The Disney Renaissance, after an almost 20 year slump, is said to have begun with The Little Mermaid's release in November 1989. The Little Mermaid was a success, and marked the first time a Disney animated feature had reached within the Top 10 highest grossing films of the year since Robin Hood back in 1973.

It's generally agreed that the Renaissance of Disney's success continued with Beauty & the Beast (nominated for Best Picture, 3rd highest grossing film of 1991), Aladdin (the highest grossing film of 1992), and peaked with The Lion King, which was the highest grossing film of 1994 and a smash hit and a pop cultural landmark.

After The Lion King, opinions are mixed as to when the Disney Renaissance ended.

Some point to Pocahontas as the end-point; while it was commercially successful, it was only the 5th highest grossing film of 1995.

Some point to Hunchback of Notre Dame, which also was a commercial success and was the 5th highest grossing film of 1996.

Some say it was Hercules in 1997, which was the first film since The Little Mermaid to not be within the Top 10 highest grossing films of the year it was released in.

Some say it ended after Mulan, which was more of a success and was the 7th highest grossing film of 1998; others say Tarzan was the last gasp, being the 5th highest grossing film of 1999.

Which movie do YOU feel marked the end of the Disney Renaissance?

The Disney Renaissance, after an almost 20 year slump, is said to have begun with The Little Mermaid's release in November 1989. The Little Mermaid was a success, and marked the first time a Disney animated feature had reached within the Top 10 highest grossing films of the year since Robin Hood back in 1973.

It's generally agreed that the Renaissance of Disney's success continued with Beauty & the Beast (nominated for Best Picture, 3rd highest grossing film of 1991), Aladdin (the highest grossing film of 1992), and peaked with The Lion King, which was the highest grossing film of 1994 and a smash hit and a pop cultural landmark.

After The Lion King, opinions are mixed as to when the Disney Renaissance ended.

Some point to Pocahontas as the end-point; while it was commercially successful, it was only the 5th highest grossing film of 1995.

Some point to Hunchback of Notre Dame, which also was a commercial success and was the 5th highest grossing film of 1996.

Some say it was Hercules in 1997, which was the first film since The Little Mermaid to not be within the Top 10 highest grossing films of the year it was released in.

Some say it ended after Mulan, which was more of a success and was the 7th highest grossing film of 1998; others say Tarzan was the last gasp, being the 5th highest grossing film of 1999.

Which movie do YOU feel marked the end of the Disney Renaissance?


The most common answer I've heard is Tarzan, which makes the most sense.  I agree the Lion King was peak, but Disney continued to dominate children's entertainment through the rest of the '90s, especially when you also consider Pixar films like Toy Story.  Disney started to become hit or miss after the new millennium.  Films like The Emperor's New Groove and Lilo & Stitch were popular, but the era also had stinkers like Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Trasure Planet, Brother Bear, Home on the Range, etc.  It was during this era that Dreamworks and 20th Century Fox overshadowed Disney when it came to children's entertainment; something that would have been unthinkable in the '90s.

Most people put 1999/2000 as the end mark. So.....

It's almost universally accepted that Tarzan (1999) was the end of the Disney Renaissance.

Officially, the final Disney Renaissance film was Tarzan, but since Fantasia 2000 and Dinosaur were both novelties in the Disney Canon, I would point more to The Emperor's New Groove as the movie that fully signified that the Disney Renaissance was over and the Post-Renaissance was here to stay. Not only did that film flop at the box office, it marked a complete and utter change in direction and tone compared to the Disney animated movies of the '90s.

Tarzan.

I think the Renaissance period happened to coincide almost perfectly with the '90s, since The Little Mermaid was certainly the breakthrough for it in late 1989 and by the time Dinosaur came around in the spring of 2000 it was clearly on the wane.

Tarzan.

I think the Renaissance period happened to coincide almost perfectly with the '90s, since The Little Mermaid was certainly the breakthrough for it in late 1989 and by the time Dinosaur came around in the spring of 2000 it was clearly on the wane.

Yep, I agree 100%.

Definitively I’d say Tarzan, especially since it was the last major Disney film with a broadway like Disney musical score. However, quality wise Fantasia 2000 & The Emperor’s New Groove we’re still pretty good and got good ratings, they just underperformed to the 90s films of recent memory at the time.

I think the first Disney film to be completely devoid of the Renaissance era in quality, box office records, & overall legacy was Atlantis. That was the first noticeabley bad Disney film in a while, and even as a kid I noticed that it wasn’t as memorable as the classics of Aladdin, Lion King, and the like.

I think the first Disney film to be completely devoid of the Renaissance era in quality, box office records, & overall legacy was Atlantis. That was the first noticeabley bad Disney film in a while, and even as a kid I noticed that it wasn’t as memorable as the classics of Aladdin, Lion King, and the like.

But Atlantis is a good movie.

But Atlantis is a good movie.


Eh... it wasn’t one of my favorites growing up. Now if you were to say something along the lines like Treasure Planet then I’d agree with you. However, once again, the film didn’t do that well in the box office...

Eh... it wasn’t one of my favorites growing up. Now if you were to say something along the lines like Treasure Planet then I’d agree with you. However, once again, the film didn’t do that well in the box office...

Hey Zelda, off-topic, but could you respond to the PM I sent you?

Tarzan is the last yeah, Fantasia 2000 is probably too out-there to be considered part of the Renaissance which was all about musicals, plus it didn't do very well at the box office. Dinosaur was a big disaster in every way possible and made it clear that this era of Disney was decidely over.

Tarzan, since it came out in 99. Awesome movie too; I still remember most of the words to "Two Worlds."

Tarzan is the last yeah, Fantasia 2000 is probably too out-there to be considered part of the Renaissance which was all about musicals, plus it didn't do very well at the box office. Dinosaur was a big disaster in every way possible and made it clear that this era of Disney was decidely over.


Oh sh!t I forgot about that movie! I actually liked it when I was a kid, but I agree that it wasn't anything noteworthy to even just Tarzan that premiered one year prior...

I don't even remember Dinosaur...Pretty sure I've never seen it. I would say it ended with Tarzan but I liked Mulan 10x better.

Oh sh!t I forgot about that movie! I actually liked it when I was a kid, but I agree that it wasn't anything noteworthy to even just Tarzan that premiered one year prior...

Hey Zelda, offtopic but could you respond to the PM I sent you?

I say Tarzan was the one!