Iconic Disney Director Speaks Out: You Need to Put Entertainment Above Social Messaging
One of Disney’s most successful creators took the company to task for putting an agenda ahead of good storytelling. John Musker, who wrote and directed hits such as “The Little Mermaid” and “Moana,” has retired from…
One of Disney’s most successful creators took the company to task for putting an agenda ahead of good storytelling.
John Musker, who wrote and directed hits such as “The Little Mermaid” and “Moana,” has retired from big-budget filmmaking, but he has some advice for his former employer.
That advice is to get back to making entertaining films.
In a long interview with El País during a recent visit to Spain, Musker said that in his later years with the studio — long after he became a major success with “Mermaid” in 1989 — films became hard to make because too many Disney executives were trying to dip their fingers into the creative process.
He said it was bad enough having famously tyrannical executive Jeffrey Katzenberg running the studio when he was first working with Disney.
“In the ’90s, we had Jeffrey,” Musker said. “He was an emperor, you know. But there weren’t 10 Jeffreys.
“Now, you have too many people to satisfy. Before, we didn’t have 15 directors telling you how to make the movie.”
But interference from the top is also a problem when it comes to political messaging, Musker told El País.