Disney is still shielding Americans from an episode of 'Bluey'

The Australian-made children's series "Bluey" is so adored by adults and children alike that it has spawned legions of think pieces since its debut in 2018. This time, the anthropomorphic Australian cattle dogs are making headlines regarding the show's distribution in the U.S. by Disney.

The company mysteriously cut an episode called "Dad Baby" from its 2020 season but only in the U.S., where it remains inexplicably unavailable on Disney+ five years later. Because no "official reason has been given for the censorship" by Disney, said Stuart Heritage at The Guardian, many speculate that it was due to "delicate Americans."

'Difficult themes'

Most episodes of the series, which has become a cultural phenomenon, are 7-minute vignettes about dad Bandit and mom Chili engaging in elaborate imaginative play with their daughters, six-year-old Bluey and four-year-old Bingo. The series is "educational without being pedantic, and, often, genuinely hilarious," said Phillip Maciak at Slate. Bandit, in particular, is renowned in dad circles for his ability to "instantly become an eager participant in whatever his kids dream up," said Bryan Walsh at Vox. In "Dad Baby," little Bingo finds an old baby carrier and climbs into it, while Bandit straps it on and tries to explain what it was once used for.

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Bandit immediately suffers "pain in his back and feet, the inability to bend over, and constant hunger," said Kristina Behr at Parents. Meanwhile, Chili "relishes the fact that he is clueless about how to navigate real pregnancy." Bluey then talks Bandit into "delivering" Bingo in a kids' pool with the help of their improbably down-for-anything neighbor Pat, better known throughout the series as "Lucky's Dad."

The episode was finally uploaded to the show's official YouTube channel in May 2024 but remains missing from Disney+, where most families watch it, possibly due to the "depiction of pregnancy and childbirth, which might be deemed too mature for the target audience of preschoolers," said Adele Ankers-Range at IGN. But exactly why American kids, and only American kids, have been deemed too sensitive for this subject matter — when other episodes have also addressed difficult themes like infertility and aging — is up for debate. And it almost certainly has to do with Disney's perception of American adults.

Outside pressure

Disney has been at the center of America's turbulent culture wars for years, including a high-profile feud with Florida's Gov. Ron DeSantis (R). But ultimately, it is not clear if Disney's decision-makers in this case were being "sexist, or prudish or simply unwilling to put themselves in the crosshairs of religious groups," said Lloyd Farley at Collider. "We can only guess," said Oli Welsh at Polygon, but it's hard not to "wonder if the episode's gender-swap premise has something to do with Disney's censoriousness." It's a shame either way, as the episode itself is a "relatable, hilarious depiction of a pregnancy" that is actually "silly and inoffensive," said Sabina Graves at Gizmodo.

Disney has good reason to fear the right's reaction to "Dad Baby." The show's father figure previously came under fire from religious conservatives because he "embodies almost all of the elements of the traditional mother, purged of the essence of elements from the historic father," said Jeremy Pryor at The Blaze. In "The Sign," a 28-minute-long episode that aired in 2024, there is a fleeting reference to one of Bluey's friends having two moms. Including lesbian couples in the show's universe represents the "destruction of something that was once wholesome," said The Daily Wire's Megan Basham in a post on X.

It might be best to remember that "Bluey" isn't a "political show at all" but rather a "cartoon about the boring, beautiful moments of regular family life" that need not become the "source of so much ugliness," said Katie Notopoulos at The Atlantic. Unfortunately, that may be a pretty tall order in the U.S. these days.