Few production companies are bigger than Disney, and even fewer can compete with their production of films. Disney has been creating movies and television series since the early 1930s, and their amount of content continues to increase over time. For Disney fans, quality over quantity is sometimes called into question.

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As times change, it is only reasonable that the film industry does as well. Modern Disney movies are created for a new audience, but they do not always hold up when compared to the fan-favorite classics. This could be for several reasons, from recycled content to uninteresting characters, there are a few modern movies that miss the mark.

Updated by Alexandra Locke on February 28, 2023: For decades, Disney has produced some of the most cherished films. They have always been able to capture the magic of adventure and love in stories that stand the test of time. However, more recent films have seemed lackluster by comparison, leaving many fans yearning for the Disney of old. Though there are many things to love about modern Disney films, fans have a few concerns.

15 Predictable Plots

Raya in the jungle in Raya And The Last Dragon.

Most of the newer Disney movies have predictable plots. These stories are structured to be family-friendly and fun, which is not a bad thing. However, it also allows for the narrative to become so dry that the audience knows what is going to happen next. There is scarcely any doubt that the hero is going to succeed at the end of the day.

Take the recent film Raya and the Last Dragon, it has a similar story to previous films, where the main character must stop an evil threat for the sake of her world. When an idea is so familiar, as Disney's ideas often are, it allows an audience to guess the story's outcome.

14 Franchise Driven

Anna and Elsa holding hands in Frozen.

In recent years, Disney has started to make franchises out of its films. The majority of their modern stories, especially the popular ones, have at least one sequel. This takes away from the opportunity to make new and compelling stories. Frozen, for example, transformed from a lone story about accepting oneself and sisterly love, to two movies and multiple shorts.

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Frozen's popularity makes it a great opportunity for live-action renditions, merchandise, and continued content. These things continue to add to the film's popularity, allowing a cycle of reused source material. The first movie would have been great as a stand-alone movie, but its success encouraged more content when the resources could have been used to create new stories.

13 Reusing Old Stories

Rapunzel lets down her hair in Tangled

Disney has always been a source for retelling old fairytales. These retellings were a part of the appeal for classic films, but they have stepped away from this narrative tactic as the decades pass. There are countless stories of princesses, their prince counterparts, and the adventures they go on.

One of Disney's most recent retellings is Tangled, which is based on the fairytale "Rapunzel." The film takes creative liberties with the narrative and introduces new characters, but it continues to follow the same premise that Disney has been using since 1937 when they introduced their first Disney princess, Snow White.

12 Fan Backlash

Ming is looking at Mei's journal in Turning Red

As one of the largest companies in the world, Disney has faced its fair share of criticism. The company's business practices have come under fire for various reasons over the years. However, nothing seems to be as contentious with fans as when Disney tries something new with their movies.

Anytime the “Disney Formula” is retooled to add in or exclude a certain element, many people fight against it. Whether it is a choice in animation or focusing on female health – anything can create backlash in the fandom, making going to see the newer films insufferable.

11 Lack Of Nostalgia

Prince Naveen and Tiana with a hammer in The Princess and the Frog.

A subset of Disney's larger audiences is adults who grew up watching their classic movies. Their childhoods were influenced by the 2D animations and the many musical numbers that came with them. These films are known to invoke a sense of nostalgia in older fans, and it keeps them coming back to Disney.

Modern movies lack this appeal, as they do not feel the same as the classics. Times are changing, and as Disney progresses forward, older audiences may lack an interest in the flashier new movies. The Princess and the Frog, is a happy medium, as one of the last 2D animated princess stories, while also standing apart from the classic films before it.

10 No Benefit From Live-Action Remakes

Mowgli touching heads with akela in the jungle book

While some films are suited for the world of live-action, others are not. Disney found a new market with their live-action remakes. This new tactic allows them to simultaneously introduce new fans to old stories while attempting to appeal to an older audience. This is an admirable effort, but some of their classic Disney stories like The Jungle Book are not suited for the realism that comes with live-action.

The animated Jungle Book contained colorful sequences, musical numbers, and distinct character designs. These characteristics added to the film's popularity, and they are missed in the live-action version, where the animals are given more realistic traits.

9 Lack Of Musicals

Mirabel singing in Encanto

Although audiences got Encanto in 2021 and Frozen 2 in 2019, Disney musicals are fewer and farther between than they used to be. The beloved songs that many adults still sing to themselves today do not seem to be much of a factor in newer-generation Disney films.

It is understood that musicals are harder to create, but the magic they carry is unlike any other movie medium. It is nice to see Disney deviating from their typical formatting, but many fans miss the excitement and rapture that came with seeing and singing along to a Disney film for the first time.

8 Not As Many Fun Songs

Anna The Next Right Thing Song From Frozen 2 Disney Movie

In addition to the lack of musicals, there is also a lack of “fun” songs. Many of the songs found in current Disney musicals are full of so much meaning and emotion that they make people feel overwhelmingly sad.

These songs are, of course, needed to balance out the story and highlight poignant moments. But it seems like the majority of today’s Disney songs are all heartbreaking in one way or another. Fans especially miss villain songs, as they were always the best part of many older Disney films.

