Disney is abandoning another of its popular franchise revivals, which would have involved reviving a 2000s film icon on Disney+. Disney's streaming service has provided the studio with an opportunity to revitalize several of its dormant franchises, which have seen success in some cases, such as High School Musical: The Musical: The Series and The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder. Although for as many of these reboots that get across the line, there is an equal amount that seem to get cut.
The latest Disney reboot to receive the axe during development is the Holes TV show, which would have re-adapted Louis Sachar's young adult novel for the screen, over 20 years after Disney first turned it into a film in 2003 with Shia LaBeouf and Sigourney Weaver. Disney went ahead and ordered a pilot for the new Holes TV show in January 2025, which was directed by WandaVision's Jac Schaeffer and featured actors Greg Kinnear, Aidy Bryant, and Shay Rudolph, with Liz Pheng set to serve as showrunner.
However, as of December 2025, Variety reports that the Holes TV show is no longer moving ahead at Disney. The series would have been an alternate take on Sachar's original concept, which followed a group of boys at a correctional boot camp who were forced to dig holes in the desert; this time, it would have followed a female lead character sent to the boot camp.
Holes is just the latest of Disney's potential reboots to hit the chopping block, as several exciting revivals of projects failed to make it to the screen since the streamer's launch.
Disney+ Reboots & Revivals That Were Shelved
Tiana
Disney was once intending to create a spin-off series of its animated hit The Princess and the Frog. Titled Tiana, the series (which was announced almost four years prior in December 2020), would have featured Anika Noni Rose reprising her role from 2009's Princess and the Frog, and told more of the princess's story.
Sadly, in March 2025, it was confirmed that Disney had canceled its Tiana project, with the reason being a combination of a shift in strategy by Disney and difficulty in bringing the series to the necessary level of quality to justify production costs.
At the time, Rose said she was "deeply disappointed" about Tiana's cancellation.
Okoye Series
As Marvel Studios sought additional avenues to bring content to Disney+, it was reported that Danai Gurira was being eyed to lead a series featuring her Black Panther character, Okoye, which would have focused on Wakanda's elite warriors, the Dora Milaje.
Then, in February 2025, Marvel TV executive Brad Winderbaum provided an update (via TV Line), saying he didn't think Okoye would be leading a television show anymore, effectively confirming the series had been shelved.
Nova
Fans have long been wanting to see the intergalactic Marvel hero Nova be incorporated into the MCU. For a while, it seemed Marvel may use Disney+ to introduce the hero, in a similar wave of introductions as it did with Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel, and She-Hulk, but in 2025 it seems plans for a Disney+ show about Nova have been shelved. However, a Nova film project doesn't seem to be off the table.
Terror Inc.
Another Marvel Studios series that never made it off the page was Terror Inc. The superhero project would have introduced audiences to the antihero named Terror, an entity that absorbs powers through the dismembered limbs of others. Very little was known about Terror Inc., but reports indicate it was shelved alongside several other Marvel Disney+ shows.
Strange Academy
Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange and his realm of magic has become an important pillar of the MCU, the point that a Strange Academy series, focusing on Strange's school for training young magicians, was once in development at Marvel.
Despite the series being put on hold the groundwork for this concept has been laid in the MCU, and some reports indicate work on Strange Academy is still happening behind closed doors.
Lizzie McGuire
Another staple of the 2000s, like Disney's Holes, was Lizzie McGuire, the teen comedy series starring Hilary Duff. After lying dormant for over 15 years, the time to bring back Lizzie McGuire in a more mature sequel series seemed right, particularly as Disney+ mined its old popular franchises.
Progress was made on the new Lizzie McGuire sequel, which would have focused on the character navigating her 30s, and filming even started in New York in late 2019. But after showrunner Terri Minsky departed the revival in early January 2020, the series entered development hell and was eventually canceled.
Rangers of the New Republic
One Disney franchise that found major success on Disney+ was Star Wars, which helped launch the new streamer with the release of The Mandalorian. The franchise's first live-action TV series was a hit, birthing three seasons of sci-fi action and an upcoming movie in The Mandalorian & Grogu.
Disney then looked at further ways to capitalize on The Mandalorian's success, eventually developing a spin-off series titled The Rangers of the New Republic, which would have featured Gina Carano's Cara Dune as a lead. After the studio parted ways with Carano, Rangers of the New Republic was taken out of active development.
Tron TV Series
Tron: Ares recently drove its way into cinemas in 2025 (and signalled the death of the Tron franchise), but long before its release, Disney had considered reviving the classic sci-fi series in the form of a TV show.
While nothing was ever officially announced, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that Disney had scrapped several unannounced projects during the Disney+ era, including a planned Tron series to which John Ridley was attached.
Race to Witch Mountain
Another classic franchise that was eyeing a return on Disney+ was Race to Witch Mountain. The sci-fi film series followed extraterrestrial children as they sought a way off Earth and back to their home planets. Disney released four Witch Mountain films between 1975 and 1995, followed by a modern reboot in 2009 starring Dwayne Johnson.
A planned TV reboot of the series was in development for Disney+, but star Bryce Dallas Howard confirmed in 2024 that the Witch Mountain series was no longer moving forward.
Muppets Live Another Day
Josh Gad and writers Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis were attached to Muppets Live Another Day, a show featuring the famous puppets set after the events of The Muppets Take Manhattan. The Hollywood Reporter then confirmed in 2019 that the Muppets series had been scrapped due to creative differences and executive changes.
Book of Enchantment
A TV series about Disney's classic villains was once in the works at Disney+. Titled Book of Enchantment, the series would have drawn upon the Villains book series by Serena Valentino, which featured classic antagonists like Maleficent, the Beast, Ursula, and Captain Hook.
In August 2019, Deadline reported that the series had been scrapped during development, citing a dispute over the show's tone and direction.
