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(CNN) — An animated character in a new Disney+ series is sparking conversation for a surprising reason: Prayer.
The Pixar series “Win or Lose,” according to a Disney synopsis, “features the intertwined stories of eight different characters as they each prepare for their big championship softball game — the insecure kids, their helicopter parents, even a lovesick umpire.”
In the first episode, a player named Laurie who struggles with self-doubt prays on the bench before a game, marking the first distinctly Christian character in a Disney-related project in about two decades, according to WDW News Today, a website that closely follows news about Disney parks and entertainment.
“Dear Heavenly Father, please give me strength,” Laurie prays. “I have faith, but sometimes the doubt creeps in.”
The animated series made headlines recently when it cut a transgender storyline ahead of the show’s release last month.
“When it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognize that many parents would prefer to discuss certain subjects with their children on their own terms and timeline,” a spokesperson for Disney, which is Pixar’s parent company, said in a statement at the time.
Disney projects with Christian references aren’t new - “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” “The Jungle Book” and “The Lion King” are just a few titles that include Biblical themes - but some observers have questioned whether Disney is trying to appease conservative critics of diversity and inclusion efforts in line with President Donald Trump’s second term anti-DEI directives.
This week, Disney+ also changed course on a long-planned animated series based on Tiana from 2009’s “The Princess and the Frog,” which featured Disney’s first Black princess. Instead, the animation studio plans to develop a special based on the title, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
CNN has reached out to representatives for Disney for comment.
In December, Chanel Stewart, the trans actress who had been cast to voice the trans character in “Win or Lose,” spoke with Deadline about the storyline being scrapped.
“I was very disheartened,” Stewart said. “From the moment I got the script, I was excited to share my journey to help empower other trans youth. I knew this would be a very important conversation. Trans stories matter, and they deserve to be heard.”
Bob Iger, the chief executive officer of Disney, recently signed off on a settlement of a defamation lawsuit President Trump brought against ABC News and has been vocal about steering the company away from culture wars.
“The stories you tell have to really reflect the audience that you’re trying to reach but that audience, because they are so diverse … can be turned off by certain things,” Iger told CNBC in April 2024. “We just have to be more sensitive to the interests of a broad audience. It’s not easy.”
“Win or Lose” co-creators Carrie Hobson and Michael Yates have shared their thinking behind the show.
“We knew from the beginning we wanted to have all the hallmarks of a Pixar film — humor, heart, and creativity,” the Pixar veterans said in a press release. “We came to the table also knowing we wanted to tell the types of stories we couldn’t tell in a film format. Which included multi-protagonists, nonlinear storytelling, and really just pushing the tone to be more outside of the box.”
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