Disney animations Wish is full of easter eggs from the studio’s past work – but why?
At least some of it probably has to do with how Wish is meant to celebrate 100 years of Disney Animation. That’s why the film focuses on the power of wishing upon a star—literally.
The Animation style itself is also intended as a direct inspiration from the studio’s work over the years.
This celebratory approach resulted in the film also containing dozens of nods and references to past Disney projects.
Wish’s many Disney references
Talking with The Direct’s Russ Milheim about the Disney Animation film Wishfilm, which aims to celebrate the famous studio’s 100th anniversary, the film’s creative team talked about the many easter eggs and references it contains.
When they figure out which Disney references to add to the movie, Wish Co-director Fawn Veerasunthorn pointed out “(they) didn’t start with a list of what (they) wanted to include,” instead, focus all their energy on doing first Wish as great as it alone can be:
“We didn’t start with a list of what we wanted to include. We focused all our energy on making this a stand-alone, original story with original characters and songs. But when those things are in a really good place, and we put them into production, that’s when people start coming up with ideas for us, and they have so much passion and love for these characters and stories that they grew up with.”
He joked that one of the Disney references he wanted to include was a “chipped (cup),” as a nod to the classic Beauty and the Beast movie:
“And there will be, this seems perfect to put this character, myself included. I love ‘Beauty and the Beast.’ There are cups in the pool; can one of them be chipped? So we just had so much fun, and collectively this is like a love letter that came before us To Walt and the artists who have inspired us so much. And we just want to put these little hidden gems out there.”
Fawn then confirmed that she had her chipped mug appear in the finished film.
executive producer Peter Del Vecho noted “nods only made it into the movie if it happened organically:”
“I mean, nods only made it into the film if it happened organically. If it made sense in the story, we’ll say that if it was disruptive, we knew we didn’t want to do it.”
Vecho also told how the most unique challenge Wish presented how it “had to evoke everything (they) love about Disney’s animated films over the past 100 years:”
“There was a daunting challenge in the beginning, and that was: it had to bring out everything we love about Disney’s animated movies over the last 100 years. So it was scary, but it quickly turned into a joy. Because we’re all Disney fans and our passion for telling a story, all at the studio wanted to be a part of it. That was the biggest challenge from the beginning. How do you embrace that and still tell them an original story with original songs and characters.”
Wish is the ultimate experience for Disney fans
Fans will have to wait to see all the Disney Easter eggs Wish contains one that can be appreciated in advance: Asha’s seven friends are meant to remind Snow Whitethere are seven dwarfs. While it may seem obvious, it’s easy to miss.
Needless to say, there’s a lot more where that came from. Some are more subtle while others are a little more on the nose.
But for those die-hard Disney fans, Wish is undoubtedly an incredibly satisfying and fun experience.
Fortunately, based on the critical reception so far, it seems that the film can also shine on its own merits – which is always a good thing.
Wish hits theaters November 22nd.
