Sometimes, we want to know what happens to our favorite characters while they live happily ever after, or what they’re up to before we met them at the start of their story. Perhaps we want to see them “growing up†as it were, if their story happens over several years.
With Disney, we don’t just have to imagine these pre-, mid-, or post-events to the stories of their characters. They’ll gladly show us through either more films, or a full-on TV series to build up their world. So let’s list the Disney Animated Canon movies that got expansion TV series.
- 101 Dalmatians (1961 AND 1996 live-action remake) – 101 Dalmatians (1997-1998), 2 seasons
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) – The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1988-1991), 4 seasons, setting was vaguely Americanized
- The Little Mermaid (1989) – The Little Mermaid (1992-1994), 3 seasons, a prequel
- Aladdin (1992) – Aladdin (1994-1995), 3 seasons
- The Lion King (1994) – Timon and Pumbaa (1995-1999); 3 seasons
- Toy Story (1995) – Buzz Lightyear of Star Command (2000-2001), 1 season, an in-universe TV show about the character that Andy’s action figure is based on
- Hercules (1997) – Hercules (1998-1999), 2 seasons, a mid-quell happening in Herc’s teen years before young adulthood
- Tarzan (1999) – The Legend of Tarzan (2001-2003), 2 seasons
- The Emperor’s New Groove (2000) – The Emperor’s New School (2006-2008), 2 seasons
- Lilo & Stitch (2002)
- Lilo & Stitch (2003-2006), 2 seasons
- Stitch! (2008-20011), 3 seasons, Japanese-produced sequel spinoff set on the Ryukyu Islands
- Stitch & I (2017), 1 season, Chinese-produced sequel spinoff set on China’s Huangshan Mountains
- Tangled (2010) – Tangled (2017), 1 season
- Big Hero 6 (2014) – Big Hero 6 (2017), first season ongoing
