Pixar Scrapped ‘Be Fri’ After Executives Feared “Girl Power” Messaging

There’s been a noticeable “anti-woke” shift at Pixar recently, or at least that’s how many observers are interpreting the studio’s latest decisions under chief Pete Docter.

A THR report details the development and cancellation of Pixar’s “Be Fri,” a project ultimately scrapped under Docter’s authority. The film first drew renewed attention after a related Wall Street Journal report following the release of “Hoppers,” which confirmed it had been in development for years before being dropped in late 2023.

“Be Fri,” directed by Kristen Lester, was inspired by her own experience of a teenage friendship falling apart. The story followed two girls whose bond fractures after discovering their favorite Sailor Moon–style show is real, sending them on a universe-spanning mission to save humanity.

Here’s the interesting part, which will be quoted by many outlets: a former staffer said feedback from Pixar bigwigs, and that would likely, primarily, include Docter, repeatedly questioned whether boys could relate to the story, and claimed there was concern about “Be Fri” being seen as a “girl power” movie.

The project reportedly went through four major iterations and was close to animation when it was halted. After further review, Disney requested another major overhaul, prompting a rushed six-week rewrite effort that ultimately failed to save the film.

This latest Pixar report comes just a year after I reported about the chaos behind Pixar’s “Elio,” a production in deep turmoil — a once-promising original that had quietly become one of the studio’s most troubled efforts in years. “Elio” was gutted from the inside, a victim of executive meddling due to it originally featuring an 11-year-old gay protagonist, which greatly concerned Docter.

Pixar brass, still licking its wounds from the 2023 “Lightyear” backlash, not to mention the controversy around the transgender storyline removed from the “Win or Lose” series, pushed “Elio” director Adrian Molina out, and “masculinized” the film.

Pixar leadership has defended its approach to these story adjustments, with Docter previously telling the WSJ that the studio aims to avoid putting parents in situations where entertainment forces difficult conversations before they’re ready. “We’re making a movie, not hundreds of millions of dollars of therapy,” he said.