will hugging characters return ?

[goofy4prez]

I suspect it will be at least another year or more before that happens

If or when it returns I wouldn't doubt it would be like everything else lately with WDW... There will be an additional charge to hug a character or get an autograph.

 

[Jennasis]

I am all about making character meets a "no-touch" situation from now on. Safer for all involved on all levels. No more princesses being groped by creeps, or kids pulling on Pluto's tale etc.

 

[OhBother1984]

I am all about making character meets a "no-touch" situation from now on. Safer for all involved on all levels. No more princesses being groped by creeps, or kids pulling on Pluto's tale etc.

You must not have kids that are desperately waiting to hug their favorite character or give a high five. Those memories are priceless.

 

[goofy4prez]

I am all about making character meets a "no-touch" situation from now on. Safer for all involved on all levels. No more princesses being groped by creeps, or kids pulling on Pluto's tale etc.

How about non princess characters being groped such as Gaston? There are ladies who can be creeps as well. But with that said, I'm willing to bet the groping of any character is a very rare occurrance.

https://www.the-sun.com/lifestyle/3...n-disneyland-inappropriately-touching-gaston/

 

[bsmcneil]

I am all about making character meets a "no-touch" situation from now on. Safer for all involved on all levels. No more princesses being groped by creeps, or kids pulling on Pluto's tale etc.

Man. A long time ago (2004), I was in Orlando for an alternative spring break-type project and took a day (EDITED TO CLARIFY - ADDED a day at the end) to go to the MK, as did some of the folks from the project. I didn't really know them - but I was getting to, especially by the end - so I was okay with hanging around together at the park (especially as I was solo). Up until one of the people (I should name - this was a 35+ y/o adult whereas I had just turned 21 and most of the people in the project were 18-21), ran up behind Eeyore and, like, bearPooh-hugged them. And their handler and security were (rightfully) super upset - but this person seemingly (and I got to know her very well after that project and we still keep in touch) - I think legitimately they didn't foresee that you couldn't do that. And I was mortified. MORTIFIED.

Honestly, since that day (and maybe even before), I'm okay with:

 

[DodgerGirl]

What I think Disney Parks will do when normal meet and greets return is they will probably start charging for autographs and the autographs will be priced at $20 to $30 because as you know some celebrities sometimes charge money for autographs when they do meet and greets. Take for example my Walmart used to have meet and greets with NFL stars and while you could talk to them for free if you wanted an autograph from the NFL player they would charge $50 for the autograph and Walmart had to stop these NFL meet and greets because of this. But if a family was to take their kids to meet characters at Disney Parks I can imagine a family conversation like this:
Child: Mom can I meet Mickey Mouse and get his autograph?
Mother: No Charlie autographs are expensive right now
Father: Oh my gosh now we have to pay for autographs and meet the characters now? We are out of here
If this happens Disney Parks will get complaints from people who dream of doing this with the characters. And most likely have a sign with a Mickey Mouse picture with one of those circles with a slash on it that says "PLEASE DO NOT LET CHILDREN TOUCH CHARACTERS and another sign that reads FOR SAFETY REASONS DON'T GRAB CHARACTERS BY TAIL OR MASK and it would be better if they had those signs in the parks

 

[Jennasis]

You must not have kids that are desperately waiting to hug their favorite character or give a high five. Those memories are priceless.

Nope. But one of my fondest memories is getting hugged by Chewie while I wept like a baby when I first met him...at 40 years old. I also have nieces and nephews who are gaga for Disney characters. Still, no touching is a good idea.

 

[OhBother1984]

Nope. But one of my fondest memories is getting hugged by Chewie while I wept like a baby when I first met him...at 40 years old. I also have nieces and nephews who are gaga for Disney characters. Still, no touching is a good idea.

Well no touching isn't a good idea for many and not what people want. If grouping and abusive touch was such a huge issue it would have been stopped long ago or modified. People still have choice to work in those roles or not.

 

[bsmcneil]

Well no touching isn't a good idea for many and not what people want. If grouping and abusive touch was such a huge issue it would have been stopped long ago or modified. People still have choice to work in those roles or not.

But ... it has been modified, right? That's part of this thread - things continue to change and evolve. And for now, the policy (whether solely from covid from a health perspective, or including additional considerations like a cost/benefit perspective or regarding appropriate touching) is no touching.

