By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-03-31 17:56:34 | Updated at 2025-04-02 06:41:35
1 day ago
Disney has debuted a new character for its series that suddenly dropped a storyline surrounding transgender children late last year.
The new show, Pixar's 'Win or Lose,' introduced its main character, Laurie, by showing her bow her head in prayer.
Asking god to give her strength at an important time, the middle school softball player's prayer is unmistakably Christian.
That's a first for Disney in nearly 30 years.
Orphaned minstrel's daughter Esmerelda evoked the religion in a musical number in 1996's The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Disney snapped up Pixar a decade later for the price of $7.4 billion.
Releases since had yet to offer a meaningful reference to the religion.
A scene originally brought by brass was pulled just before the election. It showed a middle schooler played by trans actress Chanel Stewart confused about which bathroom to use, before a second character leads them into the women's bathroom.
Disney has debuted a new character for its series that suddenly dropped a storyline surrounding transgender children late last year. The new show, Pixar's 'Win or Lose,' introduced its main character, Laurie, by showing her bow her head in prayer
Asking god to give her strength at an important time, the middle school softball player's prayer is unmistakably Christian. That's a first for Disney in nearly 30 years, since 1996's The Hunchback of Notre Dame
A source close to the program told The Hollywood Reporter in December Pixar made the decision to 'alter course several months' before.
An early rendering showing the scene in question was obtained by DailyMail.com back in December.
It showed Stewart's character, star player Kai, at a proverbial crossroads - before being led into the female bathroom to experience what a leaked video suggested was a spiritual awakening.
In the animated sketch, the character looks in the mirror too see her face start to warp and distort in the style of a surrealist painting, before transforming into a boy.
The imaginary occurrence leaves her upset and frantically calling her father, whom comforts her and says she will always be allowed on the team, no matter what.
Earlier this month, Kai - still played by Stewart - emerged in her retooled form as a young female girl.
No such thoughts about gender identity have been included in the final cut, now streaming on Disney+.
A scene originally brought by brass was pulled just before the election. It showed a middle schooler played by trans actress Chanel Stewart confused about which bathroom to use, before a second character leads them into the women's bathroom
Stewart's character, seen here at left alongside the team's coach - also the main character's dad - made it into the show's final cut, albeit as a biological female
Stewart, the trans actress who plays the character said in December she was 'very disheartened' by Disney's decision to amend the character's gender identity. The show is for children, and is now streaming on Disney+
As for the player seen uttering the prayer, main character Laurie, she was introduced in the show's premiere.
'Dear Heavenly Father, please give me strength,' she says at a point in one of the show's first scenes. 'I just want to catch a ball or get a hit.
'I promise I'll be good, and I, uh, won't do that thing again,' she adds - before praying in another scene to ask a higher power 'help [her] be good.
'I’m gonna train so hard,' Laurie, the daughter of character Coach Dan, says in the clip.
The pulled scene, meanwhile, was leaked online by transgender activists late last year, after Disney-owned Pixar confirmed it had been scrubbed.
When it came to an explanation, brass conceded it had been over fears it was unsuitable for children, after the decision came to light via the Hollywood Reporter's report.
'When it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognize that many parents would prefer to discuss certain subjects with their children on their own terms and timeline,' Disney said in a statement to the Reporter.
Stewart, at the time, told Deadline she was 'very disheartened' by Disney's decision, saying, '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,' she conceded. 'Trans stories matter, and they deserve to be heard.'
Her character, the team's center fielder who eventually becomes its shortstop, is being billed as a biological female.