7 Only A Few Discuss Growing Up

Mei Lee in Pixar's Turning Red

Despite Disney films being marketed towards a younger audience, many of their modern films lack a narrative about growing up. When looking back on classics such as Peter Pan and The Fox and The Hound, there is a lot of commentary about change and personal growth. In many of the old films, there was always an aspect about growing up and taking responsibility.

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In contrast, there are only two modern films that come to mind when fans think about stories detailing the hardships of childhood, Inside Out and Turning Red, both of which are very distinct stories about young girls going through changes in their lives. Their fellow modern films often focus on grand adventures or bigger conflicts, when the audience may otherwise need a story they can relate to.

6 Lack Of Good Disney Villains

Mirabel Abuela Alma walking arm in arm while Abuela sings from  Encanto

Scar, Hades, and Ursula are all household names when someone mentions Disney, but these villains have little competition in more modern movies. As of late, the main antagonist of Disney films come from within, rather than from an outside force. Encanto is a phenomenal example of a film ripe with conflict, despite lacking a true antagonistic character.

Encanto plays up the missing Uncle Bruno as the villain of the narrative, just to reveal that he is not bad at all. The conflicts then turn to Maribel, her family, and how their turbulent relationships are impacting the Madrigal's gifts. This does not have to be a bad thing, but many stories, especially ones full of adventure, benefit from having two inherently opposing sides.

5 Overused 3D Animation

Chicken Little and Buck Chuck raising an arm in celebration from Chicken Little.

There is always a level of distinctness in animation, but that is hardly the case with modern animated movies. Disney has been using a similar 3D style with large eyes and exaggerated features for over a decade now. The first instance of this animation was in the 2005 film, Chicken Little, and Disney hasn't gone back.

While the 3D style added a new level of uniqueness to the character designs in Chicken Little, the same cannot be said when the designs have been reused in multiple movies since then. A few examples could include Frozen, Tangled, and Big Hero 6, as they all have distinct characters who share strikingly similar animations and appearances.

4 Plot Lines Are Too Heavy

22 and Joe Gardner at a pizzeria.
In Disney and Pixar’s “Soul,” a middle-school band teacher named Joe finds himself in The Great Before—a fantastical place where new souls get their personalities, quirks and interests before they go to Earth. Determined to return to his life, Joe teams up with a precocious soul, 22, to show her what’s great about living. Featuring Tina Fey as the voice of 22, and Jamie Foxx as the voice of Joe Gardner, “Soul” opens in U.S. theaters on June 19, 2020. &am

As time has gone by, Disney movies have trusted their audiences with deeper and more thoughtful topics. Though the messages are not always blatant, there are many hard lessons that newer Disney movies are free to explore. Unfortunately, this focus has also led to a string of recent Disney movies that make audiences feel heavy.

Their important content is meaningful and the lessons or life phenomena are often woven perfectly into the story. However, their subject matters weigh heavy on fans who already have the weight of the world on their shoulders. Being moved to tears by an animated movie for kids is good once in a while, but sometimes people want good stories about heroines and heroes like the old Disney.

3 Lack Of LGBTQ+ Representation

Alicia Hawthorne hugging her wife and holding their son.

One thing that Disney's modern movies have over the classics is the amount of representation they include. There are more cultures, communities, and ethnicities being shown in the newer movies, and that is a fantastic step forward. It is difficult to say the same about Disney's LGBTQ+ representation, however, as instances of characters who are a part of that community are few and far between.

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There were a lot of controversies involving the film Lightyear, as many theaters refused to show the film due to the inclusion of a same-sex couple. The scenes of the two women, Hawthorne and her wife, were brief and that is where the problem lies. Fans were thrilled to see this representation on screen, and it could only benefit future Disney films to have more representation without the brevity.

2 An Abundance Of Sequels

Buzz and Woody smile for the camera in Toy Story.

When films are met with great success and a supportive audience, the chances are that the production company will make a sequel. Disney certainly follows this trend, as many of their great films are given sequels, even when they are not necessary. They have recently revived older movies in the form of sequels, like The Incredibles 2 and Finding Dory, but none is more glaring than Toy Story.

The unique story about the life of toys has now branched into four movies, shorts, and spinoffs. The franchise must be well-performing to warrant so many continuations, but it also leaves little room for anything new and exciting, like the original Toy Story was in 1995.

1 Forced Female Empowerment

Moana yearning for the ocean in Moana movie

One of the best things about Disney’s newer films has been their ever-mounting group of female protagonists. However, it is also a point of contention. Though having more female protagonists in non-romantic films is great, many feel that the female empowerment portrayed is forced.

Rather than providing audiences with flawed heroines who overcome major personal obstacles, many of these female characters are already perfect as they are. Their journeys are one-note and often, their character development is either little or nonexistent. Though there are a few exceptions from recent films, many fans feel that Disney is only pretending to empower their female protagonists by having them be heroines of their own stories from start to finish.

NEXT: 10 Classic Disney Movies That Deserve More Recognition