It looks as if we've seen the last of the likes of The Return of Jafar and The Lion King 1 1/2.
Furthering the computer-dominated industry tale that began with Toy Story, the Walt Disney Co. announced Friday a major restructuring of its animation department, which includes a decision to stop producing lucrative yet lower quality direct-to-DVD sequels spawned by the studio's most successful feature titles.
DisneyToon Studios will be dismantled and operate as a separate unit under the supervision of Walt Disney Animation Studios, with Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios president Ed Catmull and chief creative officer John Lasseter—one of the masterminds behind Finding Nemo, The Incredibles and Cars—immediately assuming DTS' responsibilities.
DTS president Sharon Morrill will be reassigned, according to Walt Disney Studios chairman Dick Cook.
Lasseter joined Disney when the Mouse House snatched up Pixar for $7.4 billion in stock last year. Former Pixar CEO Steve Jobs, now Disney's largest shareholder, told reporters once how much he hated the idea of Disney doing DVD sequels, calling their quality "pretty embarrassing," despite the fact that they sell millions of copies and have served as a steady revenue stream in the face of a declining global box office.
(So far, so good with big-screen sequels, though. Toy Story 2—originally meant to be a straight-to-video production—was even more critically acclaimed than the first and grossed more than $245 million at the box office.)
Little Mermaid III, currently in production, will be the last DVD sequel on the shelves. Now, Disney will only do original direct-to-DVD features, such as one in the works starring Peter Pan's Tinker Bell. Which apparently is a spin-off, not a sequel.
"John and I are truly excited to be working with the talented team at DisneyToon Studios in developing and producing original stories for the home entertainment audience," Catmull said. "The first project includes Tinker Bell and a whole new cast of Fairy characters that have all the ingredients of wonder, magic and enchantment that our audiences expect."
The latest Walt Disney-Pixar Animation collaboration, Ratatouille—helmed by The Incredibles director Brad Bird and executive-produced by Lasseter—hits theaters June 29. The tale about a rat who longs to be a French chef features the usual assortment of all-star vocal talent, including that of Brad Garrett, Will Arnett, Patton Oswalt, Janeane Garofalo, Ian Holm, Peter O'Toole, Brian Dennehy and Pixar staple John Ratzenberger.