disney

They already unveiled the massive model of the Star Wars Land coming soon to both Disneyland and Walt Disney World, but today at Disney’s D23 convention, the Mouse House gave even more details about this expansion, coming some time in 2019. Most importantly, they gave the thing a name: Henceforth, it is officially called Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. (The name covers both the Disneyland and Disney World versions.) You will be forgiven if you continue to call it Star Wars Land.

It sounds like science-fiction. In a way, I suppose it still is. But it’s about to become real: A “100 percent immersive” Star Wars hotel. It’s coming in the near future (not a long time ago in this case) to Walt Disney World.

Tim Burton has officially begun production on his live-action version of Dumbo, the most depressing Disney movie of all time. (Okay, maybe that’s up for debate, but this movie wrecked me as a child.) We’ve heard rumors about the cast for a while now, from Colin Farrell to Danny DeVito and Michael Keaton, and they’re all true! The casting news, along with some plot details and an official release date was announced today during Disney’s live-action panel at the D23 Expo.

Pop quiz, hotshot: what does an actor do after he retires from one of the most iconic superhero roles of all time? Answer: anything he wants! Nobody would fault Hugh Jackman for spending the next several years drinking mojitos on the beach and packing on some of the pounds he was contractually obligated to keep off for the X-Men franchise, but it sounds like Jackman isn’t about to rest on his laurels anytime soon. The actor has been hinting at an upcoming Disney collaboration over the last day, sharing suggestive photos of himself at Disney parks, and now a hot new rumor seems to explain why.

Disney has announced who’ll be playing Aladdin and Jasmine opposite Will Smith’s Genie in their upcoming reboot of the beloved animated classic.

When word got out that Emily Blunt had been cast as the title character in Disney’s Mary Poppins Returns, the overwhelming response from most people was, “Well, sure.” Blunt has proven herself to be genre agnostic over the years, as likely to wow audiences in a science-fiction or action film as she is in a light-hearted comedy. That alone would make her an ideal candidate for Mary Poppins  —  as the rare actress capable of convincing audiences that she’d do justice to an iconic character  —  but she also bears a physical resemblance to Julie Andrews to boot. You couldn’t ask for better casting.

See the first photo of Emily Blunt as Disney's iconic Mary Poppins.

There}s one big question surrounding the upcoming live-action take on Disney’s Beauty and the Beast: Why remake something that’s considered by most to be Disney’s most perfect movie? We can write all the Stockholm syndrome thinkpieces that we want, but Beauty and the Beast still holds up as one of the studio’s animation and storytelling high points during the Disney renaissance of the ’90s (which includes The Lion King, Pocahontas, Aladdin, and Mulan). So why bother to even try to come close?

This has been a pretty awesome weekend for Bo Valarde-Chan, a 10 year old boy from Kalamazoo. You see, Bo suffers from Microvillus Inclusion Disease which is an extremely rare and life threatening.  Because of his disease, he receives all his nutrition and hydration pumped directly into his heart as his intestines do not function properly...

Emma Watson’s continuing media blitz in promotion of the upcoming Beauty and the Beast remake found her on the cover of the latest issue of Total Film (h/t E! Online), where she spoke about the moral underpinnings of the movie and her character Belle. In one quote in particular Watson declared that the film’s heroine Belle makes for a better role model than fellow Disney princess Cinderella.

This Friday, Paramount Pictures is releasing what will arguably be the finest family film of the year (to date): Monster Trucks, which has had a famously messy production up to its release in the doldrums of the first month of the year. (Shocking that a movie thought up by a 4-year old wouldn’t have smooth sailing!) Leaving its behind-the-scenes rockiness aside, Monster Trucks ostensibly has the ingredients to be a kids’ movie: it’s a mix of computer animation and live action; it’s directed by Chris Wedge of the Ice Age franchise; and it’s about big trucks. But all accounts suggest that the oddity of the concept’s genesis is borne out by the finished film, making for a truly odd film intended for the whole family. In (dubious) honor of Monster Trucks, thus, here’s our list of 10 of the truly weird, oddball children’s movies.

Walt Disney exerted an almost dictatorial command of the authorship behind the early films of the Mouse House; they were all to be Walt Disney productions, unmistakable for any other. But plenty of phenomenally talented artists went unrecognized for years, even as their handiwork became world famous and molded the childhoods of millions of viewers. Tyrus Wong was one such artist. Deadline confirms that he died at the age of 106 on Friday, leaving behind a legacy woven into the fabric of children’s entertainment.