Disney may be one of the most-loved brands in the world, with its cruise liners holding a special place in the hearts of many, but its brand-first costume policy is as creepy as it gets.
Following hot on the heels of chilling revelations about the secret reasons why cruise ships always serve ice cream comes a strange, surreal, and somewhat scandalous story about the costume policy that Disney staff must adhere to on their cruise liners in the unlikely event that they should renounce an emergency evacuation situation.
The story landed on DMARGE’s desk via our friends at Popb*tch, “the internet’s longest-running, deepest-digging gossipmongers, Popbitch has been sending out an unmissable weekly email since late 1999”. While they proudly peddle gossip, they’ve also broken a number of very real scandals over the years thanks to their black boo filled with industry insiders.
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One such insider from the world of Disney has come forward to share the below information regarding their costume policy:
“As one of the most tightly controlled brands on the planet, Disney has some very strict protocols aboard their cruises – especially regarding emergency evacuations.
For instance, if a Disney cruise is to be abandoned, any employee who is in costume at the time of the alarm sounding must stay in costume. They are not permitted to remove their heads and ruin the illusion for guests, so therefore have to navigate the deck dressed as a giant Mickey, Minnie, Chip, Dale etc.
Elsewhere on the ship, it’s somebody’s job to head to the costume store and firmly lock it up. This is to ensure that if the ship does go down, the costumes go with it. They don’t want to risk the empty costumes getting loose and floating up to the top – leaving children traumatized by seeing Goofy’s lifeless body bobbing about on the surface.”
Popb*tch
You might consider this approach to be a kindness, given that it could help to keep the illusion of Disney’s world-famous magic alive for younger travellers during a time of crisis as they hop aboard lifeboats alongside their most-loved cartoon companions.
However, you could also take the view that not only is this something of an imposition on their staff — we certainly wouldn’t want to be stranded at sea wearing a Goofy mask — it’s also slightly creepy. If I were a young Disney traveller, I don’t know if I’d want to see Mickey shivering or wailing as we drifted out into the dark open sea…
What do you think about this revelation? Do you think it’s cruel or kind? Or do you think its straight-up nonsense? Let us know,