Divided

Divided would be a 2029 animated psychological comedy adventure film directed by Jennifer Lee and co-direcred by Meg LeFauve from a screenplay by Lee, Victoria Strouse, and LeFauve, and a story by Lee, while Osnat Shurer would produce the film, with Byron Howard, Lee, and LeFauve serving as executive producers. Produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distribuited by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, the film would star the voices of Tessa Thompson, Oprah Winfrey, Alice Eve, Gary Oldman, Shahadi Wright Joseph, and Aisha Tyler. Kris Bowers would compose the film's score. The film would center on a princess with multiple personalities, whom she must learn to work with in order to save her kingdom.

Development on the film would begin in early 2026, with Lee set to write and direct the film. Thompson and Strouse would join the film as its leads and co-writer, respectively, in early 2027, while Eve and Winfrey would join the cast in mid-2027. The film's animators would use several animation systems from previous Disney movies in order to potray uniquely each of the main character's personalities. The studio would form a "Psychiatrist Story Group" in order to potray Dissiociative Identity Disorder more accuretly than several other films, as well as in order to potray it a style that was "lighthearted, but not offensive".

Divided would be released in May 22, 2029, and would become a critical and commercial success, with critics praising the film's unique take on Dissiociative Identity Disorder compared to other films, humor, direction, vocal performances (particularly Thompson, Wright Joseph, Winfrey, and Oldman's), writing, animation, score, songs and visuals, with several critics comparing the film positively to Pixar's Inside Out (2015). Divided would also be positively reviewed by the mental health community for its positive potrayal of Dissiociative Identity Disorder. The film would earn 987 million dollars at the worldwide box office over a budget of 130 million dollars. The film would earn an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature and an Academy Award for Best Original Score.

Synopsis
In a futuristic kingdom, there's a princess named Jessica who was born with a very unique personality: Expressive, super-intelligent, wondering, thrill-seeking, prank-loving, and artistic. However, her mother has taught her that non of those are the qualities of a princess, and eventually choose to listen to her after a childhood trauma, so she has repressed all of those qualities since her childhood, and none of those has ever returned... until her teenage years, where she suddenly wakes up in strange places, like the museum, or having done things she dosen't recall, such as throwing a pie at her mother. One day, when Jessica was knocked unconscious, she discovered the truth: The trauma and the long supressing of her qualities has caused Jessica to develop seven separate personalities: Cynical, Prankster, Genius, Extreme, Pessimist, Wonder, and Artist. While each personality cares for the other, they just can't work together due to their disitinct actitudes and/or actions. However, Jessica must make her alternative selves work together when a threat comes to their kingdom.

Plot
The film opens with a montage of the inhabitants of a futuristic kingdom doing their everyday things. A voice-over narrator notes how, in spite of what it seems, those poeple have "a few other sides that they kept hidden". The narrator claims she says this because she "has first hand knowledge on the matter". The scene then moves to the kingdom's castle, more precisely, to the room of Jessica, the young princess. The narrator then reveals herself as the princess, and reflects how her infancy seemed "so simple", and how she didn't knew "what was coming next". She then proceeds to tell that, when she was very young, she was quite different from the other princesses: She had an interest in science and high-level knowledge, loved pranks and art of all kinds, had an interest in danger and adventures, was very curious, and expressed very openly her feelings. This caused conflicts with her mother, Queen Marhta, who was against her "non-princess-like behavior", but neverthless loved each other. One day when she was young, however, while doing an experiment in secret, she chose to use it for a prank, leading to a chain of events that almost destroyed the castle and nearly killed her and her family, specially since her behavior kept putting her in trouble. Horrfied at the thougth that she almost killed her family, she tearfully says to her mother that she was right, and promises to supress her personality aspects.

