From “The Jungle Book” to “The Little Mermaid,” Here Are All the Disney Live-Action Remakes

“The Jungle Book” was the first real Disney remake, in which the media giant brought the 1967 classic under a camera lens. The film didn’t make a huge profit, earning $43.2 million at the box office on a $30 million budget, but critics still appreciated it. What sets it apart from many of the other Disney remakes is that we saw actual animals in the film, which makes limited use of special effects.

The live-action remake of “101 Dalmatians” made a respectable $320.7 million at the box office, landing it a sequel. And Glenn Close’s turn as Cruella de Vil became instantly iconic.

Yup, “101 Dalmatians” had a remake . . . which, too, had a sequel. Glenn Close reprised her role as Cruella de Vil, who’s now out of prison and trying to be good again – “trying” being the operative word. The film made $183.6 million on an $85 million budget.

Tim Burton directed the live-action “Alice in Wonderland,” which made over $1 billion at the box office.

Between Angelina Jolie’s magnetic performance, the dazzling visuals, and Lana Del Rey’s single, “Once Upon a Dream,” “Maleficent” has a lot to offer. The film features a female villain with complicated layers to her. “Maleficent” brought in $758.4 million.

Lily James stepped into Cinderella’s glass slippers for this Kenneth Branagh-directed film, which marks the real beginning of the Disney live-action remake era. Disney’s “Cinderella” earned $542 million at the box office and proved fans’ princess appetite will never be sated.

OK, with a cast that features Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong’o, Scarlett Johansson, and Bill Murray, plus a solid director like Jon Favreau, you can’t do too shabbily. A visual stunner full of heart, the 2016 version of “The Jungle Book” was both a critical and box office ($966.6 million) success.

Tim Burton’s “Alice Through the Looking Glass” shows that though the Disney brand is strong and lucrative, its live-action film sequels often feel bloated. It still made $299.5 million at the box office.

“Beauty and the Beast” is a visual splendour that boasts an endearing cast and a revamped beloved soundtrack. The Emma Watson-led film made $1.26 billion at the box office.

An overworked adult who has lost his sense of wonder talking with a cuddly bear might ring a little too similar to Paddington Bear for some, but we have to admit that Ewan McGregor does a solid job as a cynical Christopher Robin. Plus, the animals are so gosh-darn cute on top of the heartwarming story. By Disney’s standards, the movie wasn’t a box office smash, with $197.7 million earned.

“Dumbo”‘s main character is an elephant that doesn’t talk, so it might be tricky to recapture the charm of the original 1941 film with a CGI elephant. “Dumbo” made $353.3 million at the box office.

“Aladdin,” directed by Guy Ritchie and starring Will Smith, Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, and Marwan Kenzari, made some changes to the original film to give Princess Jasmine a larger role. The musical made over $1 billion at the box office.

“The Lion King” had an all-star voice cast, anchored by Beyoncé and Donald Glover, but many found the CGI animals a little too lifelike and not emotive enough. Still, Jon Favreau’s film made over $1 billion at the box office.

The discrepancy between the critical and audience receptions (41 percent and 95 percent) showed that at least viewers were on board with this sequel. In “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil,” Angelina Jolie returned to her role as the sexy antiheroine, who’s just made peace with Aurora. Whether you loved it or hated it, the movie did extremely well at the box office, bringing in, so far, $472.3 million on a $185 million budget.

The live remake of “Lady and the Tramp” leans into Disney’s cute, wholesome brand. The film, which had a voice cast including Tessa Thompson and Justin Theroux, premiered on Disney+.

The release of “Mulan” was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but it was eventually released on Disney+. The film, directed by Niki Caro, made major changes to the animated movie in order to better reflect Chinese culture. It also got rid of the popular songs, though Christina Aguilera re-recorded “Reflection” for the soundtrack.

Emma Stone stars as a young Cruella de Vil in this prequel film. The movie brought in $233.5 million at the box office – pretty strong for the pandemic – and has a sequel in the works.

Tom Hanks stars as Geppetto in this new “Pinocchio,” directed by Robert Zemeckis and to be released on Disney+.

Halle Bailey stars in Ariel in the live-action “The Little Mermaid,” which is scheduled to be released on May 26, 2023.

“Peter Pan & Wendy,” starring Alexander Molony and Ever Anderson as the title characters, will head to Disney+. The movie, which also stars Yara Shahidi as Tinkerbell, doesn’t have a release date yet.

Rachel Zegler stars as Snow White in this upcoming remake. Gal Gadot plays the Evil Queen. The film does not yet have a release date.

Guy Ritchie, who directed “Aladdin,” is also attached to direct the live-action “Hercules.”

Deadline reported back in 2019 that “Hunchback,” a live-action version of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” is in the works, with new music from Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz. The new movie would draw more on Victor Hugo’s original novel. There hasn’t been any updates since then.

According to a report for The DisInsider from 2021, a live-action standalone Tinkerbell movie is still in the works and being produced by Reese Witherspoon.

Disney hired director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo to helm “The Sword in the Stone” live-action remake in 2018. It’s not clear if the film is still happening.

Disney announced it was developing a live-action “Robin Hood” for Disney+ in 2020.

A “Bambi” remake is also in the works. In May, Deadline reported that writer Lindsey Beer had recently turned in a draft for the film.

Variety reported in January that a live-action “The Aristocats” is in the works at Disney.

In July, Deadline reported that “Marcel the Shell With Shoes On” director Dean Fleischer Camp is going to direct the live-action “Lilo and Stitch.”