Warning! This article contains spoilers for The Electric State.
Since The Electric State‘s opening sequence suggests that Walt Disney was the first to create robots, many viewers may be curious whether this is an actual fact. Based on Simon Stålenhag’s graphic novel of the same name, the Russo brothers’ The Electric State presents a fantastical alternate timeline where humanity’s unchecked ambition leads to a brutal war between humans and robots. Although the humans eventually emerge victorious, and the surviving robots are forced to live in an enclosed area, the war leads to an unfair distribution of power in the world.
Before the movie jumps to the present timeline to highlight how this power distribution impacts the mᴀsses, it walks through the history of how humans developed nearly sentient robot beings. During this exploration of the alternate history, The Electric State claims that Walt Disney invented robots. The Netflix sci-fi movie’s opening Walt Disney detail demands a fact check because it is hard not to be curious whether it is an accurate historical claim or a fictional addition to the narrative.
The Electric State Makes Up Walt Disney Inventing Robots
The Opening Sequence Is Purely Fictional
In reality, Walt Disney did not invent robots. Since the beginning, Disney has been heavily invested in developing technology and innovation that promotes animation. However, it makes sense that The Electric State includes this fictional detail because many robots in the movie’s narrative are visually inspired by popular animated figures and mascots from the 80s and 90s.
With a whopping budget of $320 million, The Electric State is Netflix’s most expensive movie ever.
By suggesting that Walt Disney was a robotics pioneer, The Electric State justifies why its robot characters look so familiar and evocative. It must be noted that there is a semblance of truth in the Disney story suggestion. While Walt Disney may not have invented robotics, the media conglomerate has made many significant contributions to the technology.
Disney Did Push Some Robot Technology Forward
Disney Has Contributed A Lot To Animatronics
Disney may not have been the leader in robotics but has contributed to the technology in several ways. For instance, Audio-Animatronics, which is a form of mechatronic puppetry, was created by Walt Disney Imagineering. The technology has also often been used in Disney theme parks and attractions. Unlike robots and androids, mechatronic puppets have pre-recorded movements, which are synchronized with external sources of sound.
Audio-Animatronics are considered to be significantly different from robots and androids because they lack the ability to respond to external stimuli. Since the robots in The Electric State are somewhat sentient and have the ability to respond to their surroundings with almost human-like emotions, ᴀssociating them with Walt Disney’s Audio-Animatronics would be a bit of a stretch. However, since The Electric State is a fictional movie targeted primarily toward younger audiences, it makes sense that it uses the Disney connection to instill a sense of familiarity and nostalgia in audiences.