As the years go by, Jessica adopted personality traits similar to those of other princesses, and never once behaving like she did in her childhood. By her adolscence, Jessica is a formal princess like any other, and displays shame and disgust for her childhood self, saying that the behavior then was "not the person she was meant to be". Her kingdom is also facing a mysteryus threat. One day, she wakes up early to got to a "Princess Summer Camp" where she wil learn more about being a princess. Jessica then narrates how she "knew that moment her life was going to change, but didn't knew how it would". The day after arriving to the camp, the princesses receive a tour througth the camp, including the "cultural appreciation museum", where they will learn to appreciate cultures from other countries. Once there, Jessica finds a brush, and takes it, wondering who it belongs to. Suddenly she begins to feel disconnected from her body, with everybody seemingly moving faster than her and Jessican not being able to control all the actions of her own body, before closing her eyes.

When Jesica opens her eyes again, she discovers that she's back in her room. She at first assumes that she just fainted and was taken back to recover. However, once she leaves her room, the other princesses suddenly begin to talk about some works of art she seemingly made. Jessica is left confused by this, as she does not recall having done them. The head of the camp then shows up, and berates Jessica for her behavior. Jessica then begins to feel angry, until she suddenly feels disconnected from her once again, and blacks out once more. This time, she wakes up in the kitchen, with a coffee cup in her hand. The other girls then call her, commenting on how "volatile" she seems to be, telling her that "she changed from reserved to cynical in a snap". She begins to worry and panic on why these black outs are happening to her, ironically causing her to have another one. This time, she wakes up in an alley at the camp while eating ice cream. As the days go by, she tries to keep herself calm, but the black outs keep happening.

By the next month, the camp has ended, and Jessica hopes that she may find a solution for the black outs back home, but they keep and keep happening. While initially wanting to just ignore them, she soon reaches her limits when she wakes up after being shot by a cannon. Finally panickng but at the same time trying to keep herself calm, she tries to go to her room and calm herself down once again. However, she suddenly begins hearing voices insider her head, causing her to run inside her room and reclutantly ignore her mother as she was going to confront her for her behavior. In spite of her attempts to keep herself relaxed, the voices keep sounding in her head, causing her to panic and accidentally slip with one of her dog, Fluffy's, toys, to the ground, knocking her out.

As Jessica wakes up, she fears that she may have experienced another black out, only to realize that she's in an unfamiliar place. A mysterious voice then tells Jessica that "her time has come", just as fire appears. The figure then claims that she's in hell... only for another person to tell her to "drop the act", claiming that "is not even funny. She's scared". The figure would then come out, revealing herself to be apparetly a living jack-in-the-box. She apologizes to Jessica for scarring her, noting that she should have thougth that througth. Suddenly, a little girl and a living drawing on a blackboard would appear, wondering why did they "brougth Jessica to her house". The two would briefly argue, while Jessica would try to escape. However, upon leaving, she's shocked to see that she's in a psychodelic version of her kingdom.

The living drawing on a blackboard would then tell her that its not real, so she dosen't worry about her kingdom. Jessica would demand an explication on what is happening, to which the living drawing reveals the truth: She has Dissociative Identity Disorder, the drawing on a blackboard is an intelligent personality of hers named Genius Jessica, the jack-in-a-box is a prank-loving personality named Prankster Jessica, the little girl is a curious personality named Wondr jessica, and that they are in their "inner world", a space where different personalities can interact. Genius Jessica would then take her on a tour througth their inner world, where Jessica meets the other personalities in her system: Artist, a passionate painter and musician with an artistic look; Pessimistic, a depressed pessimist who resembles a living bunch of water; Cynical, a girl with a cynical actitude who resembles a living lava-made creature; and Extreme, an strechae and durable girl with a love for danger and adventures. During the tour, Genius Jessica would explain to Jessica that she developed DID due to her traumatic experience as a child, that her personalities personify an aspect or emotion that she suppresed after the incident, and that the alters' appearances are merely how they seem on their inner world, while their body remains externaly the same.

