According to a recent report from The Wrap, Disney has decided to cancel a planned spinoff of its upcoming Disney+ series Win or Lose even before making an official announcement. The animated series, which was originally scheduled to premiere on Disney+ in December, was quietly scrapped by Disney without any specific reason given for the cancellation. Although the untitled project will not move forward as a series, there is a possibility that it could still be released in the future as a feature film instead.
Win or Lose is an upcoming television series by Pixar that will center around the Pickles, a middle-school softball team, as they embark on a journey to prepare for a championship game against a rival school. This highly anticipated series marks Pixar's first foray into long-form television after enjoying moderate success with miniseries like the Monsters, Inc. spinoff, Monsters at Work. The announcement of Win or Lose and its star, Will Forte as Coach Dan, was made at the D23 Expo in September 2022. The series is being written and directed by Carrie Hobson and Michael Yates.
Disney+'s Ongoing Content Purge
The decision to cancel the planned series comes amidst a significant content shuffle on Disney+, which included the removal of highly-anticipated shows like Willow and Marvel's Runaways. In May, Disney+ announced the removal of numerous shows, movies, and original series from its platform, including The Mysterious Benedict Society, Big Shot, Turner & Hooch, and Just Beyond.
Pixar has faced challenges at the box office in recent years, with its last two films, Lightyear and Elemental, experiencing diminishing returns and struggling to recoup their respective budgets. Elemental, in particular, had one of the lowest opening box office earnings in Pixar's history, grossing only $29.6 million.
These setbacks can be partly attributed to audience expectations of eventual streaming releases for major Pixar films, fueled by the exclusivity of movies like Luca and Soul, which bypassed theatrical releases. This trend has given audiences little incentive to visit theaters. Pixar's Chief Creative Officer, Pete Docter, acknowledged in a recent interview that the studio had inadvertently conditioned audiences to anticipate streaming releases over theatrical ones.
"While we were grateful for Disney+ as a platform to release our films and ensure people could see them, it has had mixed consequences in the long run," said Docter. "We inadvertently trained audiences to expect these films to be available on Disney+." Despite these challenges, Win or Lose is still scheduled to make its debut on Disney+ in December.
Source: The Direct , The Wrap
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