Ever since its initial release, Disney's 1994 original The Lion King has been hotly accused of liberally “borrowing” themes, imagery and characters from the classic Osamu Tezuka anime Kimba the White Lion. Speculative claims and hearsay have sparked discourse from industry insiders and critics alike on whether or not Disney stole elements of Kimba’s iconography in making blockbuster renaissance classic, granting The Lion King the reputation of yet another instance of American cinema apportioning Japanese titles, the same as John Sturges’ The Magnificent Seven and Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai.
While this supposed controversy has been debated for decades and disputed by Tezuka Productions themselves as they felt the parallels were merely surface level, there is yet another instance of a Disney movie owing itself to a classic anime with even more egregious commonalities, nearly culminating in an outright legal battle.
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Produced by Gainax and Toho for NHK, 1990's Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water was directed by Neon Genesis Evangelion creator Hideaki Anno upon an original pitch by Hayao Miyazaki, who would himself later develop the idea into Studio Ghibli’s Caste in the Sky. The story follows young inventor Jean (Noriko Hidaka) and Atlantean princess Nadia (Yoshino Takamori) at the turn of the century as they navigate a high-seas adventure aboard a futuristic submarine to stop menacing forces that seek to reignite the lost kingdom’s destructive power.
Directed by the Beauty and the Beast team of Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale, Disney Animation’s 2001 sci-fi action film Atlantis: The Lost Empire follows idealistic industrial age linguist/cartographer Milo Thatch (Michael J. Fox) as he leads an expedition under the Earth’s surface in a fantastical submarine to find the remnants of the sunken continent, where he meets Atlantean princess Kida (Cree Summer). Together, they discover the secrets to the power that destroyed the lost kingdom.
Beyond their initial premises, Atlantis and Nadia share more than a few commonalities in designs and the groundwork on which their stories are built. While they contrast in tone and audience, each of them draws thematic and aesthetic inspiration from the works of Jules Verne, particularly 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, star the pairing of a glasses-wearing bookworm with a dark-complected native princess and deal with the secrets behind a crystal necklace’s magical power. Both also explore the morality behind scientific discovery and man’s place in the order of otherworldly powers he cannot control.
Much like upon The Lion King’s debut, Atlantis was met with scrutiny from global fans over near its release over the striking similarities the film shared with Nadia. Unlike in the case of Kimba and Tezuka productions dismissal to pursue legal action, there were active talks among Gainax, Toho and NHK on whether they should go after Disney for charges of plagiarism. In a 2000 interview, studio director, Hiroyuki Yamaga said, "We actually tried to get NHK to pick a fight with Disney, but even the National Television Network of Japan didn't dare to mess with Disney and their lawyers.”
The Nadia and Atlantis controversy has nowhere near the amount of history of discourse surrounding it compared to that of Kimba and Lion King. Despite there being a stronger argument of Disney “borrowing” from Nadia, neither Nadia nor Atlantis are as globally recognized as Kimba or Lion King, both are national favorites of their respective countries, and lack as large of followings to perpetuate the discussion. The hesitation to legally meet Disney in court also highlights Disney’s sheer frightening legal might as a studio, even against the national Japanese broadcasting company. As company mascot Mickey Mouse is set to enter the public domain in 2024, who knows what other legal Disney copyright magic the company will weave to make cases like those of Lion King and Atlantis more apparent.
