We have not all been to go to one of the many Disney parks around the world, but we've all probably seen at least one of the viral videos featuring memorable Disney characters.
The funny thing is that the characters aren't being memorialized for their role in a beloved Disney film, but for their recent performances at Disney.
One current favorite is Elastigirl from The Incredibles and The Incredibles 2, specifically for her fantastic spin on an incredi-mobile during an Incredibles parade at Disney World.
Fans found that spin to be, well, incredible.
@janelleisanan/TikTok
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@janelleisanan/TikTok
Another big favorite was Mickey Mouse and Goofy's friend Clarabelle eating up the spotlight.
Fans' jaws dropped over that slow spin and not just because Clarabelle is a gorgeous, tall cow!
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With fans still reeling, former Disney employee Adrianna (@alimbriano) shared a potential commonality behind the fun performances.
In her own video, Adrianna shared a clip of the trending Elastigirl performance, followed by her own guess at what was going on behind the scenes—namely, who was portraying these characters.
In her experience at one of Disney World's parks, it was common for characters to be cast based on the employees' height rather than gender, so it was common for the taller characters, like Elastigirl and Clarabelle, to be portrayed by men from the LGBTQ+ community.
The former Disney employee also argued that this was why these particular characters were so popular.
Adrianna suggests:
"Nine times out of ten, the person inside that costume is a tall, gay man."
"I think that’s why they’re able to capture the essence of the characters so well [and serve]so well, because that’s what gay men were born to do."
Some TikTokers who were also former Disney employees were able to confirm this theory.
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Others felt validated for their assumptions about the character performances.
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A few TikTokers who hadn't thought of this possibility before thought it made perfect sense.
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@alimbriano/TikTok
Whether or not Adrianna is right about the current actors portraying Elastigirl and Clarabelle, the most important thing is that the character employees are having a good time, the guests attending the parks are having a good time, and the magic of Disney, childhood, and nostalgia are being preserved.
And I think we can all agree that these recent viral performances are perfectly magical.
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