So My Kids Can Watch / Disney

Since Disney is a very popular company among children, there have been numerous instances of people being cast in their films and TV series because of their children:

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Multiple Examples:

• The Finding Nemo franchise:
  • Eric Bana played Anchor in the first movie for his kids Sophia and Claus, who were 2-years-old and 4-years-old in 2003.
  • Idris Elba starred in the sequel Finding Dory as Fluke so that his son Winston could watch something with him in it. The same thing could be said about his Zootopia role.
• The Frozen franchise:
  • Kristen Bell took the role of Princess Anna for her newborn daughter Lincoln and eventually her second daughter Delta. It also crosses into Promoted Fangirl, since Bell was a fan of Disney movies, particularly those with Disney Princesses.
  • One of the reasons Idina Menzel starred in Frozen as Queen Elsa was so that her son Walker could hear her voice in a movie.
  • Josh Gad took the role of Olaf for his 3-year-old daughter Ava.
  • Evan Rachel Wood voiced Queen Iduna in the sequel for her 7-year-old son.
  • Likewise, Sterling K. Brown voiced Destin Mattias for his two sons.
• Inside Out:
  • Lewis Black, a comedian mostly known for stand up involving a lot of crude humor and lots of swearing, played the role of Anger so he'd have at least one kid-friendly role on his resume that wasn't a holiday special (he had previously done The Happy Elf, which was considered one). He would later land another child-friendly role with the airing of SpaceBob MerryPants.
  • Despite starring in several Pixar movies beforehand and playing Tom in Tom and Jerry: The Movie, Richard Kind played the role of Bing Bong so his kids could watch the film. This worked, as he reported that after a test screening, his twelve-year-old daughter hugged him after his final scene because she loved it so much.
• Jake and the Never Land Pirates:
  • Tiffani Thiessen played Misty the Wonderful Witch so her then two-year-old daughter Harper could watch something she was in.
  • Another celebrity, Brett Dalton, took a role as Talon in the show for his then three-year-old daughter Sylvia. This may also explain him playing Brick in Milo Murphy's Law.
  • This could also explain Leigh-Allyn Baker's role as Queen Coralie, as she had a four-year-old son named Griffin at the time who was a big Disney Junior fan. She also took the role of Queen Delightful in The 7D, as well as several minor roles in Mickey and the Roadster Racers, for the same reason.
• The Lion King (1994):
  • Matthew Broderick said this was pretty much the reason, despite the fact that he thought he was playing Kimba, that he did The Lion King (1994). He even admitted it on Entertainment Weekly. This was also the reason he did Godzilla (1998) — a decision that will haunt him to his grave.
  • Though he's never actually said it, it's hard not to look at Jeremy Irons's pre-Lion King resume and not think he did it to be in something his then 9-year-old son Max could watch.
  • James Earl Jones has actually said he did it for his son because his son loves animation.
  • Hans Zimmer also took on The Lion King so that he could take his son to the premiere and impress him with his work.
• Oliver & Company:
  • Cheech Marin did voices for Oliver & Company and The Lion King (1994) for this reason. He also suggested that his friend Tommy Chong be Shenzi; unfortunately, he was unable to get a hold of him. Given "Be Prepared", said children must have been traumatised.
  • Speaking of Oliver and Company, Billy Joel voiced Dodger in that movie (his only animated role to date), specifically because his daughter was recently born and he wanted to be in a film she could relate to.
    • Bette Midler took a role in the same movie because she wanted to be in a movie her daughter Sophie could see. This may have also been why she did Hocus Pocus.
• Pirates of the Caribbean:
  • Johnny Depp took the role of Captain Jack Sparrow in The Curse Of The Black Pearl for his two children. This is also crosses into Awesome, Dear Boy, since he wanted to join a Disney film after discovering that he was enjoying them.
  • Geoffrey Rush says he did the Pirates of the Caribbean films for this very reason. This was before the movies became Darker and Edgier fare that wasn't quite the most kid-friendly material.
• Ratatouille:
  • Patton Oswalt's role as Remy. He actually has a routine about how much the movie has affected his day-to-day life, and how jarring it is to realize that he now has child fans.
    • He also did two guest voice appearances as Quibble Pants on My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic because his daughter was a huge fan of the show, with it being the subject of one of his routines. On his second appearance, the character's girlfriend and her daughter are introduced, voiced by Patton's actual wife (Meredith Salenger) and daughter (Alice Oswalt) which morphs this into Ascended Fanboy territory for his daughter. It was also inspired by the real-life death of his wife a few years prior.
  • Ian Holm played Chef Skinner for his soon-to-be-born daughter Edie.
• Sofia the First
  • After her son Oliver was born, Ginnifer Goodwin took the role of Gwen in the Sofia the First episode "Gizmo Gwen". She also happens to be a very big Disney fan, so it was a win-win situation.
  • Isla Fisher played a recurring role of a sprite for her daughters, who were big fans of the show.
  • Viola Davis starred as Helen Henshaw, leader of the Buttercups, for her then 3-year-old daughter Genesis, who would later star in The Angry Birds Movie 2.
• Zootopia:
  • One of the reasons why Jason Bateman was really excited about voicing Nick Wilde in Zootopia? "These are the only films I see now because of my kids."
    • He also played Tommy Turner in an episode of The Fairly Oddparents and also did the live-action family films Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium and Arthur and the Invisibles around the time his daughter Francesca was born, so she could watch them when she was older.
  • After her role in Sofia the First, Ginnifer Goodwin took the role of Judy Hopps for her then two-year-old son Oliver.
  • Idris Elba took the role of Chief Bogo for his son Winston. It's also rare that he gets to be in a comedy, and Elba reportedly accepted the role because of this.
• This might be the reason Angela Lansbury starred in Beauty and the Beast, as she had several grandkids at the time who were young.

