Disney’s Best Animated Short in a Generation Is Dominating on Streaming

At one point in time, Disney and Pixar were widely regarded as the reigning champions of Western animation. Since Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs broke new ground in animation back in 1937, the House of Mouse and their lamp-loving partners have separately, and combined, created some of the best original animated movies of all time, with that list including the Toy Story franchise, The Incredibles, Ratatouille, and other recent favorites of ours including Brave. But, many fans often overlook the companies’ animated short films, which are sometimes just as good, if not better than their feature-length offerings.

Thankfully, that isn’t the case with Disney Pixar’s best animated short from the last decade. Bao, released in 2018, is currently soaring up the Disney+ chart, overtaking many of the franchise’s popular feature films. Given the platform’s natural appeal for Disney fans to stream their favorite films, it’s sometimes easy to forget that many viewers’ favorite experiences seeing these movies included seeing the special shorts screened beforehand. Couple this with a growing library of live-action originals and even one of Winter 2025’s best anime, and it’s clear that Disney’s streaming service is on a roll.

Disney Pixar’s Bao Is a Streaming Hit

Bao‘s 2018 release coincided with the theatrical release of The Incredibles 2. As many fans sat down to the trailers before the long-awaited return of the beloved family of superheroes, they were treated to an eight-minute short about a mover’s love told through food. Seven years later, fans have rediscovered Bao, as it is currently the 9th most popular movie on Disney+ this week, having overtaken Lilo & Stitch (which will be releasing its live-action adaptation later this year).

Directed by Domee Shi, Bao follows an Asian-Canadian woman who is struggling with her children having moved out and is making dinner for herself. While making bao dumplings, one of them unexpectedly comes to life, and the woman is given a second, albeit unexpected chance at motherhood as she cares for the now sentient bao bun.

It’s not just fans on Reddit who think Bao is Disney Pixar’s best animated short of the last few years, as The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences also agrees. Bao won the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film in 2019, beating Animal Behaviour, Late Afternoon, Weekends, and One Small Step, while also being the only Disney short film to win the award since then.

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Disney Pixar’s Phenomenal Library of Animated Short Films

Pixar has been releasing short films ever since 1984’s The Adventures of Andre & Wally B. While that debut is far from its best, the studio has since grown to become a powerhouse of the medium, re-partnering with Disney for many of its short offerings. Many of the studios’ animated shorts were also released alongside their big feature films, and several even used characters from these shorts in subsequent movie projects. After all

In 2014, Pixar released Lava, about a volcano with a crush on the nearby island, alongside Inside Out. One of their best shorts came in 1997 when they released Geri’s Game, where a man plays chess against himself, alongside A Bug’s Life. The studio has also released several short films set in the same universe as their most popular film franchises. Carl’s Date followed the titular protagonist, seen in Up, as he got back out on the dating scene. Meanwhile, Riley’s First Date saw the leading character from Inside Out introduce a potential new boyfriend to her parents.