Beyond The Mouse: A Weekly Disney Podcast

This week D23 released a lot of details about the upcoming event taking place this August. Brett was able to attend a press event to hear all the announcements. We were also fortunate to get some time to chat with Michael Vargo, Vice President of the Walt Disney Company, who oversees D23 and the Walt Disney Archives in his position. We spoke about many of the new exciting changes coming to this ye...

We were invited to speak head director and supervising producer Jake Castorena from X-Men 97. Craig also was invited to view the first few episodes early, and gives a broad spoiler-free review for your listening pleasure! Featuring: Craig McFarland JOIN OUR PATREON:  ⁠patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse⁠ __________________________________________ Named one of the top 50 Disney Podcasts by Feedspot!  ⁠blog....

Join Beyond the Mouse for this year's March Madness bracket featuring the best Pixar film of all time! Friendships are broken, alliances form, and we hear the return of the real Lou Hare! Featuring: Craig, Brett, Vanessa, Bea, Brandon and Lou! JOIN OUR PATREON: patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse __________________________________________ Named one of the top 50 Disney Podcasts by Feedspot!  blog.feeds...

We love the Kingdom Keepers series, and we loved our first conversation with best-selling author Ridley Pearson. So, we jumped at the chance to have him back on the show to talk more about his final Kingdom Keepers series, Inheritance. This new trilogy takes introduces us to the children of the original Keepers as they fight to save the parks from new threats. The second book, Villains Realm, was...

This week on Beyond the Mouse, Craig was invited by Disney+ to speak with the creative team behind Iwájú. The series, which hits Disney+ today, focuses on a futuristic Nigeria and is told by the perspectives of multiple characters. It really moves the needle forward in terms of long form comic-book style story telling in animation. It was a blast to watch, and we hope you enjoy hearing from the cr...

This week on Beyond the Mouse, Brett and Bea sit down with Benjamin Rauhala, the music director for Disney Princess: The Concert. They talk about the show and how it's changed over the years. Rauhala also gives a behind-the-scenes look at the production and what new music is added to the program. Disney Princess: The Concert comes to Springfield, Ill. on Wednesday March 6, 2024. For more infor...

This week we speak with Greg Glasgow and Kathryn Mayer about their book Disneyland on the Mountain. This is an exciting story that might be new to most Disney fans. It follows the last, unfinished project of Walt Disney and the controversy that surrounded it. Craig and Brandon are joined by patron member Greg Woods to discuss the book and much more with Greg and Kathryn! Featuring: Craig McFarland...

This week we get to sit down with actor Terry Hu. In addition to starring in the recent Disney+ original, Zombies 3, Terry also appeared in the third season of Around the Sun by Brad Forenza. Bea and Craig speak with Terry about their acting career, the differences between acting on screen and voice acting and also they have a discussion on inclusion in Hollywood and beyond. Featuring: Craig McFar...

This is a very special interview with Imagineer Lanny Smoot. Recently, it was announced that Lanny would be inducted into the National Inventor's Hall of Fame this year. This milestone has only been achieved by one other person representing the Walt Disney Company, and that would be Walt Disney himself, who was honored posthumously in 2000. We discuss with Lanny some of his favorite projects,...

This week we take a page from the Disney Parks Blog and talk about 24 items coming to the Disney Parks and experiences in the year 2024. This list ranges from Disney Cruise Line, to international parks, Walt Disney World and so much more! Featuring: Vanessa Ferguson, Craig McFarland and Brett Rutherford JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse __________________________________________ Nam...

Disney+ invited us to chat with Jay Duplass, who will make his debut as Hades in Percy Jackson this week! Craig spoke to him about getting into the character, and the mentoring that he has done throughout the film industry. It is a fun chat! Featuring: Craig McFarland JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse __________________________________________ Named one of the top 50 Disney Podcasts...

You know Vanessa only goes to Walt Disney World once a year, and when she does, she usually gets sick. Did she have the same fate this year? Listen to find out! She also shares new tips for visiting the parks and brings up a few hot topics. Featuring: Vanessa Ferguson and Bea Bonner JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse __________________________________________ Named one of the top 50...