Voice cast
A princess with seven alternative personalities, all whom must learn to work together in order to protect their kingdom. Director Jennifer Lee said that "her alternative selves here work as an alegory for team work and self-acceptance", and that "while in other films somebody has to overcome his or her other personality, they all have to learn to co-operate here". Eric Goldberg would serve as the director of animation for Jessica's Genius persona, which would manifest in their mind as a drawing on a blackboard, while Bruce W. Smith would serve as the supervising animator for Jessica's Artist persona when she manifests to Jessica as an imaginary graffiti. An incarnation of Jessica's curiousity in the form of a little child. Wright Joseph would voice the character when inside their mind, while Thompson would voice her when she's in control of their body. Wright Joseph would also voice a young Jessica. Wright Joseph would define her relationship with Jessica as "the heart of the story", as well as the Wonder persona being "the heart of the system".
 * Tessa Thompson as Jessica:
 * Shahadi Wright Joseph as Wonder Jessica:
 * Alice Eve as Alexandra, a conqueror who was forced by her father into becoming one.
 * Oprah Winfrey as Martha, the queen of a futuristic kingdom and Jessica's mother, who wants her daughter to supress her unique qualities.
 * Gary Oldman as David, a conqueror who forced his daughter into becoming one, secretly plotting to use her as a means for gaining more kingdoms. Oldman would say that his perfornance "draws inspiration from both Mother Gothel and Professor Ratigan, with a little bit of Sykes in there too".
 * Aisha Tyler as Dr. Mind, a psychiatrist ​​​​​whose holographic projections are secretly acquired by Jessica in order to deal with her split personalities.

Additionally, Chris Sanders would provide the vocal effects for Fluffy, Jessica's pet dog. Producer Osnat Shurer would provide the voice of the head of the Princess Summer Camp. Alan Tudyk would voice Alexandra and David's captain, while John Kassir would voice David's ship's computer system. Corey Burton would voice the captain of the soldiers at Jessica's kingdom. Director Jennifer Lee, Grey DeLisle, Cree Summer, Tress MacNeille, and Jessica DiCcico would voice the girls at the Princess Summer Camp. Jeff Bennet would make a voice cameo as a delivery boy. Tom Kenny would voice one of Alexandra and David's soldiers. Archive vocal recordings of Rossie O'Donell as Terk from Tarzan (1999) would be used for the plush toys used by Wonder Jessica. Lee would compare the use of a plush toys versions of the character to the appearance of the Disney Princesses in Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018).

Development
In January 2026, Walt Disney Animation Studios' chief creative officer Jennifer Lee would reveal that she is writing and directing an animated film at Disney "that takes a concept that Hollywood has used for years, and uses it on a way that audiences never expected, but still leaves them very impressed". In June 2026, it would be announced that the film Lee would working on would be titled Divided. It would also be announced that the film would center on a princess with seven different personalities facing a threat to her kingdom. Lee would state that, while "[she] was aware of how Hollywood loves to use Dissociative Identity Disorder for horror and thriller movies, [she] feels that the concept has potential for a more emotional and sincere story".

In November 1, 2026, it would be reported that Meg LeFauve has joined the film as co-writer and co-director. Producer Osnat Shurer would explain that "LeFauve was one of the writers for Inside Out, and [Lee] felt that her joining the film helps give the film and Inside Out tone to the story, which would really help it to stand from the crowd". In November 20, 2026, Lee would explain that "[she] wants the film to be as far from a horror movie as possible" and that "[she] wants to potray the good side of DID, and how people can live with it in real life. Its fun sides, its tragic parts, how they have to learn to work together, and, ultimately, the fact that that people with DID have somebody they can lean on".

In January 2027, Victoria Strousse would reveal that she joined the film as a co-writer alongside Lee and LeFauve. Strousse would say that "[she] wants the film to have a little bit of Finding Dory 's sensibility towards those with mental incapacities", while Lee would say that "Finding Dory is the exact reason [she] hired Strousse in the first place". Lee would cite Ice Age and Disney's Zootopia as inspirations for the film's "buddy comedy tone", as well as John Burne's Fantastic Four run for the dynamic between Jessica's personalities.

