We’re Still Thinking About the Incredible Treasures Inside Disney Archives: Uncrated
Images: Fashion and Fandom
From Cruella’s couture to Hannah Montana’s stage style and props spanning decades of Disney history, this D23 activation was basically a dream come true for pop culture fans…
There are plenty of reasons to go to D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event — exclusive announcements, jaw-dropping panels, limited-edition merch, and enough Disney magic to keep fans buzzing for months. But sometimes, the best discoveries are the ones you stumble into between everything else.
Case in point: Walt Disney Archives: Uncrated, one of the standout activations to visit on this year’s D23 show floor. The exhibit provided fans the chance to take an unforgettable journey into the vast and hidden warehouses of the Walt Disney Archives, bringing more than 200 objects (many of which had never before been seen by the public) out of storage and into the spotlight.
If you're the kind of person who has ever watched a movie and thought, Wait, I wonder where they keep that costume?—this was basically your dream come true. Think rows of crates, unexpected discoveries, iconic costumes, beloved props, puppets, and artifacts from across Disney and 20th Century Studios history.
Welcome to the Disney Archives
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The Walt Disney Archives has been collecting, preserving, and showcasing Disney history for more than 50 years. For Uncrated, the Archives flipped the script and invited fans to experience what it might feel like to step inside its mysterious warehouses.
The concept was inspired by one of the questions Walt Disney Archives director Becky Cline hears all the time: Where do you keep everything? During the media preview, Cline explained that people often imagine an enormous warehouse filled with Disney treasures—and while the real thing remains off-limits, Uncrated was designed to bring a little bit of that behind-the-scenes experience directly to fans.
And honestly? We're glad they did. And the treasure hunt didn't stop with the exhibit itself. For the first time ever, the Archives added a live stage presentation to the experience. Each presentation featured a live unboxing—or, more accurately, uncrating—of an archival treasure. Even better? At select presentations, fans got to help decide which mystery box would be opened next.
Talk about getting in on the action.
The exhibit was divided into themed sections, each offering its own collection of unexpected artifacts. With new pieces revealed throughout the experience, there was always another bit of Disney history waiting around the corner, and that's exactly what made it so much fun.
The Fashion Was Everything
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The “Receiving & Processing” section was a major highlight for fashion lovers. This area focused on costumes and fashion from some seriously iconic titles, including 101 Dalmatians, 102 Dalmatians, Cruella, The Devil Wears Prada, The Devil Wears Prada 2, Hannah Montana, High School Musical, and High School Musical 2.
Seeing these pieces outside of their original screen context made them even more fascinating. These aren't simply costumes—they're tangible pieces of pop culture history that helped define characters, eras, and entire fandoms.
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And yes, seeing pieces from The Devil Wears Prada alongside fashion from Hannah Montana and Cruella was exactly the kind of crossover we didn't know we needed. There was something special about seeing these fashion moments preserved as archival artifacts. A look that might have flashed across the screen for a few seconds can have an entire life behind it—from design and construction to filming and, eventually, its place in the Archives.
From Sitcoms to Sci-Fi
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The “Delivery” section traded fashion for television history, showcasing items from beloved sitcoms including nostalgic favorites like: Dinosaurs, Fresh Off the Boat, Glee, How I Met Your Mother, and Ugly Betty.
It was a reminder of just how broad the Walt Disney Archives collection really is. This isn't just a vault of animated classics and theme park memorabilia. It's a massive time capsule covering decades of television, film, fashion, music, and entertainment.
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Then there was “Object Storage”, where sci-fi and Muppet fans had plenty to geek out over.
The collection featured artifacts from The Muppet Movie, The Muppet Show, Muppet Treasure Island, Muppet Vision 3D, The Black Hole, Captain EO, Alien, I, Robot, TRON, Star Wars: The Last Jedi and more!
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It's the kind of lineup that makes you want to stop at every display and ask, "Wait... they have THAT?!"
A Little Bit of Disney Magic
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The final section, “Magical Containment”, leaned into some of Disney's most fantastical stories and attractions.
Artifacts from Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Enchanted, The Great Movie Ride, Maleficent, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Once Upon a Time were all part of the mix. And that's what made Uncrated so much fun: There wasn't just one version of Disney history on display.
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There were blockbuster movies. Television favorites. Theme park attractions. Puppets. Costumes. Props. Sci-fi. Fantasy. Comedy. Fashion. More than 200 objects. Countless stories. And plenty of surprises.
The Ultimate Disney History Deep Dive
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For longtime Disney fans, Walt Disney Archives: Uncrated was a chance to see pieces of history they've spent years loving from a completely different perspective. For casual fans, it was an invitation to discover just how much history exists behind the movies, shows, characters, and attractions we know by heart.
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But the live uncrating presentations added something extra. Watching an archival treasure emerge from a mystery crate turned preservation into a shared experience—and giving fans a say in what might be revealed next made the audience part of the story.
And for us? It was one of those D23 activations that stayed with us long after leaving the show floor. Because there's something magical about seeing an iconic costume or prop in person and realizing that the object sitting in front of you once existed only as part of a story on a screen.
The Walt Disney Archives has spent decades making sure those pieces of history don't disappear. At D23, Uncrated gave fans a rare opportunity to see that preservation process up close—and to appreciate the incredible collection hiding behind the magic.
Honestly, if the Archives ever wants to open another crate, we'll be first in line.
