The Odd Bedfellows Protesting the Roundup Weedkiller Case
On Monday, the US Supreme Court heard arguments over Bayer AG’s efforts to shut down the thousands of lawsuits alleging its product Roundup, a weedkiller containing glyphosate, causes people to develop non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of blood cancer.
Bayer, a German company which bought the American agrochemical giant Monsanto, has spent the better part of a decade fighting more than 100,000 lawsuits from plaintiffs seeking “billions and billions” of dollars. Glyphosate has been linked to cancer in numerous studies, but the Environmental Protection Agency maintains that it is “not likely to be carcinogenic to humans.” President Trump, meanwhile, has declared glyphosate “critical to national defense,” and signed an executive order to boost production of the weedkiller.
In court today, Bayer is seeking a ruling that would give it legal immunity from lawsuits by cancer patients and their families. Some of those same cancer patients showed up in front of the Supreme Court to protest today—as did an improbable cast of characters.
Make America Healthy Again influencers like “The Food Babe” and “The Glyphosate Girl” streamed from DC Monday—but more mainstream figures like Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.) spoke at the rally outside the Supreme Court, too, as did environmental activists with groups like the Center for Biological Diversity.
On the legislative end of things, meanwhile, Representatives Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) are teaming up against Bayer’s lobbyists, who are attempting to pass a provision in the 2026 Farm Bill that would permanently prevent state and local governments from issuing warnings about the risks of pesticides, giving Bayer even greater legal immunity.
“This is not to grant farmers immunity. This is to grant corporations immunity,” Massie said earlier this month. “If farmers contract cancer from this chemical, if this makes it into the Farm Bill you won’t be able to sue.”
As the Farm Bill moves through Congress and the Roundup case moves through the Supreme Court, government agencies are still using massive amounts of glyphosate, including, as a new investigation by my colleague Nate Halverson reveals, in America’s forests.
DC’s THE AUTHORITY Movie Getting Put on the Back Burner
Way back when, January of 2023, DC Studios’ co-CEO James Gunn unveiled the initial plan for his and Peter Safran’s new DCU. He shared a number of exciting projects, many of which have arrived more or less on schedule. Creature Commandos, Superman, Supergirl, and Lanterns all found or will have found their way to screens by the end of this year. Others, like Paradise Lost, Swamp Thing, and Booster Gold have continued to percolate and have seen substantial delays for various reasons or others. But when it comes to The Authority, the true outlier of that first batch, it seems Gunn is saying farewell to that idea.DC Comics
In a report from Variety, Gunn said the script wasn’t coming together for The Authority. “The script wasn’t quite there but more importantly it didn’t work in terms of the larger DCU both in terms of the story and practical concerns. Maybe some day. Not soon.” This echoes what Gunn said to several journalists a little over a year ago at a first “state of the franchise” event. Despite Superman still featuring the Authority’s Engineer as a major character, that set-up will not carry over to a feature film for the team.
The Authority began in 1999, in the pages of Wildstorm Comics, Jim Lee’s comics company that DC acquired in 1998. Created by Warren Ellis and Bryan Hitch, the titular team were a dark, gritty mirror to teams like the Justice League or the Avengers. They were more violent and had lots of very adult themes and storylines. Gunn saying the team didn’t work in terms of the larger DCU makes a lot of sense. Why introduce the very hopeful Superman and immediately throw the super violent anti-Justice League when the Justice League themselves don’t yet exist?
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Who Are The Authority? The DCU’s New Cinematic Heroes, ExplainedPlus, The Authority were the thematic progenitors to later subverted superhero series like The Boys and Invincible. In a world where both of those comics and shows exist, it’d be hard for the Authority not to feel very behind the times.
Despite this setback, the DCU will have a big 2026. Supergirl hits theaters June 26, Lanterns premieres on HBO in August, and Clayface will go to theaters in October.
Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Letterboxd.
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Billionaire tax proposal on track to qualify for California ballot, backers say
A controversial proposal in California to temporarily increase taxes on billionaires has enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot, a labor union backing the measure said Monday.
The proposal, backed by the Service Employees International Union Healthcare Workers West, would impose a one-time, 5% tax on individuals whose net worth exceeds $1 billion and who were living in the state as of Jan. 1, 2026. The goal is to generate $100 billion in revenue, which would largely be used to offset federal funding cuts to healthcare for low-income people.
