Animation owes a lot to Walt Disney. In the early 1900s, this art form appeared mostly in short films and wasn’t a medium to be taken seriously. Disney changed that perception when he created Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the first full-length, traditionally animated feature film. Snow White wasn’t just a huge hit; it was an important film in cinematic history. It altered the landscape of Hollywood and expanded the possibilities of animation. Since Snow White’s release in 1937, Disney’s studios have produced many animated classics, from older films like Pinocchio and Bambi, to the iconic films of the Disney Renaissance like Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, to modern 3D animated hits like Frozen and Encanto.
But Disney’s animation studios haven’t produced only home runs; there were a bunch of swings and misses. For every few classics, there’s at least one Disney animated film that most people don’t care about. Some of these movies were good but failed to capture an audience. Others were just downright awful. Whatever the case, these 10 films have largely been forgotten and have since become the ugly stepchildren of Disney animation.
10 Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001)
Atlantis: The Lost Empire follows Milo Thatch, a linguist who finds an ancient text that will guide him to the legendary lost city of Atlantis. It’s the kind of story that should’ve made this a Disney animated classic. And yet, it failed to click with audiences. By the time of its release, interest in 2D animation had waned significantly. The box office smash Shrek had just come out a few weeks beforehand, and 3D animation was gaining traction. While Atlantis isn’t remembered by most people, it has become a cult classic among fans who feel that the movie was misjudged. Unlike most Disney films nowadays, Atlantis could actually benefit from a live action adaptation, though there aren’t any plans to do so…for now.
9 Planes (2013)
The animated Cars franchise ranks among Pixar’s most poorly reviewed films. And yet for some reason, Walt Disney Pictures decided that what audiences really needed was a Cars spin-off called Planes. It’s basically Cars except, you know, in the air. And much, much worse. This film has an appalling 25% on Rotten Tomatoes. That makes the 40% for Cars 2’s, the lowest Rotten Tomatoes score for a Pixar movie, look like an Oscar nomination. And yet despite this critical embarrassment, Walt Disney Pictures was convinced that audiences still needed another Planes movie. Its sequel, Planes: Fire and Rescue, hit theaters in 2014. It was a slight improvement (45% on Rotten Tomatoes), but it doesn’t come close to reaching the popularity of other Disney classics.
8 Dinosaur (2000)
Beginning with 1989’s The Little Mermaid and ending with 1999’s Tarzan, Disney animation entered a commercially and critically successful era referred to as the Disney Renaissance, where the studio pumped out hit after hit. 2000’s Dinosaur was one of the first Disney animated films after this creative era. And it marks the beginning of a downward slump for Disney animation, which basically makes up every movie on this list.
Disney went all out with this one. It was one of the studio’s first 3D animated films, though most of its backgrounds were actually live-action and filmed on location. Disney even made a ride based on this movie, which can still be found in Disney World’s Animal Kingdom. Despite mixed critical reviews, Dinosaur was a commercial success and was the fifth highest grossing movie of 2000. But this film doesn’t seem to have the same staying power as other Disney classics. Kids today have no idea that one of their favorite Disney World rides is actually based on an animated film rather than on dinosaurs.
7 Bolt (2008)
No Hollywood studio can craft a story about anthropomorphic animal characters better than Disney. Bambi, Lady and the Tramp, The Jungle Book — these are all Disney classics. Bolt, however, is not. This film combines action and adventure with a lovable dog, who believes that he has superhero powers because of his hit TV show. It’s an interesting premise that loses originality, as the story shifts into your typical pet-goes-on-a-journey-back-home tale. Despite decent critical reviews, Bolt had an underwhelming box office performance. Not even this cute little dog, it seemed, could lure in audiences. But in the end, this turned out to be a blessing for the House of Mouse. Bolt’s commercial failure ignited another Disney Renaissance-like era and paved the way for instant classics like Frozen, Encanto, and Moana. Since this revival, however, poor Bolt has fallen by the waste side.
