Robert Zemeckis, the filmmaker behind Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, claims Disney has no interest in reviving the 1988 classic – and it may all come down to one character being too…sexy.
The Oscar-winning director revealed during an appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast that a completed script for a sequel exists but has languished at Disney for years without approval.
‘There’s a good script sitting at Disney, but here’s what you have to know, the current Disney would never make Roger Rabbit today,’ Zemeckis said.
Released by Disney’s Touchstone Pictures, Who Framed Roger Rabbit? became a landmark in animation and live-action storytelling, earning over $350 million (approx. £305.1m) at the box office and reshaping the boundaries of family entertainment.
But Zemeckis said that while studio executives initially appeared enthusiastic – ‘they were full of energy’ and seemed like ‘they wanted to do it’ – the project soon hit a wall.
He believes the reason lies with Jessica Rabbit, the sultry, red-dressed cartoon bombshell voiced by Kathleen Turner.
‘They can’t make a movie with Jessica in it. So the [Peter] Seaman and [Jeffrey] Price sequel script isn’t ever going to see the light of day, as good as it is,’ he said.
Zemeckis pointed to changes Disney made to the character’s design at its theme parks as evidence of the company’s discomfort.
In Disneyland’s Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin ride, Jessica was given a trench coat to replace her signature glittering gown.
‘Look what they did to Jessica at the theme park, they trussed her in a trench coat,’ Zemeckis remarked.
Still, the director insisted he wouldn’t compromise the spirit of the original film for a potential sequel: ‘I’m making [the sequel to] Roger Rabbit the way I believe Walt Disney would have made it,’ he said.
‘Walt Disney never made any of his movies for children. He always made them for adults. And that’s what I decided to do with Roger Rabbit.’
For now, whether Disney’s evolving family-friendly image will ever make space for Jessica Rabbit’s comeback remains uncertain.
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