John Lasseter the New Walt Disney?

[DisneyIPresume]

Originally Posted by manifest

I really do enjoy John's enthusiasm. It actually seems genuine.
Everybody interviewed in the video played in the blue sky cellar uses
the word "exciting". Lasseter seemed like the only one who actually
sounded excited.

For me, this is the litmus test in general for TWDC management. I remember the footage of Walt introducing POTC and Plaza Inn. They existed as models at this time. I remember him not just announcing these attractions but he also was so excited that he had such a smile on his face. And also he was stooping down to and inside these models it's almost as if he wanted to escape into the the model itself.

I've never seen a Disney executive with as much enthusiasm as Walt had. I'll have to view the Cellar video again, but I don't sense this same amount of enthusiasm on Lasseter's part, so for now I'll have to say he is definitely not the next Walt Disney.

Walt and Lasseter are both creative. I just think Walt genuinely cared a lot more.

[Datameister]

Originally Posted by Uncle Bob

What would Walt think about Tech thinking about Steve thinking about Data thinking about John not being like him? That's the real question.

42.

And yes, Steve, it is definitely reassuring that we can agree on something. Actually, it happens pretty frequently - I just have to find something wrong with your "delivery."

[Mr Wiggins]

It would take more time than anybody has around the daily news shops to think of the right thing to say about Walt Disney.

He was an original; not just an American original, but an original, period. He was a happy accident; one of the happiest this century has experienced; and judging by the way it's been behaving, in spite of all Disney tried to tell it about laughter, love, children, puppies and sunrises, the century hardly deserved him.

He probably did more to heal or at least to soothe troubled human spirits than all the psychiartrists in the world. There can't be many adults in the allegedly civilized parts of the globe who did not inhabit Disney's mind and imagination at least for a few hours and feel better for the visitation.

It may be true, as somebody said, that while there is no highbrow in a lowbrow, there is some lowbrow in every highbrow.

But what Walt Disney seemed to know was that while there is very little grown-up in a child, there is a lot of child in every grown-up. To a child this weary world is brand new, gift wrapped. Disney tried to keep it that way for adults.

By the conventional wisdom, mighty mice, flying elephants, Snow White and Happy, Grumpy, Sneezy and Dopey - all these were fantasy, escapism from reality. It's a question of whether they are any less real, any more fantastic than intercontinental missiles, poisoned air, defoiliated forests, and scraps from the moon. This is the age of fantasy, however you look at it, but Disney's fantasy wasn't lethal.

People are saying we'll never see his like again.

Eric Sevareid
CBS Evening News
December, 1966

[Robert Cook]

While John Lasseter probably comes the closest to being able to fill such a role in theory, based on the kind of person he is creatively as well as his desire to make things the best that they can be, I can only judge the results, which still aren't very encouraging at this point. The early Pixar movies were great, but I've been less than thrilled with the ones released during this decade. The singular exception, in my opinion, is The Incredibles, which while flawed in some of the same ways as most animated features are today, stands above the rest in terms of storytelling. For this, I give most of the credit to Brad Bird, as well as credit to Lasseter and Pixar for hiring him. Then again, while Katzenberg is no Lasseter, he hired and/or allowed to flourish the principle talents involved in Walt Disney Feature Animation's "Renaissance" or "Second Golden Age" of the 1980s and 1990s, and I generally consider these animated features equal to the best of Pixar's, and superior in some cases, such as Beauty and the Beast.

With the decline of Pixar animated features in terms of quality (although I have yet to see the last two, which might be better), being absolutely mired in its own formula, in my opinion, and the gutless, lackluster attempt currently being made to fix DCA, I'll reserve judgment about John Lasseter's roles as Chief Creative Officer of Disney animation and Principle Creative Advisor for WDI until we learn more about what's really going on inside (credit and blame go hand-in-hand at this level, but I'm not sure who gets what right now). I have nothing but respect for Mr. Lasseter himself and I count myself as a fan of his, but for all the hype he's been getting, he may or may not have the larger-than-life personality of Walt Disney or the kind of vision, ambition, and influence that constantly drove the company to new heights. Eventually, we shall see--anointment is for kings, not gods.

[sediment]

How much does John Lasseter smoke? That's the real test.

[disneytim]

Comparisons like this are unfair and unnecessary. Why does anyone have to be the new anything? Can't John Lasseter just be John Lasseter? I'd say he's doing a pretty good job so far.

[Peglegin98]

I do think that he is a great Walt Disney of today. He has a passion for the parks and for his movies that is unlike anyone in the company since Walt. I love him and I admire that he wants to keep Disneyland pristine and always growing.

[2DieFR]

John needs to wear more stretchy blue sweaters and less button-down flowery shirts.

[Walt Jr.]

Never in a million years will he ever be anywhere near to Walt.


It's nonsense to think so. If we had another Walt we would be seeing a lot more of what Disneyland should be like (ie no pooh, shops, ect.)

[Robert Cook]

I forgot to give my short answer: I doubt it.

Originally Posted by DisneyIPresume

For me, this is the litmus test in general for TWDC management. I remember the footage of Walt introducing POTC and Plaza Inn. They existed as models at this time. I remember him not just announcing these attractions but he also was so excited that he had such a smile on his face. And also he was stooping down to and inside these models it's almost as if he wanted to escape into the the model itself.

I've never seen a Disney executive with as much enthusiasm as Walt had.

