Diversity and Disney Theme Parks

Another area which contributes to perpetuating lack of diversity and where the appearance of the Disney Princesses is strictly regulated is in the Disney theme parks; the ‘happiest place in the world’, where the characters’ outfits, hair, and makeup are tightly controlled (Spector). With a total of 36 theme/amusement parks they are a huge source of profit; in 2019 they generated 20.2 billion dollars of revenue (Fisher). Part of the reason for their popularity and success is due to having believable ‘real’ life characters there to meet the visitors, creating a truly magical experience (fig.13 and 14).

Due to the importance of the actors in the parks, the audition process is long and competitive. Their voice, body, facial proportions, height, teeth and body movements are scrutinized, to ensure consistency within the film characters and maintain the uniformity of the brand. Ex-park actor Melanie in an interview with Insider stated that most of her auditions consisted of “standing in a line and smiling with a number” as casting directors closely inspected her. She reflected upon this uncomfortable experience: “They’re getting really close up in your personal space to see your bone structure, to see how your skin is, to see your eye color, to see your eye shape, to see all these different things about you. They don’t say anything. So it’s really, really awkward” (Bennett).

Disney’s desire to keep close connections between the film characters and the park-actors is seemingly designed to enhance the magic for attendees. However, this also perpetuates the lack of ethnic diversity and the physical ideals apparent in the films, with the casting process evaluating potential actors purely based on their physical characteristics. This has implications for both the actors and those to whom they are ultimately exposed.