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TheDisney logo is the corporate logo ofThe Walt Disney Company since 1956. It is based on a stylizedautograph ofWalt Disney. Aside from being used byThe Walt Disney Company, various Disney divisions and products use the same style/font in their logos, although with some differences depending on the company. The D in the Disney logo makes use of thegolden ratio three times.[1]
The name of "The Walt Disney Company" has changed several times, and so has the logo.[2]
In the international trailers of the co-produced 1980 filmPopeye, there was a dark blueMickey head with waves in sky blue and in blue background, the words "Walt Disney" in the original signature script are on the top and the word "PRODUCTIONS" is on the bottom.[3][4]
The trailer was considered lost media until when the trailer and the logo were rediscovered on the Greek VHS release ofDonald Duck Goes West. Also, thePopeye trailer that had this logo was rediscovered again on the Australian VHS release ofSummer Magic.
On July 21, 2024, the logo along with thePopeye trailer were officially once again found in the Australian VHS copy print ofPollyanna.[5]
Until 1985, instead of a traditionalproduction logo, theopening credits of Disney films used to feature a title card that read "Walt Disney Presents", and later, "Walt Disney Productions Presents".[6] InNever Cry Wolf, it showed a light blue rectangle with the name "Walt Disney Pictures" and featured a white outline rectangle framing on a black screen.
Beginning with the release ofReturn to Oz in 1985, Walt Disney Pictures introduced its fantasy castle logo. The version with its accompanying music premiered withThe Black Cauldron.[6] The logo was created byWalt Disney Productions intraditional animation and featured a white silhouette ofDisneyland'sSleeping Beauty Castle against a blue background, with the studio's name inWalt Disney text and underscored by "When You Wish Upon a Star", in arrangement composed byJohn Debney.[7] A short rendition of the logo was used as a closing logo as well as in the movieReturn to Oz, although the film was released months beforeThe Black Cauldron was released. Acomputer-animatedRenderMan variant appeared before everyPixar Animation Studios film from pre-2009 prints ofToy Story (1995) untilRatatouille (2007), featuring an original fanfare composed byRandy Newman, based on the opening score cue fromToy Story, called "Andy's Birthday". Beginning withDinosaur (2000), an alternative logo featuring an orange castle and logo against a black background, was occasionally presented with darker tone and live-action films, though a few animated films such asBrother Bear, the 2003 re-release ofThe Lion King andThe Wild (the final film to use this logo) used this logo. The original incarnation of this logo resurfaced in 2021 for a merchandising line byShopDisney, based on its original incarnation.
In 2006, the studio's vanity card logo was updated with the release ofPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest at the behest of then-Walt Disney Studios chairmanDick Cook and studio marketing president Oren Aviv.[7] Designed by Disney animation directorMike Gabriel and producer Baker Bloodworth, the modernized logo was created completely incomputer animation byWētā FX and yU+co and featured a 3DNew Waltograph typography. The final rendering of the logo was done by Cameron Smith and Cyrese Parrish.[9] In addition, the revamped logo includes visual references toPinocchio,Dumbo,Cinderella,Peter Pan andMary Poppins, and its redesigned castle incorporates elements from both theCinderella Castle and the Sleeping Beauty Castle, as well asfireworks andWalt Disney'sfamily crest.[10]Mark Mancina wrote a new composition and arrangement of "When You Wish Upon a Star" to accompany the 2006 logo.[7] It was co-arranged and orchestrated byDavid Metzger. In 2011, starting withThe Muppets, the sequence was modified to truncate the "Walt Disney Pictures" branding to "Disney", which has mainly been used originally in home media releases since 2007.[11] The new logo sequence had been consistently modified for high-profile releases includingTron: Legacy,Maleficent,Tomorrowland,The Jungle Book,Beauty and the Beast,The Lion King,Mulan,Hocus Pocus 2, andDisenchanted.
In 2022, a new production logo was introduced for the studio's100th anniversary in 2023, which premiered at the 2022D23 Expo. The new castle logo features an updated opening sequence incomputer animation at sunrise created by Disney Studios Content andIndustrial Light & Magic and an arrangement of "When You Wish Upon a Star", composed byChristophe Beck and conducted byTim Davies. The magical arc that usually flies from right to left above the castle now flies from left to right, a subtle reference to several arc appearances since 2005, including the 2005Hong Kong Disneyland logo, drawing the 2006 Walt Disney Pictures print logo and most recently, the animatedDisney+ logo.[12] A tagline appears below the Disney100 logo during the studio's 100th anniversary in 2023, reading "100 Years of Wonder", which was later removed starting withChang Can Dunk but returned with select prints (including the world premiere and international prints) ofIndiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. While containing the same visual references as the previous logo, new references added to it includePocahontas,Up,Hercules,The Hunchback of Notre Dame,Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,The Little Mermaid,Tangled,Brave andBeauty and the Beast, with the addition of theMatterhorn fromThird Man on the Mountain and its Disneyland attraction and Pride Rock fromThe Lion King in the background beyond the castle. Its first film appearance was with the release ofStrange World.[13] The logo received widespread praise from critics and audiences and won Gold in the "Theatrical | Film: Design" medium at the 2023Clio Entertainment Awards in November 2023. The standard version was unveiled on the "Disney" hub of the Disney+ app on December 23, 2023, and made its official debut in 2024 on the second trailer forInside Out 2, with the full version premiering on the documentary filmThe Beach Boys.[14]