This week on Beyond the Mouse, Brett gives his trip report from his visit to Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea. He also shares details about other places he visited in Japan and how to get around. Brett's trip was so magical, he plans to visit again!  Featuring: Brett Rutherford, Craig McFarland and Vanessa Ferguson JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse __________________________...

With the recent passing of Glynis Johns it seemed appropriate to revisit our conversation on Mary Poppins. This was the 8th episode of what would become Beyond the Mouse, back before Brett and Vanessa were full time hosts. Mic quality was not great, but we all sat around a table and discussed this film and the Springfield Muni's upcoming production of Mary Poppins from 2017. We will be back ne...

This week we look back at the year that was 2023! Each of us share our favorite moments of the year, and give you some insights into what we are looking forward to next year. Featuring: Brett Rutherford, Craig McFarland and Vanessa Ferguson JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse __________________________________________ Named one of the top 50 Disney Podcasts by Feedspot! blog.feedspot....

This week on Beyond the Mouse Vanessa, Bea and Brandon make the trek up to Chicago to see Disney100: The Exhibition. Long story short, they loved the artifacts, but they do have some suggestions if you are thinking about checking it out.  Featuring: Vanessa Ferguson, and guests Bea Bonner and Brandon Davis JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse __________________________________________...

This week Brett takes you on a quick trip through WDW's holiday offers, including Jollywood Nights at Disney's Hollywood Studios and Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party at the Magic Kingdom! Featuring: Brett Rutherford JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse __________________________________________ Named one of the top 50 Disney Podcasts by Feedspot! blog.feedspot.com/disney...

Jeff Kinney has created such an impressive franchise in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid universe. Craig had the chance to chat with him at a recent junket hosted by Disney+ all about his new holiday special, Cabin Fever. The special is out on Disney+ right now, and it is sure to bring some warmth to those cold holiday nights. Featuring: Craig McFarland JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse ___...

This week on Beyond the Mouse Craig and Brett learn about the castmember experience on the Disney Cruise Line with pianist Matt Grinke, and they talk about the different activities for guests with cruise enthusiast Jason Fein. They also discuss Disney Treasure news and the people who make Disney Cruises special. Featuring: Craig McFarland and Brett Rutherford JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/Beyo...

It was so nice to catch up with Disney Legend Don Hahn as he prepares for his documentary, "Christmas with Walt Disney" to come to Disney+ on November 24. We chat with him about making the film for The Walt Disney Family Museum, including him working closely with Diane Disney-Miller on both her narration and her fond memories of the holidays with her family. We also discuss his career in...

This week on Beyond the Mouse we learn about Disney 100: The Exhibition in an interview with Director of the Walt Disney Archives Becky Cline. We hear about the featured artifacts that provide insight into Walt's life. We also learn how the exhibition was curated and how some artifacts will come to life. Disney 100: The Exhibition opens in Chicago on Nov. 18 and runs through January 2024. For...

The next episode of Beyond The Mouse is one for the history books...... but which history are we talking about exactly? We're jumping through time and timelines to talk to the Head Writer for the hit Marvel Cinematic Universe series  Loki  on Disney+, Eric Martin. Martin is known as a fantastic writer on  Heels  and fellow time travel adventure  Rick and Morty .  In this interview we talk all...

It is always great to have friends stop by the pod, especially when that friend is Matthew Krul. The host of the wonderful podcast, Imagination Skyway, stops by to talk about several Disney related topics. He also shares some of his thoughts about recent Disney news. Featuring: Craig McFarland, Brett Rutherford JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse ______________________________________...

We are thrilled to welcome Anneliese van der Pol to the show! She is embarking on another tour with Disney Princess: The Concert, one that will bring her right to our backyard. We discuss the concert and the preparations she is going through, we also touch on her life as a performer and give her some questions about her iconic role on That's So Raven. Featuring: Craig McFarland, Brett Rutherfo...

This week Brett is back from one of the last voyages of the Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser at Walt Disney World. He brings together members of the Halcyon 10 in this galactic sized two part episode. JOIN OUR PATREON: www.patreon.com/BeyondTheMouse __________________________________________ Named one of the top 50 Disney Podcasts by Feedspot! blog.feedspot.com/disney_podcasts FIND US ON NPR ILLINOI...