A couple weeks ago Marvel released Deadpool & Wolverine, a triumph for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In honor of the merc with a mouth, who’s famous for breaking the fourth wall, I was thinking about some of the best moments of Disney characters (villains and heroes) breaking the fourth wall. There are obviously a number of others who comment on aspects of the Disney franchise, or like Winnie the Pooh characters addressing the narrator or Jiminy Cricket telling the story of Pinoochio, but I’m going to focus mostly on the characters who speak directly to the camera. So let’s have some fun with those moments.
Kuzco (Emperor's New Groove)
The most obvious of all Disney fourth-wall-breakers is Emperor Kuzco the llama. Granted, he’s also the narrator, so I suppose that’s already kind of breaking the fourth wall. But there’s the iconic moment in which Kuzco stops the movie in order to remind us who the protagonist is in the movie (him, not Pacha). But then again Emperor’s New Groove is absolute nonsense (and that’s why I love it).
Timon and Pumbaa (The Lion King)
I think one is the most well known of the Disney fourth-wall moments (besides Kuzco). There’s this moment during “Hakuna Matata” in which Pumbaa was about to say he farted. Apparently that was a bad word for kids back in the 90s, because Timon stopped him saying “Not in front of the kids.” As a kid most of us probably thought he was referring to Simba, but as we grew up (and the internet pointed it out) we learned that “kids” (plural) referred not to Simba, but to the viewers.
Tamatoa (Moana)
After Maui and Moana escape from the giant crab and return the heart, we have a happy ending with Moana returning to her family. After the credits finish rolling, we get this post-credit scene with Tamatoa still stuck on his back moaning and groaning until he comments to the camera that someone would help him if he were as charming as Sebastian (from The Little Mermaid). It’s a cute callback to the classic princess movie.
Genie (Aladdin)
After Aladdin releases his new friend from the lamp, there are plenty of funny moments with the Genie with Robin Williams and his beautiful comedic timing. He references other Disney movies and future events that ancient Arabia wouldn’t know anything about. There are two points in particular where he tries to interact with the audience. At one point, amidst trying to convince Aladdin to be honest with Jasmine, Genie is playing chess with the magic carpet; he loses the game and says, impersonating Rodney Dangerfield, “I’m losing to a rug.” And then of course there’s Genie’s abrupt interruption as Aladdin and Jasmine fly away at the end of the movie.
Olaf (Frozen 2 and Olaf Presents)
In Frozen 2, there’s a moment during “Some Things Never Change” that Olaf looks directly at the camera and says “You all look a little bit older.” Granted, he has some kids run past him immediately after the line, so he could be referring to them, but there’s still a moment that he seems like he’s talking to the viewer, who would naturally be a few years older compared to viewing the first movie at its release. There’s also the series of Olaf Presents shorts in which he tells various Disney stories to the camera. That could be breaking the fourth wall or he could have an audience there (like the enchanted forest people during Frozen 2 or the other snowmen in the post-credit scene).
There are plenty of other Disney moments breaking the fourth wall of course, like Hades, Doofenshmirtz, and others who are more self-aware than anyone would think to allow in a Disney movie. Let us know which fourth-wall-breaking moment is your favorite in Disney or any other franchise too. And a hearty welcome to the X-Men arriving in the MCU!
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