That's because he lived for this stuff, while most other executives live for making money. For Walt Disney, money was important but merely a means to an end. In general, he distrusted authority despite being quite authoritarian himself, and he distrusted money despite never missing a trick. In the end, it was all for and about what he wanted to create for people to experience, which justified everything he had to do, from his point of view. It's hard to find a person with all of these qualities on such an intense, personal quest, and who also happens to run his own company. I don't know John Lasseter well enough to say, really, but while he is a lot like Walt in these ways (so are many of us if you think about it), Walt just seems to be on a different level from everybody else.

On a side note, I'm curious as to whether anyone at the company suffers the kind of deeply personal disappointment from which Walt continually suffered as reality kept intruding on his creations. He never really got over these disappointments even after years had gone by, and only the prospect of something new, perfect, and beautiful could transform him into the giddy little boy that we sometimes saw. Fortunately, he was always working on something new.

Originally Posted by DisneyIPresume

I'll have to view the Cellar video again, but I don't sense this same amount of enthusiasm on Lasseter's part, so for now I'll have to say he is definitely not the next Walt Disney.

Walt and Lasseter are both creative. I just think Walt genuinely cared a lot more.

While John Lasseter certainly doesn't live to make money, this is somebody else's vision he's trying to take care of (hand-drawn feature animation and the parks in general) and present to the public (the ideas in the Cellar). There's no doubt that he loves the parks, as the members of this forum do, but I'm guessing that maybe he doesn't love the new ideas so much.

[EvilQueen]

Unfortunately, Willy Wonka died before he could choose someone to run the factory.

We have seen our share of Violet Bearegardes, Augustus Gloops, Veruca Salts, Mike Teevees - and more than a few Slugworths - try to develope their own versions of Fizzy Lifting drinks and Everlasting Gobbstoppers. What we usually find under the pretty foil wrapper is a regular candy bar or a stick of gum with the Willy Wonka! label slapped on it. Willy Wonka invented Lickable Wallpaper; his successors gave us "Lickable Wallpaper II - Back to the Nursery!" and thought that we would love it just as much as the original...

John Lasseter is probably as close to a Charlie Bucket as we have seen. He has the excitement, the joy, and the youthful enthusiasm to set Disney on a new course. He seems genuine. He values a good story. He knows about characterization, and how to hold an audience. He has that twinkle in his eye.

If John Lasseter gets to hold the reins, it may be a very exciting ride. We may see new magic, new creations, and new stories. The Parks may get to see his imprint on them, and there may be new attractions that actually make us remember what a schnozzberry looks and smells and tastes like.

"The Next Walt Disney?" No; there was only one. But Mr. Lasseter would certainly be a vast (creative) improvement on anything that we have seen since.

[Circa1966]

Originally Posted by Mr Wiggins

It would take more time than anybody has around the daily news shops to think of the right thing to say about Walt Disney.

He was an original; not just an American original, but an original, period. He was a happy accident; one of the happiest this century has experienced; and judging by the way it's been behaving, in spite of all Disney tried to tell it about laughter, love, children, puppies and sunrises, the century hardly deserved him.

He probably did more to heal or at least to soothe troubled human spirits than all the psychiartrists in the world. There can't be many adults in the allegedly civilized parts of the globe who did not inhabit Disney's mind and imagination at least for a few hours and feel better for the visitation.

It may be true, as somebody said, that while there is no highbrow in a lowbrow, there is some lowbrow in every highbrow.

But what Walt Disney seemed to know was that while there is very little grown-up in a child, there is a lot of child in every grown-up. To a child this weary world is brand new, gift wrapped. Disney tried to keep it that way for adults.

By the conventional wisdom, mighty mice, flying elephants, Snow White and Happy, Grumpy, Sneezy and Dopey - all these were fantasy, escapism from reality. It's a question of whether they are any less real, any more fantastic than intercontinental missiles, poisoned air, defoiliated forests, and scraps from the moon. This is the age of fantasy, however you look at it, but Disney's fantasy wasn't lethal.

People are saying we'll never see his like again.

Eric Sevareid
CBS Evening News
December, 1966

This is why I love you Mr. Wiggins. I remember sitting in front of the TV listening to this - I had been to Disneyland the first time only a few months prior, but I knew Walt from the weekly TV shows. It was obvious to a young kid that we had lost something very important and I remember the tears I shed. And we will never see his like again.

Lassiter may have the creative genius and I know that times aren't what they were - right, he's not running the company, he works for it - but unless something is coming around the bend, he's not demonstrated that he follows Walt's footsteps. It seems that Matt Ouimet was more in tune with Walt.

[Craigroy8287]

It’s great that he gets so involved in the creative process. I really like what he has done so far at the parks.

I would not go as far as calling him the next Walt though. There will never be another Walt Disney.

[jackskeleton1015]

Yes they are very similar

But I don't think anyone can be as good as Walt was

[dl_appurtenant]

In my opinion...no. John Lasseter is not the "new Walt Disney". While John Lasseter has many talents and abilities, he will never be the next Walt.

Do you see any rides coming out NOT based on a Disney movie, not to mention a Disney-Pixar movie? The rides that Walt created were amazing and original. Lasseters may have been "amazing" (to a point) but not "original".

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that Lasseter doesn't have the talent or ability to make an original ride but that he's not doing so.

Obviously he's not the "new Walt Disney"...but he is the John Lasseter. He's a kind of Walt Disney for us, today.