Joanna Miller, granddaughter of Walt Disney, is criticizing the company her grandfather founded over its decision to feature an animatronic version of him in an upcoming Disneyland attraction. The robot is set to debut in July as part of the park’s 70th anniversary.
The attraction, titled Walt Disney – A Magical Life, will be located inside the Main Street Opera House and aims to recreate the feeling of “stopping by Walt’s office.” Disney officials have described the project as “a fitting tribute” to the entertainment pioneer who opened Disneyland in 1955 and died in 1966.
But Miller strongly disagrees. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, she recalled being deeply unsettled when she saw the animatronic figure for the first time. “I think I started crying,” she said. “It didn’t look like him to me.”
Miller said she voiced her concerns in a letter to Disney CEO Bob Iger and later met with him and members of the creative team. “He was very kind. He let me do my spiel,” she said, though she noted that her request to cancel the project was ultimately ignored.
“The idea of a robotic Grampa to give the public a feeling of who the living man was just makes no sense. It would be an imposter, people are not replaceable," she wrote in a Facebook post, according to the Guardian.
“You could never get the casualness of his talking, interacting with the camera, [or] his excitement to show and tell people about what is new at the park. You cannot add life to one empty of a soul or essence of the man.”
“He’s ours,” she said. “We’re his family.”
While Miller clarified that she was not speaking on behalf of her siblings or other relatives, she said, “I do speak for my grandfather and my mother.” She said that it “pains” her to take a public stance but felt compelled to act.
"When you get older, you just start to get pissed off. And you get tired of being quiet.”
“I strongly feel the last two minutes with the robot will do much more harm than good to Grampa’s legacy. They will remember the robot – and not the man," she said.
The Walt Disney Company did not issue a new statement in response to the interview, but referred media to a press release from August 2024 describing the new attraction.