Other Examples:

• Tom Cavanagh (best known for his role as Reverse-Flash in The Flash (2014), took two roles in Disney Junior productions for his then 4-year-old son James in 2013: a jack-in-the-box on Doc McStuffins and a toy turtle in the special Lucky Duck.
• Real headline: "Cindy Crawford: Wizards of Waverly Place Made Me Famous With My Kids’".
• Larry David guest-starred in an episode of Hannah Montana along with his daughters, because they're fans of the show.
• Scott Foley played Prince Charming in Goldie & Bear for his sons Keller and Konrad, who were 4 and 2 at the time the episode aired.
• Megan Hilty jumped at the chance to voice KC The Koala on T.O.T.S. because of her daughter.
• Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson took roles in The Game Plan, Race to Witch Mountain, Moana, and Jungle Cruise for his three daughters. Moana crosses into Awesome, Dear Boy, since the thrill of seeing his Polynesian ancestry/Oceanic heritage getting so beautifully depicted in a major motion picture was enough for him to cry Tears of Joy many, many times during production.
• Angelina Jolie played the title role of Maleficent partially for her children, several of which performed alongside her. Another reason for this was because Maleficent was her favorite Disney character growing up, so landing the role was a dream job for her.
• Many guest actors on Phineas and Ferb appeared on the show for this reason, including Jane Lynch, Michael Douglas, Ben Stiller and, obviously, Simon Pegg.
• Malcolm McDowell said that he played the role of Dr. Calico in Bolt so his kids could watch him act (although he has worked in family-oriented films and TV shows on numerous occasions).
• Edward James Olmos played Chiccharon in Coco for his five grandkids. He also played King Pescoro in Elena of Avalor for the same reason.
• Chazz Palminteri stated this was why he did his VA role in Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure.
• Robert Patrick took a role in Bridge to Terabithia so his children could watch him in a film. Let it be noted that it's one of the few roles where he's playing a kind (though still stern) character.
• As soon as Luke Perry learned that he was having a daughter, he took on a guest role in an episode of Pepper Ann.
• Katey Sagal starred as Flo Spinelli in Recess for her kids Jackson and Sarah.
• Adam Sandler did Bedtime Stories (2008) alongside the Hotel Transylvania franchise for his kids.
• Mark Wahlberg did the film Invincible so that his kids could actually see him in a film (most of his films before then were R-rated).
• Paul Walker admitted while promoting the very R-rated Running Scared (2006) that he made Eight Below (which opened the week before) so he could take his daughter, nieces and nephews to a movie premiere.
• Michelle Williams starred as Glinda The Good Witch in Oz the Great and Powerful for her daughter.
• Robin Williams (no relation) took the role of the Genie in Aladdin alongside Hook and FernGully: The Last Rainforest for his two second-born children Zelda (born 1989) and Cody (born 1991).
• James Woods wanted to play Hades in Disney's Hercules... and all incarnations in any outlets thereafter... to make his children happy and so they can watch their daddy in something appropriate. Same with Danny De Vito as Phil, in the same film, quoted in the 'Art Of' book as saying, "If my kids could watch it and say, 'Daddy was in this movie', that would be pretty cool, ya know?"
• While much of the adults in the Disney Channel or Nickelodeon series casts could be described as such, the one that sticks out is Wilmer Valderrama, who voiced the lead character in Handy Manny so his younger brother could watch something he was involved in (apparently, the younger brother would be too young to have known he played Fez on That '70s Show).
• According to this article from Cracked, this was the reason why Stuart Gordon and Brian Yuzna, makers of the Cult Classic schlock-horror films Re-Animator, From Beyond, and Dolls (1987), ended up writing Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. Gordon was originally set to direct it as well but had to drop out because he got sick.
• While Trent Reznor, whose output in both Nine Inch Nails and scoring tends to range from the dark to the outright bleak, said that this trope was not specifically the reason he co-scored Pixar's family-friendly Soul, he did lampshade it when the score won a Golden Globe award:
  Reznor: I think this is the first piece of art I've ever made in my life that I can actually show my kids, so thank you, Pixar.
• On his appearance in Luca, Jim Gaffigan says that getting cast in a Pixar movie finally made him cool in the eyes of his children.
• After adopting a son, Willie Garson guest starred in Wizards of Waverly Place and Imagination Movers.
• Estelle Harris did many roles for Disney in the 90's after her grandson Jakob was born, including Mrs. Potato Head in Toy Story 2, Timon's mom in Timon & Pumbaa and Tammy Turtle in Mickey Mouse Works, along with a recurring role on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody.
• Alyson Hannigan took on the role of Claire Clancy in Fancy Nancy because her daughters were huge fans of the book series that the show was based on.
• John Oliver took on the role as Zazu in The Lion King (2019) so his son Hudson could finally like a project that he worked on.
  • Donald Glover said he was excited for his son to watch the movie...only for his son to recognize Beyoncé was in the movie yet had no idea his own father was even in it.

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