In order to "avoid the mistakes of past movies", Disney would hire several psyschiatrists and therapists to form a "Pyschiatric Story Group", similar to Moana's "Oceanic Story Group". The filmmakers would consult with the group on Divided 's potrayal and sensivity towards DID, with Lee pitching them scenes and concepts, to which the group would provide her with feedback and notes. They would also be consuted for the film's humor, which Lee would explain would be because "[she] dosen't want to paint DID as something to be laughed at. [She wants] the film to be lighthearted, but not offensive. This is a serious mental illness, it comes from perinful experiences, but [she] also want[s] the film to have the scenes that can make the audience laugh. So the Psychiatric Story Group was very involved with how to approach that humor". Additionally, Disney would hire therapist Paula McHugh, psychiatrist Garrett Marie Deckel, and psychologist and psychoanalyst Sheldon Itzkowitz to serve as co-producers on the film.

Casting and recording
In December 2026, it would be reported that Tessa Thompson would be in talks to voice Jessica, a princess with seven alternative personalities, in the film as its leads. Thompson would be confirmed to have joined the project the following month, with Shahadi Wright Joseph being set to voice her youngest personality. In July 2027, it would be reported that Alice Eve and Oprah Winfrey have joined the film's voice cast as an aspiring conqueror named Alexandra and Jessica's mother, Martha, respectively. In December 2027, it would be reported that Gary Oldman had joined the cast as the film's main antagonist.

Aside from Thompson and Wright Joseph, none of the voice cast would record their lines together. According to director Jennifer Lee, Symoné and Wright Joseph would record their lines together because "their characters' relationship is so important, that they have to record their lines together in order to get their dynamic right". Thompson would ocassionally record separately her lines for each personality for scenes in which they all talk at the same time. Thompson would add-lib several of her lines during recording.

Animation
Two different animation teams would be made for Divided: one that works on scenes set on the real world and one working on scenes at Jessica's inner world. Director Jennifer Lee would explain that the different teams would be made in order to catch the "different feels" of each scenario. Lee would describe the work of comic book artist and Disney Legend Jack Kirby as "a big influence" on the design of Jessica's inner world.

Different character models would be made for each of Jessica's personas when they are in their inner world, with producer Osnat Shurer explaining that Disney "wanted to take advantage of the media of animation and make sure the personas really incarnate visually the aspect of Jessica that they are meant to represent" while in their mind. Animation supervisor Jennifer Hagen would describe both Te-Ka from Moana (2016) and Hades from Hercules (1997) as "big influences" on Jessica's Cynical persona's design. The animators would create a new animation software named Group in order for the different animation styles to be used for a same scene.

Jessica's Genius persona would be designed as a hand-drawn animated drawing on a blackboard, which Hagen would explain would be done in order to "further give the character this all-knowing feeling and be funny at the same time". Eric Goldberg, who is known for serving as the supervising animator for the Genie in Aladdin (1992), would serve as Jessica's Genius persona's supervising animator. Goldberg would describe his experience in the film as "no different" from Moana, in which he had to similarly serve as the supervising animator for that film's sole hand-drawn character, Mini Maui. Goldberg would also be inspired by the "The Backson Song" scene, from Winnie the Pooh (2011), for the animation of Genius Jessica.

Artist Jessica would be animated using the Meaner system utilized in the shorts Paperman (2012), Feast (2014), and Inner Workings (2016). Lee would feel that, since Artist Jessica "is a representation of Jessica's love for all the forms of art, including painting", it would e natural for her to "look like she came straight out of a painting", througth she would choose to use the Meaner system instead of hand-drawn animation in order to evoke that feeling while at the same time "standing apart from the Genius persona".

A new animation software, named Transition, would be created in order to animate scenes in which Jessica changes from one persona to another. Lee would explain that, based on declarations from the Psychiatric Story Group that a person's body has slight changes according to which persona is in control, the animators would create the Transition software in order for Jessica's body to "change slightly, but at the same time noticeably" when another of her personas takes control.

