While they have mostly been financially successful, Disney’s live-action remakes have been met with a mixed response at best from audiences. Even the ones that are well-received tend to be viewed in a negative light because they fail to live up to the original animated movie that so many grew up loving.

That’s why a lot of people seem to think Disney should make live-action adaptations of less fondly remembered animated films like Treasure Planet or Atlantis: The Lost Empire. Alas, the adaptations that we have gotten, even when poorly received, have made a handful of changes that were actually good.

In fact, for every negatively viewed change, there’s likely one that managed to improve upon what came before it. As loved as those original animated films are, many feature glaring issues that get overlooked because of nostalgia and some live-action adaptations have righted those ships. In some cases, they simply came up with new ideas that were surprisingly successful.

Maleficent’s Backstory (Maleficent)

Not all live-action Disney adaptations are exact retellings. Maleficent and Cruella have taken villains from their respective original films and made them the protagonists, shining a new light on them. Maleficent did this first, providing a new look at the antagonist from Sleeping Beauty.

This 2014 film gave us Maleficent’s history, telling a tragic tale. She was initially a peaceful fairy who fell in love, only for the human to drug her, burn off her wings, and use that to become king. That man ended up being Aurora’s father and this backstory gave a reason for some of Maleficent’s heinous acts.

As the protagonist of her own film, Maleficent needed to be someone the audience could at least sympathize with. This sad tale of her past helped viewers understand her and made the character more three-dimensional, rather than just a generic evil villain.

Mowgli’s Wolf Family Playing A Bigger Role (The Jungle Book)

A lot of Disney’s live-action remakes are significantly longer than their animated originals. That’s not always a good thing, but in the case of a few, including 2016’s The Jungle Book, it allowed ample time for side stories and side characters to develop.

In 1967’s The Jungle Book, it’s shown that Mowgli was raised by a family of wolves, but they only really appear early in the story. Although they view Mowgli as part of their pack, they choose to send him away out of fear of Shere Khan. The remake opted for a different route.

This time around, the pack debated on whether or not to send Mowgli away and then the man-cub leaves on his own accord to keep them safe. The wolf pack returns later in the film and stands by Mowgli’s side as he has his face-off with Shere Khan, which makes more sense and they all feel more like family.

Dumbo Returns To The Jungle (Dumbo)

The original Dumbo from 1941 is a sad tale of a baby elephant with giant ears who can fly and is taken in by a traveling circus that exploits him. That led to aspects of the film being negatively viewed by plenty of animal rights activists, especially when it comes to the ending.

If you’re going to tell a story that is this tragic for the elephant, there should be a happy ending. In the original, Dumbo remains in the circus life, and while it’s perceived as happy, most people agree that’s not exactly the story that should be told.

Thankfully, Tim Burton’s 2019 live-action take on Dumbo changed the ending for the better. In this version, he declines the show business life and actually returns to the jungle alongside his mother, where they find a herd that takes them in. It’s a much more satisfying conclusion.

Fixing Several Plot Holes (Various Movies)

As noted, many of these animated classics have some plot holes that we tend to overlook out of sheer love for the films. The live-action remakes have taken the time to rectify some of these issues, whether big or small.

One example is in Cinderella, as there has always been the issue of why the glᴀss slipper didn’t revert to raggedy shoes at midnight. The 2015 version changed this so that the slippers were created completely of pure magic for Ella. Since they weren’t old shoes turned into new ones, there was nothing to change back to. Simple, yet effective.

In 1991’s Beauty and the Beast, it was always odd that the townspeople didn’t seem to notice that their prince simply disappeared when he was cursed. The 2017 version explained that the enchantment also made it so that any memories of the prince and his servants were wiped.

Jasmine’s Desire To Be Sultan (Aladdin)

In 1992’s Aladdin, Princess Jasmine is mostly just the love interest of the тιтular character. She does have her own desires, but in that case, it was that she wanted to marry someone based on true love rather than being told she has to marry a prince for some kind of royal gain.

The 2019 iteration used the longer runtime to give her a lot more depth. She’s a woman who lets her voice be heard, evidenced by her powerful new song “Speechless,” performed expertly by Naomi Scott. However, the real change comes from her place in the kingdom.

