Disney pulls transgender storyline from Pixar’s ‘Win or Lose’

Pixar’s original animated series Win or lose will no longer include a transgender storyline in a later episode, The Hollywood Reporter have learned.

The series follows a co-ed middle school softball team named the Pickles in the week leading up to their championship game. Each of the eight episodes centers on a character’s off-field life and their viewpoints, whether that be a player, a parent, a coach or a referee.

A Disney spokesperson confirmed that the story arc was removed and provided the following statement THR: “When it comes to animated content for younger audiences, we recognize that many parents prefer to discuss certain topics with their children on their own terms and timeline.”

The character remains in the show, but a few lines of dialogue that referenced gender identity are removed. A spring close by Win or lose said the studio made the decision to change course several months ago.

Disney declined to comment on further details.

This isn’t the first time the company has come under scrutiny for LGBTQ+ stories, particularly regarding its animated content.

In 2022, controversy erupted both inside and outside of Disney following former CEO Bob Chapek’s much-criticized response to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law. In June of that year, Pixar’s Light years included a same-sex relationship and kiss, which also sparked controversy. Disney animations Strange worldwhich featured an openly gay protagonist, opened several months later. Both films failed to perform domestically or overseas, earning only $226.4 million and $73.6 million respectively at the global box office. LGBTQ+ content faces challenges in certain international markets, where a country may impose a more restrictive age rating or ban the content altogether.

Gender identity has become a charged and divisive topic across the United States, especially around youth and sports. Latest Disney Channel animated series Moon girl and Devil Dinosaur made headlines after some who worked on the show took to social media to say Disney banned the release of an episode focusing on a recurring transgender character. The company denied that the episode was “banned”, saying that the decision to postpone the episode was made more than a year ago and was not due to the inclusion of transgender characters.

Disney has continued with LGBTQ+ content in its more adult-focused fare, particularly Marvel Television’s Agatha All Alongsearchlight images’ All of us strangers, Next goal wins and Fire Islandand FXs Poseamong other things.

The studio is far from alone in struggling with potential fallout from politically charged content. All of Hollywood is bracing for what could be a tumultuous four years under the Trump administration. President-elect Donald Trump, who won in a landslide victory last month, has routinely criticized diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, and it has been widely reported that a number of companies have begun pulling back on DEI programming, a a trend that underrepresented groups fear will only continue. Top media executives have already met with Trump, including Apple’s Tim Cookwhile Netflix’s Ted Sarandos is scheduled to meet with him at Mar-a-Lago today.

The decision regarding Win or lose comes as Disney’s film empire, led by Alan Bergman, celebrates a major comeback at the box office, led by animation. Pixar’s From the inside out 2released last summer, has grossed $1.7 billion globally to be the highest-grossing animated film of all time, while Disney Animation’s Moana 2 has likewise broken numerous records, grossing more than $725 million to date as it heads toward $1 billion.

Win or lose was originally set to debut this month, but ended up swapping dates with Pixar’s other original animated series Dream productionswhich is based on the character of Riley from Inside Outto capitalize on the success of the film’s sequel. It will bow on February 19, 2025. Michael Yates, Carrie Hobson and David Lally created the show, voiced by Will Forte as Coach Dan.

As it turns out, the voice actress whose character’s history has been changed is herself transgender. Disney informed Chanel Stewart, now 18, of the decision Monday night. Stewart told the publication Deadline later Tuesday, she was “very discouraged” (she was 14 when she won the role after responding to an opening casting call for a trans actress). She went on to say, “From the moment I got the script, I was excited to share my journey to help empower other trans youth. I knew this was going to be a very important conversation. Trans stories matter and they deserves to be heard.”

17 December at 8.30 p.m: Updated with comments from Win and lose voice actress Chanel Stewart.