10 Fan Theories That Will Change the Way You See Disney Films
Disney loves to include hidden jokes, references, and Easter eggs in all of their films, so
it’s no stretch to believe that their movies could contain secret story lines and even
connections to other Disney films.
Some fan theories can seem a bit outlandish, but others actually really make sense and
have even been proven correct.
Here are 10 fan theories that will change the way you see Disney Films.
Beauty and The Beast and Tarzan – Belle is Jane’s great, great, great, grandmother
While Turk and company are trashing the camp in Tarzan, we see Turk drumming away on a
very familiar looking tea set.
In fact, it’s the same tea set featured in Beauty and the Beast.
But how did a Jane come to own Belle’s beloved tea set?
The invaluable set must have been passed down through the family.
The theory states that Belle and the Beast flee France during the French Revolution,
and wind up in Germany.
A couple of generations later, the Duke of Weselton from the movie Frozen is born.
After the events in Frozen, he is forced to move to Britain during the Industrial Revolution.
A couple more generations pass and we have Jane Porter, a British girl with an eccentric
father, a yellow dress, and a wild taste in men.
Moana and The Little Mermaid – Tamatoa is Sebastian
Tamatoa is a giant, magical crab in the Disney animated film Moana.
In the movie, he is obsessed with shiny things, which leads him to collect and hoard a massive
amount of objects.
Does that sound like any other sea creature you know of?
Tamatoa leaves the realm of monsters and, using his magical powers, changes himself
to look like the other crabs in the sea and adopts a new identity.
During his travels he comes across Atlantica and is attracted there because of how shiny
it is.
Eventually he meets an impressionable teenaged mermaid Ariel who he attaches to and continues
his obsession of collecting through her.
If that’s not enough, SPOILER, there is an after the credits scene in Moana where
Tamatoa is stuck upside down and says, “If my name was Sebastian and I had a cool Jamaican
accent you’d totally help me.”
Frozen, Tangled, and The Little Mermaid, – All Connected
During the “First Time in Forever” musical number, there is a short moment when observant
Disney fans can catch a glimpse of Rapunzel and Flynn arriving for Elsa’s coronation.
This led to the theory that Anna and Elsa’s parents were actually traveling to Flynn and
Rapunzel’s wedding when their ship capsized.
Three years later, the Tangled duo shows up at the coronation.
The theory goes even further and says that Anna and Elsa’s parents’ ship is the same
one that Arial explores in the beginning of The Little Mermaid.
As if that weren’t enough, some people even believe that the parent’s didn’t die,
but that they had a baby at sea, made it to land after the shipwreck, and died by a leopard.
That part of the theory however, has been debunked.
Brave and Monsters Inc.
– Boo is the witch in Brave Boo is obsessed with finding her friend Sully
after having an amazing adventure with him.
Unable to find out how doors can be used for travel, Boo studies magic her whole life and
becomes a witch.
She finally discovers how to travel through doors, but instead of crossing between worlds
she travels through time.
Boo continues to study magic throughout time to discover how to use the doors to find Sully.
She eventually stays in the past to study the magic back then, and takes up woodcarving
as a hobby as well as to make her own doors to travel through.
This whole theory stems from a single wood carving in Brave.
One with a keen eye can spot a carving of Sully in the witch’s house.
The theory also explains how the witch can disappear every time she goes through a door.
Aladdin – Set in a Post-Apocalyptic Future Genie claims to have been stuck in the lamp
for 10,000 years.
After he gets out, he mentions knowing about third century fashion.
He also does impressions of modern day celebrities and creates modern day inventions like microphones,
cars, and slot machines.
Obviously, Genie couldn’t have known about these things unless he was there during the
time, and therefore the movie must be set in the future.
No modern technology is present in the movie because it was all wiped out.
“What if Genie knows all of this because can see the future,” you ask?
Then he wouldn’t have been shocked when Aladdin tricked his way out of the cave or
when Aladdin sets him free.
There is also evidence of modern day inventions existing in the official Aladdin video game
in the form of a stop sign.
Toy Story 2 – Andy’s Mom is Emily In Toy Story 2, Jessie recalls having an owner
and how much they loved each other.
During this heartbreaking scene made more heartbreaking by Sarah McLaughlin’s song,
Jessie’s owner Emily drops off Jessie in a box to be donated.
We get to see quick glimpses of Emily during the scene and she looks incredibly similar
to Andy’s mom.
Need more proof?
The hat that Andy wears looks just like the hat Emily wears.
It is only missing the white strip around the base, but you can see on Andy’s hat
that it used to be there.
Most likely, it fell off with age.
Pete Docter, the writer behind Toy Story one and two, has said that the backstory is a
little different from this theory, but that’s all information we have.
Hopefully we’ll get more information in Toy Story 4.
Up – Carl is Dead A bit morbid and sweet at the same time, this
theory claims that Carl Fredrickson dies the night before they come to pick him up to take
him to the retirement home.
The adventure that ensues afterwards is his journey to find his wife in the afterlife.
This would explain all of the bizarre things that happen from a house being lifted by balloons,
to a device that allows humans to hear and decipher a dog’s thoughts.
Everything in the movie is actually symbolic.
For instance, Carl’s house represents his desire to stay in the real world, which he
must release before he can move on.
Russell is his guardian angel and he takes the form of a kid to represent Carl and his
wife’s longing for a child.
The Little Mermaid and Peter Pan – Ariel’s Mother Killed by Captain Hook
This one is far less sweet and much more morbid.
In the direct-to-video prequel “Ariel’s Beginning,” we get to see Ariel’s mother
Athena, who looks a lot like Ariel.
She also bares a very strong resemblance to one of the mermaids in Peter Pan.
The theory goes that that mermaid is Athena.
Sadly, in “Ariel’s Beginning,” Athena is killed by pirates.
The pirates?
Captain Hook’s men.
Alice in Wonderland – Alice is Tripping For some, this may be a go to movie to watch
while tripping themselves.
But is Alice in the movie tripping as well?
She may just be in a really weird place, but we can’t help but notice all of the drug
references in the movie.
First of all, our friend the caterpillar sits around smoking hookah all day.
What he’s actually smoking is unknown, but his eagerness to share his mushrooms with
Alice may point to something stronger than tobacco.
Alice then eats the mushrooms, which make her grow and shrink.
Between a floating cat, singing flowers, and an army of playing cards, it’s no stretch
to think that Alice may have gotten into something she shouldn’t have.
Snow White and Tangled – The Evil Queen is Rapunzel’s Mother
These two are quite similar.
Physically, they look a lot alike, both in their old age form as well as when they appear
young.
The two women own similar daggers as well.
They are also both obsessed with being young and looking beautiful, and they both try to
use younger women to enhance their beauty.
They both have no problem killing people to obtain what they want.
In fact, when Eugene is stabbed in Tangled, you can see a red apple above him as a subtle
nod to the evil queen.
Sure, some of these theories are far fetched, and it’s easy to say, “It’s a cartoon
just let it go,” but it’s much more interesting and fun to try and piece things together.
You never know what you might discover.
Do you have a fan theory of your own?
Tell us in the comments!
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