Disney has come under fire after it was revealed that it had cut out a storyline involving a trans character from its upcoming Pixar series, Win Or Lose.
The show, which will be premiering on the Disney+ streaming service on February 19, was set to feature a character that was trans in a later episode of the eight-episode first season.
However, some of the dialogue was edited out of that episode to obscure the character’s gender identity, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
A source close to the production claimed that Disney decided to edit the episodes months ago.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Disney said ‘When it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognise that many parents would prefer to discuss certain subjects with their children on their own terms and timeline.’
Chanel Stewart, the 18-year-old trans actor who voiced the character, said she was “very disheartened” by Disney’s decision.
“From the moment I got the script, I was excited to share my journey to help empower other trans youth. I knew this would be a very important conversation. Trans stories matter, and they deserve to be heard,” she told Deadline.
Each episode of Win Or Lose focuses on a member of a middle school softball team, according to the show’s logline. However, there was reportedly not a full episode devoted to the trans character.
The latest news of Disney editing out LGBTQ+ content comes after the company came under fire after people who worked on the Disney Channel animated series Moon Girl And Devil Dinosaur claimed on social media that an episode prominently featuring a trans character was dropped by the studio.
However, Disney denied that the episode had been ‘banned’ and said the decision not to release it was unrelated to the trans character.
The Disney+ series was originally set to be released in December 2023, before it was delayed a year to December 2024.
The series then swapped released dates with another Pixar series, Dream Productions, for a February 19 release date, though it’s unknown if the edited episode played any part in those delays.