Like with a number of things (FP+/G+ being the most obvious example), I think this period gave Disney Parks an opportunity to recalibrate things it was already tweaking. I'm not saying that one won't ever be able to hug/touch characters again (things are cyclical and/or dialectic) but I'd place my bets on this new version of character interaction for a while. Personally, while many people on the boards may enjoy it and maybe many guests who don't participate on the boards (IDK, not having seen any of their data), I could easily imagine that right now, there's a social philosophy that hesitates against touching strangers. I recognize that the past 2 years makes it so that some people were immediately glad to "go back to normal" at any point and their first inclination (or maybe second or third) was to start hugging people or gathering in homes, etc. And for many people, this has either reaffirmed their personal hesitation to do such things or created one and/or allowed more of a social acceptance of keeping some distance.

Regardless of covid, I don't know that my kids (on our upcoming, basically first trip) would be at all interested in hugging the characters (they may surprise me - but whereas I was all about characters when I first went, and even as an adult) - they really, really don't care and don't seem to get into the fantasy of it all (I honestly don't get it - but they're so dryly like, "It's just a person in a costume" - darn cynical 9 and 5 year olds!). We were already a family that really emphasized no forced intimacy (you don't have to hug family just because it's a reunion/they've asked, consent is crucial, etc) - and covid really tied a bow on that (even as we were aware of things like colds/flu, there was a lot more social pressure to just deal with it). And because of my line of work, etc, I totally get that physical touch (especially hugging) is really crucial to a lot of folks in the US, especially and WDW/characters were a place where that was accepted - so, I get it's a huge loss for some people.

At the same time, I don't buy the argument "you have a choice to do the job or not" (because that's a surreal slippery slope - and the job, as it's been framed for now, isn't about touching/hugging people even if that's some people's previous experience). It really stinks to not be able to ride in the front cabin of the monorail and get the jr. monorail card (that's an experience I remember from being a kid that I couldn't WAIT to share with my kids) - and I get why things change and accept that they have. As Illuminations would remind us, "We go on ..."

http://disneyatwork.com/2019/09/illuminations-reflections-of-earth/

 

[charmed59]

People still have choice to work in those roles or not.

That may will be the issue. They may be having trouble staffing.

 

[sbbr]

Nope. But one of my fondest memories is getting hugged by Chewie while I wept like a baby when I first met him...at 40 years old. I also have nieces and nephews who are gaga for Disney characters. Still, no touching is a good idea.

When we first started planning our upcoming trip my H and I were discussing the lack of M&Gs, and I was saying that I didn't really have any desire as an adult to get a hug from a character. I like seeing them, but no need to get close or touch. And then I thought about Chewie and how amazing a Chewie hug would feel... Alas it is not to be right now.

Personally I'm kind of glad most of the M&Gs aren't an option right now, because I'd rather not wait in line with my small children for it. I can see them absolutely begging to meet Ariel or Elsa and then melting down halfway through the line, being miserable when we actually got there, and it being a hated experience for all.

 

[mom2rtk]

That may will be the issue. They may be having trouble staffing.

I doubt it.

 

[CampbellzSoup]

I want to hug the characters I’m sorry if your a weirdo but so am I and I like a personal interaction. My son still hasn’t met Mickey

 

[TiggerBouncy]

I wouldn’t be that surprised if close contact with face characters never comes back. The staffing required to have enough back up for “friends” getting colds or the flu, not to mention Covid, is pretty significant.

I am confused by this argument. They managed to do it for 49 years at WDW and even longer at DL. Despite common belief, the cold and the flu and many other contact illness were not invented in the past 2 years. They have been around since before there were people. True COVID is a serious threat right now, but that day will pass. Once it has, I hardly see contact illness as a valid excuse... If they managed to allow hugging for 49 years, why can they not figure it out now?

I am all about making character meets a "no-touch" situation from now on. Safer for all involved on all levels. No more princesses being groped by creeps, or kids pulling on Pluto's tale etc.

I am a 49 year old white balding male. For MANY, MANY, MANY years I never did M&G's. I thought it would be very creepy for a lone male to go up and hug a young lady dressed in a Cinderella outfit or a Tinkerbell (my favorite Disney Character). Even though I had no intent or interest in groping the young lady, in my mind she would likely be disgusted and grossed out. That was my issue, not hers.

I worked up the courage one year to finally meet Ariel (my other favorite). I was even more on edge since Ariel is very.... skimpily dressed. When my turn came, I set on the very, very edge of the bench - as far away from her as I could - trying to be respectful and mindful of Ariel's personal feelings. I was in perhaps my most vulnerable state that I ever had been and I wanted nothing more than to just get a picture of us together and run away from there as fast my legs would let me.

Well, darned if she didn't skootch right over there on that bench and looped her arm through mine and pull me toward her. I will never be able to say any words to her now, but if I could, I would just want her to know how much that simple act for her meant to me. Ralph Waldo Emerson said "To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. That is to have succeeded". That makes her one of the most successful people I have ever known.

It's the millions of stories like mine that have affected kids from 2 to 102 that I feel it would be a true loss for the world and it's peoples if hugging / contact interactions does not return. And while it is true that there ARE some rare examples of people groping, I truly believe it's a very small minority (otherwise I am sure Disney would have put a stop to it long ago).

No one if forcing you to do a M&G, or to touch, or hug. If you wish to stand across the room and wave at the character, that's your business. But it should not be taken away as an option for others as long as it is relatively safe to do (If I were Disney, I am not sure I would be doing them right now either - it's still a bit early, I feel).

 

[mom2rtk]

What I think Disney Parks will do when normal meet and greets return is they will probably start charging for autographs and the autographs will be priced at $20 to $30 because as you know some celebrities sometimes charge money for autographs when they do meet and greets. Take for example my Walmart used to have meet and greets with NFL stars and while you could talk to them for free if you wanted an autograph from the NFL player they would charge $50 for the autograph and Walmart had to stop these NFL meet and greets because of this. But if a family was to take their kids to meet characters at Disney Parks I can imagine a family conversation like this:
Child: Mom can I meet Mickey Mouse and get his autograph?
Mother: No Charlie autographs are expensive right now
Father: Oh my gosh now we have to pay for autographs and meet the characters now? We are out of here
If this happens Disney Parks will get complaints from people who dream of doing this with the characters. And most likely have a sign with a Mickey Mouse picture with one of those circles with a slash on it that says "PLEASE DO NOT LET CHILDREN TOUCH CHARACTERS and another sign that reads FOR SAFETY REASONS DON'T GRAB CHARACTERS BY TAIL OR MASK and it would be better if they had those signs in the parks

I don't think so.

 

[mom2rtk]

I am confused by this argument. They managed to do it for 49 years at WDW and even longer at DL. Despite common belief, the cold and the flu and many other contact illness were not invented in the past 2 years. They have been around since before there were people. True COVID is a serious threat right now, but that day will pass. Once it has, I hardly see contact illness as a valid excuse... If they managed to allow hugging for 49 years, why can they not figure it out now?



I am a 49 year old white balding male. For MANY, MANY, MANY years I never did M&G's. I thought it would be very creepy for a lone male to go up and hug a young girl dressed in a Cinderella outfit or a Tinkerbell (my favorite Disney Character). Even though I had no intent or interest in groping the young lady, in my mind she would likely be disgusted and grossed out. That was my issue, not hers.

I worked up the courage one year to finally meet Ariel (my other favorite). I was even more on edge since Ariel is very.... skimpily dressed. When my turn came, I set on the very, very edge of the bench - as far away from her as I could - trying to be respectful and mindful of Ariel's personal feelings. I was in perhaps my most vulnerable state that I ever had been and I wanted nothing more than to just get a picture of us together and run away from there as fast my legs would let me.

Well, darned if she didn't skootch right over there on that bench and looped her arm through mine and pull me toward her. I will never be able to say any words to her now, but if I could, I would just want her to know how much that simple act for her meant to me. Ralph Waldo Emerson said "To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. That is to have succeeded". That makes her one of the most successful people I have ever known.

It's the millions of stories like mine that have affected kids from 2 to 102 that I feel it would be a true loss for the world and it's peoples if hugging / contact interactions does not return. And while it is true that there ARE some rare examples of people groping, I truly believe it's a very small minority (otherwise I am sure Disney would have put a stop to it long ago).

No one if forcing you to do a M&G, or to touch, or hug. If you wish to stand across the room and wave at the character, that's your business. But it should not be taken away as an option for others as long as it is relatively safe to do (If I were Disney, I am not sure I would be doing them right now either - it's still a bit early, I feel).

View attachment 622972

Great story! And it's at the heart of what makes Disney so magical.

The truth is that the character actors love what they do as much as we love having them do it. My money says that most of them are chomping at the bit to get back to it.