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Credit: DisneyIn a surprising twist of events Saturday night, during a performance of Fantasmic! at Disneyland, the Maleficent dragon caught on fire, ending the show abruptly. Although Disney Cast Members and firefighters were quick to act, the dragon was unsalvageable and pyrotechnic effects have been temporarily suspended across the Disney Parks.
Footage from every angle and moment of the fire rapidly went viral on Twitter and TikTok, causing some upset in the Disney community. The dragon had gained the nickname Murphy or Murphy 2.0 by Cast Members and fans over the years in regards to Murphy’s Law which states that anything that can go wrong will go wrong.
The dragon quickly became the face of several memes and tribute posts on social media. Twitter user @DrewDisneyDude posted a photo of a Maleficent plushie with battery-operated tea light candles and flowers on a lamp post facing Tom Sawyer’s Island saying, “shoutout to whoever set up the memorial for Murphy at Disneyland.”
shoutout to whoever set up the memorial for Murphy at Disneyland 💔
📸: tatianasaykali on Instagram pic.twitter.com/WTzbbz5sBu
— Drew (@DrewDisneyDude) April 24, 2023
While many comments and quote Tweets found it funny or shared heartbroken and crying emojis, others didn’t find it quite so funny. One quote Tweet shared a gif from an episode of The Kardashians that says “Kim, there’s people that are dying” implying that it isn’t that serious. Others, like @krismeetsworld, were more deeply offended, saying, “okay I have to say something y’all know actual customers and cast members have died at Disney, right? (I mean, this is a cute tribute, but gosh golly I think we could use some perspective).”
They continue on to say that they are upset by the loss but remind readers that Murphy is an insured prop belonging to one of the biggest entertainment companies in the world. Others argued that people can be upset when actual people are hurt or worse but they can also be upset by the loss of an inanimate object. A comment by @goldenbergys says, “i agree at the point that tragic losses aren’t talked about as much as they should be but i kind of took the fantasmic “tribute” as a joke/lighthearted thing. seems to me more like just something silly to poke at an unfortunate incident where no one was hurt than a legit memorial.”
Fantasmic! was a special and sentimental show to thousands of Guests and Cast Members, former and current. Although Murphy is just an “insured prop” and inanimate object, it’s okay for people to mourn something that holds sentimental value to them. At the same time, it’s important to bring awareness and attention to people affected by tragedy when serious issues occur.
What do you think of the Murphy tribute? Tone deaf and over the top? Or cute and not that deep? Share your thoughts with Inside the Magic in the comments below!