Disney’s Longest Gap Between A Movie And Its Sequel

Disney, as mentioned, has overseen several of the largest between-sequel gaps in cinema history. This record applies only to films that have direct sequels, and not remakes and the like; different versions of “Dracula,” for instance, aren’t sequels, but new adaptations of the same 1890 Bram Stoker novel. 

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Case in point: Disney released their animated anthology film “Fantasia” on November 13, 1940, and its sequel, “Fantasia 2000” on December 31, 1999. That’s 59 years and 48 days. 

Disney’s animated version of “Cinderella” was released on March 4, 1950, while the above-mentioned DV sequel — called “Cinderella II: Dreams Come True” — came out on VHS on February 23, 2002. That’s a gap of 51 years and 356 days. 

Likewise, Disney’s animated version of “Peter Pan” hit the big screen on February 5, 1953, while its theatrically released sequel, “Return to Never Land,” came out on February 15, 2002. That’s a gap of 49 years and 10 days. 

The 2001 DTV film “Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp’s Adventure” came out 45 years and 250 days after the release of “Lady and the Tramp” on June 22, 1955. 

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The 2002 DTV film “101 Dalmatians II: Patch’s London Adventure” came out 41 years, 361 days after the release of “One Hundred and One Dalmatians” on January 21, 1961. That one may not qualify, however, as Disney remade “Dalmatians” in live-action in 1996. They kind of interrupted their own groove. 

The longest non-Disney-owned gap between sequels was the 54 years and 333 days that elapsed between the release of “Gone with the Wind” in 1939, and its little-known sequel “Scarlett” in 1994. “Scarlett,” however, was a TV miniseries, so one can debate as to whether or not it counts. If one wants to stick with actual films, then the non-Disney record is held by the MST3K classic “The Killer Shrews” (June 25, 1959) and its sequel, “Return of the Killer Shrews” (October 22, 2013). That’s a gap of 54 years and 119 days.