The design of Jessica's kingdom would be inspired by Tokyo, Japan, as the filmmakers would want a "100% futuristic style" for the kingdom. Star Wars and Star Trek would also serve as inspirations for the design of Jessica's kingdom. The animators would also use the animation for the "Short Circuit" short Downtown (2020) for the background in order to further convey a futuristic feeling. The animators would aim for a more photorealistic look in order to "give it a different feel than Jessica's inner world". The filmmakers would consult with inventors and mechanics in order to "create machines that felt they could exist in a few years".

Music
Kris Bowers would compose the film's score. Bowers would create a score that "didn't focused a lot on the psychological concept, but more on the heart and fun in the story. And with little psychological stuff because it still plays a role in the movie", and that "it would have a very philosophical and tragic feel to it". Bowers would describe Jessica and her alters' theme as "super dynamic", as he has to change it in order to represent each personality "yet still keeping a same vibe in order to make clear that they are part of the same being". Bowers would compose a "sad and repressed" theme for Alexandra, an "strict" theme for Martha, and a "dangerous and power-hungry-feeling theme" for David".

Bowers would also produce and curate a soundtrack featuring songs for the film, which would be performefd by several artists including Tiw Savage, Mr Eazi, Beyoncé, Andy Grammer, Nial Horan, and X Ambassadors. Bowers would compare the film's soundtrack to the soundtrack for Sony Pictures Animation's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018), in the sense that "it has songs that work perfectly well as pure pop songs to listen in the radio, but at the same time fit perfectly with the film's story". Bowers and Randy Newman would also co-write an end-credits song for the film, which would be perforned by Yuna.

Disney would also produce and release Divided Music, a curated soundtrack featuring covers of 9 pop culture songs performed by artists such as Kesha and SZA. According to Bowers, the soundtrack would be created due to "a desire of Disney to find ways to promote the film througth its concept. And when the studio found pop culture songs that matched the main characters here, they choose to create a soundtrack with songs like those being featured".

Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film would have an approval rating of 89%, with an average rating of 8/10, based on 227 reviews. The website's critical consensus would read, "Thanks to a light-hearted tone and a great story about self-acceptance and teamwork, Disney's Divided manages to tackle the theme of split personalities in a stye that distinguish itself from other movies thanks to its wonderful voice acting, awesome visuals, charm, and timeless appeal". On Metacritic, the film would have a weighted rating of 79 ot of 100, based on 44 reviews, indicating "generally positive reviews".

Animated series
An animated television series set after the events of the film, also titled Divided, would be produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, and created by director Jennifer Lee and Bruce W. Smith. Thompson, Wright Joseph, Winfrey, and Eve would reprise their roles from the film, while Kris Bowers would return to compose the score. The series would center on the individual lives of Jessica and her other personalities, and how those lives affect the other personalities and their relationships. According to Lee, the series would be created because she would feel that, while the film explored well the friendship between Mary's personas, it mostly told "Jessica's story", while a TV show would allow the other personalities to be further explored, and to tell stories from each persona's point of view.

Shorts
A series of shorts, titled Divided Mind, would be released in late 2032 on Disney+. Set between the animated series' first and second seasons, the shorts would show the mishaps of Mary's personas while inside their inner world. Jennifer Lee would return as writer and director, while Thompson and Wright Joseph would reprise their roles as Jessica's personas, and Kris Bowers would return to compose the score.

A second short series, titled Genius Jessica's Guide Througth DID, would be released througth 2033 alongside several Disney-distribuited films. The short series would consist of public service announcements in which Genius Jessica explains to the audience about real-life Dissociative Identity Disorder.

Sequel
In January 2034, it would be reported that a sequel to Divided is in development, with Lee set to return as director and co-writer alongside Victoria Strousse and Meg LeFauve, and Osnat Shurer returning as producer, while Simoné, Winfrey, and Joseph would be set to reprise their roles. The plot would reportedly focus on "Jessica and her personalities going throught a kingdom-wide mystery following the emergence of a new personality".

