The Hunchcast of Notre Dame

Hosted on Saturday, June 20, 2026, The Official Unofficial Fan Celebration for the 30th Anniversary of Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame invited fans to commemorate the film's three-decade legacy! This livestreamed celebration reunited Don Hahn (Producer), Kirk Wise (Director), Gary Trousdale (Director)*, Tab Murphy (Screenwriter), Stephen Schwartz (Lyricist) and Kathy Zielinski (Supervising An...

Hosted on Saturday, June 20, 2026, The Official Unofficial Fan Celebration for the 30th Anniversary of Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame invited fans to commemorate the film's 30-year legacy! This livestreamed celebration reunited Don Hahn (Producer), Kirk Wise (Director), Gary Trousdale (Director)*, Tab Murphy (Screenwriter), Stephen Schwartz (Lyricist) and Kathy Zielinski (Supervising Animato...

Watch “The Hunchdog of Notre Dame” for FREE on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejCRJQ3TO7s On this episode of the definitive “Hunchback of Notre Dame” podcast, we discuss “The Hunchdog of Notre Dame,” the fourteenth episode of the show “Wishbone,” which aired on PBS in 1995. “Wishbone” follows a Jack Russell Terrier who imagines himself as the hero of classic novels. In “The Hunchdog of N...

Acclaimed Notre Dame tour guide Emily MacKinnon joins us to discuss Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” which celebrates its 30th birthday this month! Often called Disney's darkest animated movie, this black sheep of the Disney renaissance spawned a multi-million-dollar merchandising campaign, a direct-to-video sequel, a live show at the Disney parks, two stage musicals, and an announced but q...

On this episode of the world’s first podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”), we discuss RKO’s feature film of the same name, released in 1939! Made during the Holocaust and the Great Depression, this remake of Universal’s feature film speaks to the difficult state of the world in the 1930s by refocusing Victor Hugo’s story on themes of social justice. Academy Award win...

On this episode of the definitive podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”), we discuss the Lon Chaney biopic “Man of a Thousand Faces” (1957)! While this movie isn’t a direct “Hunchback” adaptation, it contains recreation scenes of Universal’s 1923 movie (the topic of our previous episode) and provides valuable insight into Lon Chaney’s (Quasimodo’s) life at the time of...

On this episode of the definitive podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”), we’re discussing Universal’s silent film “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” released in 1923! Arguably the most important “Hunchback” adaptation (though not the first), this movie, one of the most expensive ever made during its time, kicked off the Universal Monsters franchise, turned Lon Chaney, the...

On this special episode of the definitive podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”), we sit down with musicologist Dr. Denise Boneau, the world’s leading expert on composer Louise Bertin, for an exclusive interview about the opera “La Esmeralda” (1836), the subject of our previous episode. A graduate of the University of Chicago, Dr. Boneau’s doctoral dissertation revived...

Tune in next week for an exclusive interview with the world's leading expert on Louise Bertin, musicologist Dr. Denise Boneau! On this episode of the world’s first podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”), we discuss the opera “La Esmeralda” (1836), the only “Hunchback” adaptation Victor Hugo participated in creating. Composed by Louise Bertin, a young disabled woman, th...

“We have achieved levels of back never dreamed possible.” (―Quasimodo, probably) On this episode of the world’s first podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”), we’re covering Books 10 and 11 of Victor Hugo’s classic novel! How did Notre-Dame de Paris save Notre-Dame de Paris? Did the Sack Woman end racism? Why doesn't Esmeralda ever recognize Claude Frollo? Plus, Jabba t...

Far-off places, daring swordfights, magic spells, a priest in disguise! On this installment of the world’s first podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”), we’re covering Books 8 and 9 of Victor Hugo’s classic novel! Is Claude Frollo running a multi-level marketing scheme? Who was Victor Hugo’s biggest hater? Is putting animals on trial ethical or barbaric? Plus, Shakespe...

Did Claude Frollo write the original Death Note? In this episode of the world’s first podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”), we cover Books 6 and 7 (insert outdated joke here) of Victor Hugo’s novel. Was the character Phoebus inspired by Victor Hugo’s personal life? Is Esmeralda really as stupid as many readers think? What happens when a deaf auditor tries a deaf defe...

How do you solve a problem like Quasimodo? The world’s first podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”) is back, and today, we’re covering Books 3, 4 and 5 of Victor Hugo’s classic novel! Was Quasimodo REALLY based on a real person? (Spoiler: Possibly, but probably not the person you think.) Who is this novel’s real protagonist? How fat was Jesus of Nazareth? Plus, alchemy...

Cross of God! The world’s first podcast about “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (“Notre-Dame de Paris”) is here, and what better way to begin than with an in-depth series about Victor Hugo’s classic novel? In part one of a comprehensive five-episode series, we’re discussing Books 1 and 2 of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” by Victor Hugo. Why did Hugo decide to write a book about a hunchback living in a...