Wish: Disney Creatives Explain Why Their Films Appeal to All Ages

Walt Disney Animation Studios is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, and over the last century, the company has delivered over 60 animated films. People around the world grew up loving Disney, and the company continues to release films that appeal to fans of all ages. Disney will be celebrating 100 years with the release of the new film, Wish. In honor of the upcoming movie, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with the film's directors, Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn, in addition to writer/executive producer, Jennifer Lee, who is also the Chief Creative Officer at Walt Disney Studios Animation. We asked the creatives what they think it is about Disney magic that appeals to all ages.

"It's funny, Walt would always say 'to connect with the kid in us,' but I think some people misinterpret that to the concept of toys and an innocence that is naive. And I don't think that's what that means," Lee explained. "I think that he means 'connect with that part of ourselves that is wondrous, that sees possibility, that doesn't give up, that has a way of looking at the world and seeing the world for its best and all of those things that we should always revisit over and over again.'"

Lee continued, "But I think by also connecting with fairytales, that's where he started, his storytelling. Fairytales are created to help us cope with life. They're not just a story for story's sake. And so by using the fairytale model, to me, there's different times in life where we need that support. So I always held true to that." She added, "And I think with Wish, what I'm really excited about, as you said, is an original, it's an original fairytale. It's not based on an older one, it has more contemporary ideas and themes. But what it has that connects to us at all ages is not just like, 'I wish for a pony or a horse.' 'I wish,' meaning 'this is the thing that drives who I am.'"

"And for all of us at any age you revisit, is this what I'm meant to do? Is this how I'm supposed to participate in this world? Is there more I could be? Is there more I could do? How do I do this on behalf of someone else? And all those questions you wrestle with when you have purpose. And that is what I love because Chris said something really beautiful, he said he hopes some people who are even older, look back on the thing they've wished and say, 'I might as well get started.'" 

Chris Buck added, "It's something that we don't ever take lightly when we're making these movies. We certainly don't make it just for kids. We don't dumb it down. We make it for everyone ... We don't take it lightly, whatever themes we're going to throw out there or what we're saying with the story, that it has some kind of deep meaning, some kind of relevance, something that will inspire people, that will give them hope and joy." 

What Is Wish About?

You can read the official synopsis for Wish below:

In Wish, Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force—a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe—the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico—to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Wish features the voices of Academy Award®-winning actor Ariana DeBose as Asha, Chris Pine as Magnifico, and Alan Tudyk as Asha's favorite goat, Valentino. 

Stay tuned for more from our interviews with the producers and directors of Wish, which opens only in theaters on November 22nd.