This month, Disney is set to remove several series and specials from Disney Plus and Hulu, including the recently canceled Willow. The company announced its intention to pull various programs from its platforms during a recent earnings call, saying the move aligns with “strategic changes in [its] approach to content curation.” On the same call, Disney announced a loss of 4 million subscribers in its second quarter.
Heading the list for removal is Willow, a sequel series to the 1998 Ron Howard-directed fantasy classic. Despite garnering decent reviews for its early hours, the eight-episode series was canceled following lackluster viewership and complaints about its tone, which smashed millennial dialogue with high fantasy in a way that no one found convincing.
Other Disney Plus series and specials on the chopping block are Big Shot, Turner & Hooch, Just Beyond, Mysterious Benedict Society, and The World According to Jeff Goldblum. Hulu series that will be removed include Y: The Last Man, Dollface, The Hot Zone, Maggie, Pistol, and Little Demon. Apparently, you can still stream this content until its official removal on May 26.
It’s tough to discern why these specific programs are being pulled while flat-out terrible curios like Belle’s Magical World and The Return of Jafar get to stay. Perhaps it all comes down to viewership numbers, but it would shock us to learn that people didn’t watch The World According to Jeff Goldblum. Heck, the title could be Organic Chemistry According to Jeff Goldblum and we’d still tune in.
Another mystery is where all this content will ultimately end up. Is the new version of the Disney Vault a place where their least successful programs go? Then every 30 years or so we can all gather around our televisions and watch a mediocre episode of Willow for a limited time? The original point of Disney Plus was to finally grant unfettered access to everything Disney has the right to stream, but the company seems to be walking that back. Stay tuned for whether Disney provides more rationale, or finally admits to just picking titles out of a Fantasia-themed wizard’s hat.