Which Disney Villain is the most misunderstood? The new “Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After” stage show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios lets you answer that question (as long as your answer is Maleficent, Captain Hook, or Cruella de Vil). WDWNT got to experience a preview of the show, which is now open to the public, and bring you our review.
“Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After” Review
The premise of this show is solid. The Magic Mirror is tired of various Disney Villains constantly looking into it and complaining that they were treated unfairly. The show starts with a digital sequence featuring the Magic Mirror’s fantastic original song.
This harkens back to what we missed about Disney Live Entertainment. You used to be able to expect an underlying theme song — a new, memorable earworm that tied together the old classic songs in the middle. This show follows that format well with the new song at the beginning and end. Plus, there’s a fun modern walk-off version that plays as guests leave the theater. We hope we get the song on streaming.
The digital opening sequence did have us worried (we had the same worry with “The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure”), but live performers eventually appear.
The three classic villains featured are Captain Hook, Maleficent, and Cruella de Vil. As we spoke about in our review of the new “Little Mermaid” show, it seems Disney has realized their back catalog is a bevy of good material. These villains are especially old. They’re from 1953, 1959, and 1961, especially. They’re all from Walt Disney films created while he was alive.
Obviously, you’ll be excited if one of these three is your favorite. But if you love another villain, don’t worry. They all appear on screen. And when we say “all,” we mean all. There are some deep cuts. The Big Bad Wolf, Foulfellow, and the weasels from Mr. Toad are among the deepest cuts.
That said, there are only three live performers. We would’ve liked to see more. There’s a moment where Hades and Jafar interact through the mirror, and they’re played by actors but pre-recorded. There’s a similar appearance from The Evil Queen. It would’ve been great if they were live actors on stage.
Maleficent, Cruella, and Hook each do a musical number. These are great performances, but we would have liked even just a pair of dancers who switched clothing for each villain. Dancers are the main thing that’s missing from the show to fill out the stage.
That said, the three performers we had were exceptional. Hook was our favorite. It was like he jumped out of the screen — he had the voice and mannerisms down. It was almost unreal. While all three performers were fantastic, he just stuck out.
No one has a more recognizable villain song than Cruella de Vil. We love that she does multiple wardrobe changes.
All of them have some gimmick where they interact with the screens around them, such as going in and out or reaching into the mirror. There are some “wow “technical moments where the live performer interacts with the set.
The stage is unbelievable. The projections are so clear that we were originally convinced they were TVs in frames, before we realized the frames were also projected.
The show could have stepped it up a notch to match the quality of the new “The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure.” Unfair Ever After is “very good,” but Mermaid is “excellent.”
However, we like that “Villains” is only “very good,” because that means maybe it won’t get to live forever. If it doesn’t get to live forever, well, that theater is next to Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, which will soon be in the hands of Kermit the Frog and friends. And if that’s in the hands of Kermit, well, it would make sense that they could get the adjacent space.
Seeing how much they converted the Sunset Showcase Theater, it feels like an entirely different venue from Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy. I couldn’t help but think they could put MuppetVision in here.
To give Disney a free idea: I think you could build a modular version that plays in the “off-season,” then have limited-time holiday shows, summer sing-alongs, etc. Use it as a flex venue, but when it’s not flexing, it’s MuppetVision.
Seeing the staging with villains, monitor boards, and projection technology, we think they could do it.
One rule of themed design is that you have to be better than what came before. Mermaid did that. Do I think this is better than Lightning McQueen? I’m one of the few who liked it, especially the very cool animatronic, but three human talents, a good/great original song, and cool staging tech make it absolutely better. It’s a competent, well put-together show that we expect people will really enjoy.
It’s also a great litmus test for Villain’s Land. They get feedback about these three villains or favorite deep-cuts that made it. I think it will influence a lot of what you see in the land. It’s a good thing. The general vibe with villains co-existing makes us excited for the possibilities. It’s a fun space to play in.
The show has different endings based on audience feedback, and you can see all three options on our YouTube channel.
Watch the video version of Tom’s honest review (including his review of “The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure”) below.
Watch “Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After” below.
Check out “Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After” merchandise.
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