‘Willow’ Star Calls Show’s Removal From Disney+ “Embarrassing”

In 1988, LucasFilm — known for Star Wars and Indiana Jones — created an entirely new world of fantasy with the release of Willow. The movie starred Warwick Davis as Willow Ufgood, a dwarf who must protect a baby who will help defeat the evil queen ruling the kingdom of Nockmaar. The movie also starred Val Kilmer as Madmartigan, Joanne Whalley as Sorsha, and Jean Marsh as Queen Bavmorda.

Over the more than three decades since the movie came out, Willow has remained a cult classic. So, in 2022, Disney released a brand-new Willow series, which aired exclusively on Disney+. The series saw Warwick Davis return as Willow Ufgood. Sadly, Val Kilmer was too sick and could not return to film as Madmartigan. However, the show’s creator said that his character would be there in spirit.

The new Willow series also starred Ruby Cruz as Kit Tanthalos, Erin Kellyman as Jade Claymore, Dempsey Bryk as Airk Tanthalos, Amar Chadha-Patel as Thraxus Boorman, Tony Revolori as Graydon Hastur, and Ellie Bamber as Elora Danan. The show took place 20 years after the defeat of Queen Bavmorda. Willow, who is also a sorcerer, must take a group of misfits on a perilous journey into the unknown. 

Related: Disney’s $100 Million Disney+ Series Lasted a Total of 6 Months

Unfortunately, Disney did not appear to find the success with the Willow series that it was hoping to see. Willow premiered on Disney+ in November 2022 and a second season was written, but Disney announced the show was canceled in March 2023. Fans were shocked at the removal, considering it performed pretty well, receiving a 65% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes and an 84% critics score.

As an extra punch to the gut, Disney did not just cancel the show, they removed it from Disney+ entirely. That means that fans can’t even jump onto the streaming service and watch the first season.

That move did not sit right with Davis, who called out Disney for what they did. He said that fans were reaching out to him about where to watch. He even called Disney “embarrassing.”

I meet lovely people on a daily basis who are fans of #Willow, who are the reason the @DisneyPlusSeries was made. Please tell me @WaltDisneyCo, what do I say to these subscribers when they ask why they can’t watch the series any more? #embarrassing

I meet lovely people on a daily basis who are fans of #Willow, who are the reason the @DisneyPlus Series was made. Please tell me @WaltDisneyCo, what do I say to these subscribers when they ask why they can’t watch the series any more? #embarrassing pic.twitter.com/tUu9gstkbS

— Warwick Davis (@WarwickADavis) October 14, 2023

Back in August, Disney CEO Bob Iger said that the company would be making some major changes to Disney+. It has only been operational for four years but has already lost Disney $11 BILLION. Iger said that the company would be taking a harder look at the content it produced and cutting back. He also cut the budgets of many of the shows that did not get canceled.

Related: Popular Disney+ Series Canceled Amid Content Purge

Iger also said that Disney would be removing some titles from the streaming platform altogether. He said that some titles were costing more to keep on Disney+ than they were bringing in revenue-wise. Although he did not specifically name Willow, many are assuming it fell into that category since it was removed from Disney+.

More than 50 titles were removed from Disney+ during the content purge. This includes The Mysterious Benedict Society, The One and Only Ivan, Big Shot, Cheaper by the Dozen, and The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers.