Awesome Disney

It’s been rumored for some time that Disney was working on a lightsaber replica that could retract like the ones seen in the Star Wars movies. In this all-too-short video, we get a glimpse at one in action. If you’re lucky enough to be heading to Walt Disney World’s Galactic Starcruiser in 2022, you’ll get to see it in person.

Engineers at Walt Disney Imagineering have been working on animatronic robots which can walk on their own for a while now. As part of their Project Kiwi initiative, they created a walking version of Baby Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy. He needs a safety tether at present but is still an impressive creation.

Taking place immediately after the Clone War, this animated series follows the story of an elite squad of clones who possess special abilities. The formidable group of soldiers hire themselves out on dangerous missions, and draw the ire of the Empire. Premieres on Disney+ on 5.4.2021, with new episodes on Fridays.

Actor David Ury likes to perform dramatic monologues. But rather than reading from masters like Shakespeare or Browning, David prefers pop culture sources. Listen up as he transforms the lyrics from the Duck Tales theme into a sordid tale of a dark dystopian duck world. Enjoy more TV theme song monologues here.

The evil, puppy-hating villain of 101 Dalmatians must have gotten her start somewhere. Emma Stone stars as a young Miss Cruella de Vil as she rises from a mischievous grifter to downright wicked member of London society. Emma Stone stars and Craig Gillespie (I Tonya) directed this live-action Disney origin story.

In the days before Pixar became king, Disney was struggling to keep its animation fresh and relevant. Screen Junkies looks back with equal parts fondness and snark about the 2002 flick Lilo & Stitch, a surprisingly unconventional movie about a little girl and her blue dog that’s actually a gross and violent alien.

Marvel Studios welcomes two more characters from the MCU to Disney+. The series takes place in the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame, and focuses on the very different crimefighting styles of Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes, as they team up to face new villains, rumored to be the Flag-Smashers. Premieres 3.19.21.

If you’ve ever visited one of Disney’s theme parks, you have been tricked. The parks frequently employ an optical illusion known as forced perspective to make structures look bigger or smaller than they actually are. Art of Engineering explains the trickery and why our brains get so easily fooled by it.

Now that Disney+ has reeled us in with The Mandalorian, they’ve started work on their next Star Wars series. This promo for the upcoming Rogue One prequel brings back Diego Luna’s character Cassian Andor and provides a small glimpse of the work going on behind-the-scenes. The initial 12-episode run hits sometime in 2022.

Didier Ghez’s six-volume series delves into the lesser-known art of Disney Animation. Each book is filled with rare images gathered from the depths of the Walt Disney Archives and the Disney Animation Research Library, along with untold stories of the artists behind the scenes. Start with the 1930s and work your way to 2020.

With animated classics like Toy Story, Up, Wall-E, and Finding Nemo to their credit, every animation company on the planet aspires to be as good as Pixar. This new documentary series takes us inside Disney’s famed CG-animation studio to meet the creative minds behind the movies. Premieres on Disney+ 11.13.2020.

We’ve seen some realistic animatronics in the past, but scientists continue to work on ways to make robots even more lifelike. Engineers from Disney Research have been working on a robot with realistic facial movements that can react to humans it monitors using a 3D camera. Too bad it’s terrifying with the skin off.

The Mandalorian is returning to Disney+ on 10.30.2020, so it only makes sense that Screen Junkies would seize upon the chance to make an Honest Trailer for the hit series. Despite being such an excellent show, they still found plenty of reasons to poke fun at its characters and storylines.

The 1929 Disney Silly Symphony animation The Skeleton Dance is a Halloween classic. But modern copies of the clip are grainy and filled with flicker. Adam Maciaszek used a mix of AI tech and his own intelligence to dramatically improve the quality of the footage. Watch at 2X speed on YouTube, or a regular speed on Bittube.

Rock me like a hurricane… here in Duckberg. Leo Moracchioli cranks out yet another awesome heavy metal cover with his take on the theme song from Disney’s 1987 (and 2017) cartoon series DuckTales. There’s also an epic guitar solo starting at about 1:45.

The CGI in TRON seems primitive by today’s standards, but back in 1982 it was not only groundbreaking, it pushed the limits of available technology. Using modern tech, the guys at Corridor Crew decided to see if they could accurately replicate the famous light cycle scene in less than a day.

Queen B’s “Black is King” is a cinematic visual album inspired by “The Lion King.” Beyonce’s most ambitious project yet infuses elements of black history with an empowering message for young kings and queens seeking identity, and co-starring roles for Jay-Z, Lupita Nyong’o, and Naomi Campbell. Premieres 7.31.20 on Disney+.

The Muppets are back with an all-new, unscripted series in which our beloved characters interview celebrity guests, improvise, perform in sketches, and other stuff they’re not willing to say yet. Coming to Disney+ starting 7.31.2020.

While CGI has dramatically changed the way that movies are made, actors still need physical objects to interact with. This new series from Disney+ takes us up close and personal with iconic props from Disney movies. Hosted by superfan and collector Dan Lanigan. All episodes drop 5.1.20.

Now that Disney owns the studio that makes The Simpsons, they figured it was time to pay tribute to some of the many times the series satirized or referenced Disney’s iconic properties. Since they also own Marvel and Star Wars, they couldn’t resist doing compilations for those franchises too.

Judging by their name and their musical prowess, the four members of 40 Fingers have all of their digits intact, and that makes this acoustic guitar medley of Disney songs just that much sweeter. It’s a wonderfully warm bit of ear candy for fans of The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Tarzan, Hercules, and Beauty and the Beast.

(Spoilers) The smash debuts of Disney+ and Star Wars The Mandalorian have us obsessed with mysterious helmeted characters, stark desert planets, incredible creatures, and a ridiculously cute baby Yoda. If you’re craving more, too, take a peek at this original gallery of concept art from Chapters 1 to 4 of the series.

Everyone could use a Mickey Mouse clock on their wall, and this model has a trick up its sleeves. It pairs with your Amazon Echo device to work as a timer, displaying the countdown of remaining minutes one 60 individual LEDs along its perimeter.

This 23-minute journey is Disney’s most ambitious attraction yet, recruiting guests into service as heroes of the Resistance in a climactic battle with the First Order. Rise of the Resistance made its galactic debut at Walt Disney World’s Hollywood Studios in Florida and will launch at California’s Disneyland Park on January 17, 2020.

Inspired by the true story of Leonhard Seppala, Willem Dafoe and Julianne Nicholson star in this original movie about a man who sets off on a perilous journey across Alaska with his sled dogs to help bring home a cure for a deadly disease. Streaming on Disney+ 12/20/19.

“It’s a meaningless line of indifference.” Let’s face it. An all-CGI remake of the animated classic The Lion King was a bad idea from the moment it was born in some executive boardroom. As expected, Screen Junkies simply annihilates this soulless showcase for uncannily realistic singing animals. Disney, please stop the madness.