Illustrator Reimagines Beloved Disney Characters In Haunting Real-Life Situations

The name of his blog, disneyunhappilyeverafter, should have been a clue.

Chelsi

• Published in Disney
• October 4, 2024

Writing fan fiction to alter a scene or an ending for a book, movie, or show is nothing new. Fans do so for plenty of reasons.

They could be unhappy with how the situation panned out, or it could be an exercise in creativity. In most cases, these fan fictions result in interesting reads and provides a different perspective.

Some even became famous for their literary exercise. Have you heard of E.L. James? According to Business Insider, the author's famous Fifty Shades trilogy started as a fan fiction of Twilight.

Rumor has it that some copies of her unedited work still name her characters as Bella and Edward instead of Anastasia and Christian. She reimagined the handsome and powerful vampire into a handsome and powerful CEO. Anastasia remained more or less the same as clumsy yet beautiful Bella.

Reimagining favorite characters and placing them in different situations or worlds isn't limited to prose.

An illustrator found that visual art is an even more impactful way to see these characters outside of their original realm. Jeff Hong, an animation storyboard artist from New York, shared his interesting takes on some of the most beloved Disney Characters.

In his Tumblr blog, "disneyunhappilyeverafter," Hong drew these Disney characters and placed them in real-life situations. The results were provocative and harrowing.

1. Encanto - or someone could visit their unspoiled area to search for oil.

2. Finding Nemo - we are the reason why Nemo and his kind will soon be missing.

3. The Lion King - the most dangerous predator is the human.

4. The Rescuers - they do have a nice colony in the subway.

5. Pinocchio - he will be a part of the Pacific garbage patch.

6. Aladdin - Jasmine would never inherit her father's kingdom.

7. The Little Mermaid - someone at a buffet is waiting for Sebastian.

8. Peter Pan - truly Lost Boys.

9. The Jungle Book - this isn't better than the forest.

10. Pinocchio - Jiminy Cricket would be disappointed.

11. The Incredibles - oh, Violet.

12. Cars - he would be full of scratches, too.

13. Frozen - even Elsa's powers couldn't reverse climate change.

14. Tarzan - "The concrete jungle wasn’t quite what Tarzan was expecting," Hong wrote.

15. Sleeping Beauty - "The prince needed more than just his charms to get this beauty," read the caption.

16. Lilo and Stitch - he would be experimented on.

17. Robin Hood - political prisoner you say?

18. 101 Dalmatians - the cost of raising 101 dalmatians is too high!

19. Ratatouille - sacrificed to the altar of science.

20. Beauty and The Beast - the beast was society's beauty standards.

21. The New Adventures of Winnie The Pooh - there are no adventures here.

22. The Lion King - bred in captivity it would say.

23. Bambi - hasn't Bambi suffered enough?

24. Chicken Little - he wouldn't like all the other chicken places.

25. Alice In Wonderland - it was a different kind of wonderland.

26. Cinderella - what were you wearing, they would ask her.

27. Dumbo - his floppy ears are too sad to help him fly.

28. The Little Mermaid - the ocean is getting too hot even for mermaids.

29. The Princess and The Frog - she wouldn't be allowed to buy a property either.

30. Mulan - after all she's been through?

Disney is popular for their happily ever after endings. Jeff Hong's works flip the script and show a more realistic life for these characters if they lived in our messy world.

A lot of people escape using their favorite light movies to distract themselves from the sometimes bleak reality. Jeff Hong's renderings ask, "What if there's no escape?"

Chelsi