Disney Adults were all part of the plan
Thank you to Home Chef for sponsoring this video! Head to https://homechef.yt.link/x2vHpiY to get 50% off and free shipping on your first Home Chef box with code PHIL50.
Sources here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/137159022/
Find me elsewhere:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philedwardsinc/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/philedwardsinc
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philedwardsinc
Some music by the inimitable Tom Fox via Chromatic: https://tfbeats.com/
Where I get some music (Free trial affiliate link):
https://share.epidemicsound.com/olkrqv
My camera, as of February 2022 (affiliate link):
https://amzn.to/3HDcWVz
My main lens: https://amzn.to/3IteXEK
My main light: https://amzn.to/3pjO0M8
My main light accessory: https://amzn.to/3M6eL0j
Why do Disney Adults exist? In this video Ibreak down the corporate strategy behind DisneyBounding, Pleasure Island nightclubs, EPCOT alcohol, D23, pin trading, price increases, and the rise of adult superfans at Walt Disney World and Disneyland. From Michael Eisner’s 1980s and 1990s annual reports to Bob Iger’s Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm acquisitions, Disney systematically created spaces and experiences for adults without kids. Today we see DisneyBounding outfits, merch drops, limited edition Mickey ears, adults-only bars like GEO-82 at EPCOT, and entire conventions like D23 Expo.
I’ll explore:
• What is a Disney Adult?
• Why adults without kids now outnumber families in Disney parks.
• DisneyBounding explained (inspired outfits vs. costumes).
• Pleasure Island, Downtown Disney, and the rise of Disney nightlife.
• EPCOT alcohol and premium dining.
• The role of Disney Vacation Club and Disney Cruise Line in adult fandom.
• How Eisner, Iger, and corporate MBAs engineered superfans.
• D23, Disney Moms Panel, and official fan communities.
• Merch drops, pin trading, and exclusive collectibles.
• How per-capita guest spending (food, beverage, ticket price) shaped the modern Disney park.
If you’ve ever wondered why Disney Adults are so passionate, nostalgic, and sometimes controversial, this explainer dives into the psychology, economics, and corporate history that made it happen.
@PhilEdwardsInc
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
if you want a disney counterbalance, i just remembered i made this video about the tech breakthrough that made mickey mouse famous: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_tT3R-Qrgw
@mitchellgiles6869
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I think a lot of blame for the "arrested childhood" phenomenon should be on the Disney Channel rather than the big-name movie releases. I was born in 2000 and I remember being a little bit afraid of the Disney Channel growing up because I'd catch occasional glimpses or see commercials for like iCarly or the one where they make videos for their baby or "Zach and Cody" and it seemed like such dumbed down, low-grade humour that I was worried it was going to somehow turn me back into a toddler if I watched too much. I also worried that people my age might see these older characters acting like… that… And then try to emulate those characters. Between that and the zeitgeist changing to telling all kids "you're awesome and perfect and special and great and everything you try will always be successful because you are the best at everything in the world" there is a vast difference between the world they spent their formative years preparing to live in and the world they actually live in and their only way to cope with the difference is to fall back on the same fake world Disney presented to them in the first place.
@panaceiasuberes6464
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Gosh… We're so ready for that extinction-level meteorite.
@scrub_trash6680
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Millennials?
Really?
All the disney obsessed ppl ive ever known were gen x
Now admittedly theres stuff like lion king but… When i think of millennial childhood shows and movies i think of Pokemon, ninja turtles, power rangers, harry potter, stuff like that.
To me the disney movies were for older kids, i guess its very close but even beauty and the beast, aladin, little mermaid those all came out when the oldest millenials were 4 -6 years old
So the younger part of gen x would have got more out of them and then snow white, cinderella, lady and the tramp, dalmations, sleeping beauty, peter pan all that stuff
@calebchild4467
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I don't really see a difference between this and any other obsessive Fandom. Do you not remember how prominent Star Trek used to be? Have you never been to a comic shop and seen the comic enthusiasts? Seen people who obsess over fantasy novels?
The only difference is that Disney is better at capitalizing on that.
@jaimyyelvingtonmusic
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
What a bunch of weirdos
@bostrickland4970
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Yes DISNEY ADDICTION 😮
@trublgrl
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
TL;DR: Women and Gay Men are extremely susceptible to marketing.