Trivia

 * This would be Disney's first animated film to star a character with split personalities.
 * This would also mark the first time a Disney Princess wears glasses, with Jessics mostly using contact glasses, except for when her Genius persona takes control, to which she takes off her contact glasses and instead uses regular glasses (which she would claim she would do because "hitting [herself] softly with them helps [her] think").
 * This would be the first Disney full-length film to feature the animation style used in Paperman (2012), Feast (2014), and Inner Workings (2016).
 * This would be Jennifer Lee's first non-musical film.
 * The film would mark Chris Sanders' first time acting in an animated Disney movie since the television film Leroy and Stitch (2006).
 * This would be the second Walt Disney Animation Studios film in which Randy Newman worked in, after The Princess and the Frog (2009).

Easter eggs

 * Througth the kingdom, several attractions from Disney's Tomorrowland, such as the Astro Orbitor, Autopia, and the Disneyland Monorail, would be seen.
 * When first greeting Jessica in their inner world, Artist Jessica tells her "Hey! there, Hi! there, Ho! there. You're as welcome as can be", which are lyrics of the theme song of the Mickey Mouse Club TV series.
 * The outfit of Jessica's Prankster persona inside Jessica's mind would be very similar to Clopin's outfit in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), during the "Topsy Turvy" sequence, while her crown would resemble Quasimodo's "King of Fools" crown from the same film.
 * Additionally, the hat that Jessica's Extreme persona would wear would strongly resemble the one used by Clopin througth The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
 * While proving herself to be a manfestation of Jessica's represed intelligence by talking about crabs, her Genius persona would make a drawing of Sebastian from The Little Mermaid (1989).
 * At one point in the film, a young Jessica would be seen reading a book about human biology, with the book's cover beng the poster for the Disney short Inner Workings (2016).
 * During the same scene, books with the names Basil of Baker Street and John Henry would be see at the floor. Basil of Baker Street was the inspiration for Disney's The Great Mouse Detective, while the real-life story of John Henry was adapted by Disney as a short in 2000.
 * At one point on the film, Jessica's Artist persona would play "Mother's Intuition" from Disneytoon Studios' Piglet's Big Movie (2003), in an imaginary piano, in order to cheer up the Wonder persona.
 * Among the objects in Jessica's bedroom would be Minnie Mouse clock, a Winnie the Pooh plush toy, and the Calamity Box from Amphibia (2019-present).
 * The time machines from Meet the Robinsons (2006) would be briefly seen in the background a one point.
 * After one of her black-outs, Jessica would find out that "she" (or rather, her Artist persona) created a statue, which would strongly resemble the statue Giselle made about her dream prince in Enchanted (2007).
 * Near the start of the film, Fluffy would be seen chewing a "Mr. Carrot" toy from Bolt (2008).
 * During a raid on one of David and Alexandra's bases, Prankster Jesdica would tie a soldier to an ejection seat, which would instantly be launched to the sky, to which the "Goofy Holler" would be heard.
 * When Jessica starts to panic about her blackouts, B.E.N from Treasure Planet (2002) would appear briefly in the background.
 * When Jessica enters to her mind in order to supress her other personas, the Artist persona would be seen puttinng in her wall an imaginary potrait of Jim Hawkins and John Silver from Treasure Planet (2002), while it would be shown that she made imaginary potraits of several Disney characters such as Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Tod and Copper from The Fox and the Hound (1981), Miss Bianca from The Rescuers (1977) and The Rescuers Down Under (1990), the Yo-Yo Flaming from Fantasia 2000, and Robin Hood and Little John from Robin Hood (1973).
 * Additionally, the Artist persona would be singing the song "I'm Still Here" from Treasure Planet.
 * While leaving the castle in a space ship during the climax, Extreme Jessica would tell her mother and Alexandra "Now hold on ladies, 'cause this Ms. Toad will have a heck of a wild ride". This would be a reference to the character of Mr. Toad from The Adventures of Icahbod and Mr. Toad (1949), as well as the Disney lad and Magic Kingdom attraction Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.
 * A "Hidden Mickey" would be seen in Jessica's door at pne point in the film.