Instead of remaining a princess, Jasmine wants to become the sultan herself. She’s much better suited to the position than Jafar and makes more sense as her father’s successor. She still loves Aladdin and ultimately marries him, but her father sees her leadership skills and names her the future sultan.

The Hyenas Are No Longer Comedic (The Lion King)

Another Disney animated classic that has aspects that don’t hold up well over time is The Lion King. Among them is the inclusion of the spotted hyenas Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed. Two of those characters are voiced by Whoopi Goldberg and Cheech Marin and have been criticized for reflecting stereotypes of Black and Latino people.

That was rectified in a few ways with 2019’s version. This time around, the characters were changed to Shenzi, Kamari, and Azizi, and they no longer play up stereotypes. This was done by making them more serious and menacing.

Instead of being there for a lame attempt at comedy, the hyenas are portrayed as more vicious henchmen for Scar than anything else. That allowed them to avoid controversy and feel like more of a threat in the climax. In fact, the leader Shenzi even gets a big moment facing off against Nala.

Shere Khan’s Reason For Targeting Mowgli (The Jungle Book)

The main villain in both the 1967 and 2016 iterations of The Jungle Book is Shere Khan, a ruthless tiger who targets Mowgli. While both versions of the character have a strong loathing of humans, the live-action take has an actual connection to Mowgli.

In Jon Favreau’s version of the film, a flashback explains that Mowgli’s father had a confrontation with Shere Khan in the past. The two were fighting and Mowgli’s dad burned Shere Khan, causing the scar on his face.

The tiger ultimately kills Mowgli’s father but the scar is a constant reminder and that helps set up his quest for vengeance. This change makes it so the final encounter between Mowgli and Shere Khan holds more weight and has personal stakes.

Prince Eric’s Character Development (The Little Mermaid)

A criticism of Disney’s animated movies from the past is that characters, as beloved as they are, don’t always get the most development. They tend to fall into generic categories, especially when it comes to the romance at the center.

For example, in The Little Mermaid, Ariel falls for Prince Eric, but the audience isn’t given a reason to care about Eric. He’s just a nice guy who Ariel encounters and instantly falls for. The 2023 live-action version improves this by giving Eric a backstory and motivations.

Eric feels trapped by his duties as a prince and yearns to explore the sea. That works especially well because it gives him something to share with Ariel, who deals with a father who is king and wants to explore land. This way, they can help each other experience their desired worlds and further their bond.

Cinderella Meets The Prince Before The Ball (Cinderella)

One of the biggest issues that consistently get brought up for classic Disney princess movies is that the protagonist somehow falls in love with someone she has only just met. Cinderella is guilty of this as the тιтular character meets the prince at the ball and is somehow madly in love with him.

That can make it feel like she was more in love with the lifestyle and escaping her wicked family. Thankfully, 2015’s Cinderella changes this by having them meet before the ball ever takes place. They have a chance encounter out in the woods and while there, they bond over seamless conversation.

It doesn’t matter how different the worlds they come from are, the two share electric chemistry, evidenced in their banter. Things go so well that the prince actually invites Cinderella to the ball, wanting to see more of her. It makes their relationship feel more realistic.

Female Leads Are Stronger (Various Movies)

The biggest, best, and most important change coming from these movies is that the female leads have been stronger and more independent. The running joke for Disney princesses is that they just sit around and wait for their “Prince Charming” to save them. Even Ralph Breaks the Internet poked fun at this trope.

The live-action remakes have made the women at the forefront more active. One example is Ella, who stands up to her blackmailing stepmother in the face of risking her own happiness. She’s strong-willed, courageous, and even forgiving of her stepmother in the end, showing that even with the changes, she remains a pure beacon of good.

There are also things like Nala’s subplot rivalry with Shenzi and Belle being an inventor who does good deeds despite the town’s disapproval. These characters represent a shift that has been seen in modern animated films like Frozen, Raya and the Last Dragon, and Moana, where the female leads are independent rather than designed to simply fall in love.