[NOTE: This is actually not what the video says at all. It's what the video is afraid to say.]
@penelopestuart5032
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
My mom was a disney adult for most of my childhood in the 2000s and early 2010s. She actually did not care very much about the IPs at all, she was into the parks. And I think she derrived as much pleasure from planning and discussing vacations there as she did actually visiting. Planning a disney vacation through blogs, "planning videos" sent by the company, and learning secrets to "game the system" and maximize value brought the appeal. She was also interested in the park history and design and had favorite "imagineers" (ride engineers and park designers).
@VRKyurem
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
10:44 this song sounds exactly like Genesis by Grimes lol
@MoshJunkie426
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I think if youre a guy whos a disney adult you need to have your hard drive investigated
@flightographist
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I watched some classic Disney as a child, more as an adult through their film production vehicles. I recall as a child wondering why my grandparents, uncles, and aunts visited, and re-visited, Disney without any of us children. I was never interested in going anyway but it did make me wonder and I did think it was strange.
@spencerobrien4753
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Does anybody remember pleasure island from Pinocchio? Kinda wack to name something after that
@gianni_schicchi
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Women and gaze
@thecuttinggardener361
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I don’t understand the Disney adult. I also don’t understand the Harry Potter adult or the LOTR adult. Much in the same way I don’t understand adults that spend time playing video games.
@kaymann8007
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Disney Adults must be low IQ, in arrested development, and probably somewhat mentally ill if not totally mentally ill.
@kcjd8659
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Wow AJ doesn’t sound at all like she sounds on her videos.
@DeepJockey
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Kids don’t have money; their parents do. Next!
@BardicAuggieOlson
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I wonder if young parents with actual children can’t afford to even go to Disney, and if they do go, are not able to spend as much money as people without kids, and can’t be buying and drinking alcohol if they have to watch their kids all day in a public place around strangers. So of course Disney adults are being heavily catered to. The adults only bar IS cringe, but from a business perspective, it makes total sense. Especially if the figure of “there’s more adults in the park without kids than with” is true, Disney would be dumb to not give them their own bar or whatever else.
@sarahhale-pearson533
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Bread and circuses, as we all lumber mindlessly to our own self destruction.
@joen8529
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I’m an adult, I love Disney world, and I guarantee I’m cooler than you. People who don’t love Disney world had parents who didn’t love them enough to take them as kids.
@NormalFamous
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Epcot background music!!!!!!!!!!!
@seanhogan6533
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Basically, the Renaissance convinced a bunch of kids that grew up loving those films that a corporation was their childhood
@funnytastingmilk
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
0:53 yeah…. Psychologically engineered. The shows were actual doodoo water and they promoted and excused certain behaviors as okay
@panfluteskeleton
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Disney adults fall into the category of "I get it, but don't understand" category. I get that people are obsessed with Disney and all the "magic" but I don't understand why the obsession continues into adulthood. Especially when theyre trying to rob every nickel and dime from their audience.
@Crunchy_Troll
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Disney Adults are just Weebs for Americans
@bobtepedino5661
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Permanently infantalized Leftists. I have never met a Disney Adult who professed to be politically Conservative.
@originalacousticguitar
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Disney adults are just looking for an identity and attention. It’s pathetic.
@sneakyquick
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I know a few of these people and its disturbing.
@billbill6576
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
Part of the issue is that Disney is a very creepy and dark company so many people with children don’t take their kids there (Like us).
@ms_cartographer
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I'm a Studio Ghibli adult. The vibes are similar, but not quite as intense. There isn't a lot of heavy consumerism tnrough going to a Ghibli park all the time, or filling your house with merch. I bought steelbooks of the films and one plushie of the cute elk from Princess Mononoke, but that's it. The films are stunning and enjoyable. They also make me think a lot about life, the environment, and what's important. There are still probably crazy people in the Ghibli fandom, but it's nice that you don't have to spend a ton of money to feel valid in the fandom.
@phild8022
August 28, 2025 at 9:11 pm
I was going to make fun of Disney adults…until you mentioned being a twin peaks adult. Bravo good sir. You got me
Comments are closed.