While every little child has sung at the top of their lungs “Let it go! Let it go!” should we be letting go of the classic Disney we once knew and loved? The generations are changing, and so is the exposure to cherished characters such as Cinderella, Simba, and  

Many may have heard a rumor stating that Walt Disney wanted his films redone every ten years to be enjoyed by each generation. However, that claim has been proven false. Many films, such as Bambi, Dumbo, and Snow White would have been recreated at least seven times by now. Rather, “Disney has been credited with the “seven-year rule,” in which his features would be shown again in theaters every seven years to capitalize on a new audience of youngsters,” Dan Evon writes in a 2018 article.

Once Disney believes the film will no longer capture the minds of young viewers, they 

“retire” [home video] titles, making them unavailable for a set period before reissuing them in “new” “deluxe” editions, as it did with Fantasia, Sleeping Beauty, Pinocchio, and just this month Dumbo,” Evon says. But have these new and deluxe additions kept up with the generations? Mom Melissa Trout says that her kids “have only seen the remake of the Lion King. We watched it in theaters and (the kids) thought it was too scary.” 

However, it’s not just the remakes that are struggling to keep up with the children these days. Mom Leah Amirdache says that out of Mickey Mouse, Winnie The Pooh, Snow White, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty, her kids have only seen Cinderella. When asked to describe this classic fairytale’s storyline, her son and daughter said, “The first part is the singing part, the second part is when the birds wake her up, the third part is when she turns into the white dress, the fourth part is the dance and that’s it.” Children these days don’t know the classic storylines like the previous generation does.

iUniversity student Caroline Otstott says that growing up, “I liked sleeping beauty but Rapunzel was my favorite because she had long blond hair like I did,” However, “Aladdin has my favorite storyline because as a kid I loved how magical it was with the genie, carpet, and lamp.” Caroline’s family has every classic princess movie on DVD and watched them over and over as kids.

Whether it’s Snow White’s dwarfs, Cinderella’s birds, Aurora’s fairies, or Mickey’s friends, children these days have had less exposure to the Disney we knew and loved.