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CNN
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Disney has cut a transgender storyline from its new animated series “Win or Lose” ahead of the show’s release.

The original animated series from Disney-owned studio Pixar revolves around a co-ed middle school softball team, the Pickles, leading up to the group’s championship game. Each of the eight episodes of the series, which will air on Disney+ starting February 19, will focus on a different member of the Pickles.

While the storyline surrounding gender identity will no longer be included, the character will remain in the series, a person familiar with the matter told CNN, adding that the decision to remove the plot point was made a few months ago . Still, the announcement isn’t as simple as crossing lines from a script, since the character’s dialogue has already been recorded.

“When it comes to animated content for younger audiences, we know that many parents would prefer to discuss certain topics with their children on their own terms and schedule,” Disney said in a statement.

The decision was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

The announcement comes after the re-election of former President Donald Trump, who railed against diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that have become a cause célèbre for the right. In response to online pressure and threats, many companies have recently changed their DEI policies.

Asked whether Disney’s decision to remove the transgender storyline from “Win or Lose” could be interpreted as the company distancing itself from diversity initiatives in anticipation of a second Trump administration, the company declined to comment.

Earlier this year, Disney CEO Bob Iger told CNBC that the entertainment giant was not interested in sending messages in its shows or films.

“The term ‘woke’ is used rather liberally,” Iger said. “I think a lot of people don’t even really understand what it means. The bottom line is that our goal is not to embed messages as some kind of top priority in our films and television shows. They have to be entertaining.”

Disney’s inclusion of diverse cast members and storylines has been met with controversy in the past.

The 2022 “Toy Story” prequel “Lightyear” featured a same-sex relationship and a same-sex kiss in a PG-rated film marketed to younger audiences. But the kiss almost didn’t make it to the big screen after Disney executives cut the scene, causing uproar among Pixar employees. Ultimately, the same-sex kiss was reintroduced, but the film was met with backlash from conservatives and was banned in more than a dozen countries in the Middle East and Asia.

The Magic Kingdom has also incorporated LGBTQ representation into its adult-oriented feature films, including FX’s “Pose,” Marvel’s “Agatha All Along” and Searchlight Pictures’ “All of Us Strangers.”

After Florida passed a “Don’t Say Gay” law in 2022, then-Disney CEO Bob Chapek’s belated stance against the law sparked a wave of backlash from right-wing media figures, who cast the company as a “woke” organization depicted them attempting to “groom” children with what they believed to be a radical LGBTQ agenda.

Since his return to the top spot, Iger has made it clear that the creators have “lost sight” of what their ultimate goal should be. Speaking at the DealBook Summit last year, the Disney boss said that the company’s mission is to entertain audiences, not to advocate for rights.

“I like being able to do that, entertain, and if you can fill it with positive messages and have a good impact on the world, that’s fantastic, but that shouldn’t be the goal,” Iger said. “When I came back, I really tried to go back to our roots – which is, remember, we have to entertain first: it’s not about messages.”