6 Treasure Planet (2002)
Treasure Planet had a lot going for it. It was directed by the same duo who made such animated classics as Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, and The Great Mouse Detective. Treasure Planet is a science fiction adaptation of the adventure novel Treasure Island, where characters sail through space rather than the sea. To try and compete with the growing momentum of 3D animated films, Treasure Planet features traditional, hand-drawn 2D animation atop 3D computer animation. There were even plans for developing this movie into a franchise. But those plans were scrapped after Treasure Planet bombed at the box office, a sorry fate for the most expensive traditionally animated film of all time.
5 Chicken Little (2005)
For Disney’s first fully 3D animated movie (remember, Dinosaur had live action shots of landscapes), you’d think that Disney would swing for the fences and wow us with an incredible film. But what we got instead was Chicken Little. Adapted from a European folk tale where a chicken believes the sky is falling, Chicken Little follows the misadventures of its paranoid titular character. It received mixed reviews from critics, though it had a fairly strong performance at the box office. But time has chosen to forget this movie rather than turn it into an animated classic. Maybe because Chicken Little’s humor and animation style make it feel more Dreamworks than Disney and fails to capture the magic of its predecessors.
4 Brother Bear (2003)
Another victim of the post Disney Renaissance. With its beautiful Alaskan setting and creative story, Brother Bear is fairly unique. After senselessly killing a bear, a young boy is magically transformed into a bear by ancient spirits. Its story emphasizes the idea of brotherhood and a connection to nature. It also stars Joaquin Phoenix in one of his most unknown roles. The film received mixed reviews but had a strong commercial performance. And yet, in the time since its release, Brother Bear has largely faded from memory and into obscurity. But who knows; maybe now you’ll think of this movie the next time you watch Pixar’s animated film Brave.
3 Meet the Robinsons (2007)
Meet the Robinsons felt like Disney’s way of competing with Pixar’s mega hit The Incredibles back when the two were separate studios. And in this case, Pixar won. Loosely based on a children’s book, Meet the Robinsons is a futuristic story, where a young, orphaned inventor goes on a time-traveling adventure. Despite its heartwarming themes and imaginative visuals, Meet the Robinsons underperformed at the box office. Its time-traveling story failed to stand the test of time and has gotten lost among Disney lore. Suffice to say, this is one Disney animated film that won’t be getting the live adaptation treatment.
2 Home on the Range (2004)
By the time Home on the Range was released, traditional hand drawn, 2D animation was dead in the water, though that wasn’t this film’s only problem. Set in the Wild West, Home on the Range follows a mismatched trio of cows, as they try to save their beloved farm from shutting down. It’s not the most gripping premise, and audiences and critics agreed. The film received negative reviews and had an abysmal box office performance. Home on the Range was Disney’s final traditionally animated film, and yet that’s still not enough to make people care or remember it. It was a sad way to say goodbye to an era. But fortunately, The Princess and the Frog changed that in 2009, becoming Disney’s first, and so far last, traditionally animated film.
1 The Black Cauldron (1985)
Sandwiched between animated classics The Fox and the Hound and The Great Mouse Detective is one of the most forgotten movies in Disney’s canon: The Black Cauldron. On paper, The Black Cauldron seems like a perfect fit for Disney. It captures the hero’s journey, as an ordinary youth named Taran embarks on a mystical quest for the Black Cauldron and battles the evil Horned King.
A departure from earlier Disney fantasy movies, The Black Cauldron features a much darker and more mature tone. It’s also based on Lloyd Alexander’s fantastical book series, which is known in the literary world but not as recognizable to the average viewer as, let’s say, Cinderella or Peter Pan. The Black Cauldron is the first Disney animated film to include CGI. Some critics praised its CGI visuals and darker tone. But overall, the film was a financial and critical disappointment and put the future of Disney animation in jeopardy. This would be another movie that could benefit from Disney’s obsession with live adaptations, but we aren’t holding our breath.