Is the Walt Disney Company throwing “woke” overboard?
The corporation is receiving praise and plaudits for its new heartfelt, pro-family “Midnight Magic” ad for Disney Cruise Line which aired on Sunday during the Academy Awards.
The “emotional” and “uplifting” 90-second ad “follows a father and son as they share a quiet ritual abord a Disney ship,” depicting their relationship through the years as they sail the high seas – from childhood to grandparenthood, the company announced in a press release.
The ad opens showing a father reminiscing on his parenting journey. He recalls walking with his infant son through a cruise ship, starting a routine that carries on through the years. Now, his son is grown and has left him and his wife to cruise by themselves. That is, until his son knocks on their ship cabin’s door in middle of the night – carrying his young granddaughter.
You can watch the ad below:
Conservative media personality Benny Johnson shared the ad, calling it “family centered.”
“The ad plays emotionally and even magically,” he added.
“Challenge any father to watch this without crying,” one commenter wrote.
“You crushed it with this one!! Dads are amazing and well worth those quiet moments of reflection and the impact it has on kids. Love this!!!” another said.
The cruise line shared the ad on X, saying, “Make the memories that never leave you, where magic meets the sea.”
“Disney has brought families closer together for generations,” said Disney’s Chief Marketing and Brand Officer Asad Ayaz. “This campaign embodies what guests tell us time and again: that the Disney experiences they cherish most are the ones spent with the people they love. We’re grateful to make that kind of Disney magic a reality.”
The company said the ad drew inspiration from the longtime fans and repeat guests who have made Disney cruises a family tradition. It touted its ability to “touch lives, build meaningful connections and create happiness – not just through attractions, shows and amenities, but in the time spent with each other.”
Disney Cruise Line is expanding by building five new ships by 2031, bringing its fleet to 13 ships worldwide. The cruise line recently launched the Disney Destiny in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and the Disney Adventure in Singapore earlier this month.
The company, which earned $94.4 billion in fiscal year 2025 and has 196 million subscribers to its Disney+ and Hulu platforms, clearly still generates an enormous revenue from its large fan base.
For all its pro-family messaging and feel-good PR wordsmithing, is the House of Mouse returning to its pro-family roots? The jury is out – but it’s wise to stay skeptical.
Disney’s show Bluey has been the number one most-streamed program in the U.S. for two years in a row, with 45.2 billion minutes streamed. In 2024, the company used the show to introduce young children to LGBT ideology, with one of Bluey’s friends mentioning her two moms.
In 2022, Disney’s movie Lightyear “featured homosexual characters and subplots.” The same year, the company released Strange World which highlighted the main character’s homosexuality which is “the crux on which this [movie’s] narrative revolves.” Both movies bombed at the box office, likely losing the studio hundreds of millions of dollars.
It’s also worth remembering that in 2019, Disney CEO Bob Iger spoke out against Georgia’s pro-life Heartbeat Bill, saying, “I don’t see how it’s practical for us to continue to shoot there.” However, after a failed leadership transition, Iger returned to Disney in 2022 and pledged to calm the controversies surrounding the company, after it had vocally opposed Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law.
“To the extent that I can work to quiet things down, I’m going to do that,” Iger said.
Recently, Disney reversed plans to have a “transgender” character named Pickles in its series Win or Lose.
A company spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter, “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 timelines.”
With that reversal, and Disney Cruise Line’s new pro-family ad, has the company finally come around and quit trying to inject radical content into children’s entertainment? It’s probably too early to tell and much depends on the vision cast by the company’s newly appointed CEO Josh D’Amaro.
Either way, we at Focus on the Family are committed to helping parents navigate the cultural landscape, especially in children’s entertainment content. Check out Plugged In, our free entertainment guide.
You can also learn more about our first animated film based on the beloved audio drama Adventures in Odyssey.
Most parents say it is difficult to find family-friendly entertainment content today. To counter the anti-biblical themes featured in many kids shows today, Focus on the Family is producing our first-ever animated film Adventures in Odyssey: Journey Into The Impossible.
Through a generous $1 million match opportunity, you can help complete production of the Adventures in Odyssey animated film and help share the gospel with a new generation!
Related articles and resources:
Adventures in Odyssey: Journey Into The Impossible
Disney+ Advertises Show Called ‘Dying for Sex’
Disney, Target Among Major Companies Ditching DEI
Disney (Sort of) Wakes Up: Parents Are Boss!
Disney Pushes LGBT Agenda — Again — With Transgender Clone Trooper
Photo from The Walt Disney Company.
