television, and theme park empire that is in opposition to or independent of dominant Christian theological and moral emphases is the starting point for my currentresearch. At crux is the contention that Disney films and theme parks help shape the religious and moral universes of Disney audiences.

This study represents a three-tiered analysis of Disney films, theme parks, and fans. On the first level, my study will examine selected animated and live-action Disney films and theme park productions to identify the religious and moral frameworks implicit in Disney entertainment products, changes in those frameworks, if any, over time, and the different reception that these entertainment products receive in different audience constituencies, including that of Disney fan communities, Christian critics of Disney, and scholars of Disney.

Audience reception is often the weakest area of analysis in film studies and cultural studies, and yet the concerns of those who initiated the Disney boycott lie in the area of audience reception. Do consumers of Disney films and vacationers at Disney theme parks internalize a message that influences their religious lives? On the second level of analysis, therefore, I plan to examine the spiritual, moral and ideological worldview of Disney fans. Fieldwork will be conducted on site at Disney theme parks, online with members of Disney fan organizations, and in person with members of Disney fan clubs.

Finally, on the third level of analysis, my current study will address the level of correlation between the ideological, spiritual and moral framework implicit in Disney films and theme park productions, and the spiritual landscape of Disney fans. Do Disney fans internalize an ideological and spiritual framework through their consumption of Disney products? Can Disney fandom be understood as a religious system independent of dominant Christian-informed theological and moral frameworks? Are Disney fans really on the opposite side of a cultural and moral divide from Christian critics of Disney? Do Disney fans internalize a patriarchal, colonial, and consumerist ideology in their appreciation for and idealization of Disney entertainment products, as theorized by scholars? These are questions the study seeks to address.

This study will contribute to our understanding of the impact of popular culture on the religious worldviews of fans. It will broaden the scope of what can be considered “religious” outside the confines of traditionally defined religious institutions. It will provide one of the first in-depth scholarly analyses of Disney fandom, and will add to the literature on audience reception of popular entertainment products. It will contribute to the scholarly debate on the extent and significance of a cultural divide within the contemporary American context. It will also contribute to the wider social debate on the impact of television and film on audiences.

Papers outlining the results of this research will be presented at academic conferences, and will be submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals. In addition, a book based on the results of this research will be written and submitted for publication to an academic press. Public lectures will also be presented.