Frozen Director Jennifer Lee Wanted Olaf Dead
When Jennifer Lee took over directing Disney’s Frozen, the franchise’s mascot and the bouncy tune “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” almost never came to be. Lee received the Distinguished Storyteller Award from the Los Angeles Press Club on Sunday night at the 15th annual Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards. Josh Gad, the voice of Olaf in the Frozen series, personally presented it to her. Lee said, “Josh is Olaf.” She also shared, “My first note was, ‘kill the snowman.’” Lee wanted to cut the character from the first movie entirely until a staff animator showed her a treatment based on Gad’s late-night TV appearance, winning her over.
When I saw this headline, I initially assumed it had to do with Olaf’s fake-out death in Frozen II. Fake-out deaths are usually a mistake, and I think they definitely made the wrong choice there; the movie is about the inevitability of change. Anna’s character arc revolves around accepting change and growing more independent. Yet, in reviving Olaf, and Elsa protecting the castle during the storm at the end, Frozen II rejects any real, meaningful change. It’s a surprisingly interesting movie in the wake of the over-rated original, but it could have been something truly great if it challenged Anna with genuine loss. As for Lee’s initial disdain for Olaf, it’s easy to imagine. I think the character only works as well as he does because of Gad’s nuanced delivery. Even still, Disney has just about run him into the ground. I have a feeling Lee and I have different problems with Olaf, though. I would like him more if he wasn’t so self-aware, like his recitation of Frozen’s major plot events in the sequel.
What do you think? Should Olaf have been cut from Frozen entirely? Talk to us in the comments!