“California’s health is at stake,” said Liz Perlman, executive director of a chapter of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, a major labor union. “Hospitals are closing and people will die. Why? So billionaires can get another tax cut that they don’t need.”
The California Secretary of State still has to verify the signatures and officially place the measure on the ballot. Backers say they collected more than 1.5 million signatures, well over the roughly 875,000 they needed.
If the measure goes before voters in November, it could prompt one of the costliest ballot fights ever and will draw national attention as a litmus test for voter attitudes on raising taxes on the rich. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has already traveled to California to campaign for the idea.
Meanwhile, Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and Silicon Valley tech moguls are adamantly opposed. They warn it will drive California’s wealthiest residents out of the state. Nearly half of California’s personal income tax revenue comes from the top 1% of earners. Some have already purchased properties out of state in case it passes.
“After playing with matches since October the SEIU has succeeded in lighting a ‘Tax the Rich’ wildfire by getting enough signatures,” said David Lesperance, a tax consultant who’s advised some of his wealthy clients who left California because of the proposal. “The many billionaire targets of their efforts have already responded by executing fire escape plans by relocating to other states.”
Brian Brokaw, a longtime Newsom adviser who is leading a political committee opposing the tax, said the measure was poorly constructed and would deal a huge blow to the state’s budget.
ELECTION 2026: Read more local, state and national coverage here from Lookout and our content partners
“Enacting a so-called wealth tax in just one state wouldn’t target a small group — it would impact all 40 million Californians,” he said in a statement. “This proposal trades a short-term revenue bump for long-term losses.”
At least 25 billionaires listed among Forbes magazine’s 2025 rankings of the world’s 500 wealthiest people either lived in California or had some significant ties to the state, based on a review by The Associated Press. But determining whether they were full-time residents or just frequent visitors could turn into a matter of dispute, since many of them own property elsewhere.
The big tax and spending cuts law President Donald Trump signed last year will cut more than $1 trillion nationwide over a decade from Medicaid and federal food assistance.
Have something to say? Lookout welcomes letters to the editor, within our policies, from readers. Guidelines here.
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FDA May Finally Make It Illegal to Shock Autistic Kids as Punishment
In March 2024, the Food and Drug Administration under President Joe Biden introduced a new rule that would have banned, after decades, the use of electric shocks on disabled children as a form of punishment. A ban on forcibly shocking kids—which the American Academy of Pediatrics says causes “long-lasting adverse physical and psychological impacts,” was set to come into force last year—but the Trump FDA kicked the can down the road, giving itself more time to decide whether its new leadership was on board.
Now, two years later, the FDA’s website claims that a decision will be made in the coming days on whether or not to follow through.
Massachusetts’ Judge Rotenberg Educational Center (JRC), the focus of a 2007 Mother Jones investigation, remains the only known US institution to use electric shock devices to control—and punish—disabled youths in its care, many of whom are autistic or have mental illnesses, like schizophrenia.
The FDA’s new rule, if finalized by the Trump administration, doesn’t prohibit all types of shock therapy. Electrical stimulation may still be used voluntarily for things like smoking cessation, for example, and the rule won’t affect the electroconvulsive therapy devices used to treat conditions like major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder. But the types of devices used by JRC will be banned from the market.
“We know from the testimony of survivors and experts that this torture inflicts injuries, trauma and lasting harm,” Zoe Gross, director of advocacy at the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, said.
“Autistic people…are getting [electrically shocked] for things like not taking off their coat.”
The FDA banned involuntary shock for self-injurious or aggressive behavior in 2020, but was overruled the following year by a federal appeals court panel that questioned the agency’s authority to institute such an order.
The House of Representatives then passed legislation in 2022 that would have banned using the supposed treatment to control the behavior of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, but the bill never cleared the Senate. In September 2023, Massachusetts’ highest court ruled that JRC could continue shocking children in its care.
Proponents of shock therapy claim that it calms people with intellectual and developmental disabilities who are engaging in the behaviors at issue. But there is no evidence that supports this claim, according to the FDA, and shock therapy can have side effects. “These devices present a number of psychological risks including depression, anxiety, worsening of underlying symptoms, development of post-traumatic stress disorder, and physical risks such as pain, burns, and tissue damage,” Owen Faris, former acting director of the FDA’s Office of Product Evaluation and Quality, said in a statement in March 2024.
During the rulemaking process, nearly 800 people and groups submitted comments. Most favored reinstating the ban. “Autistic people need help, not punishment,” wrote River Bradley, an autistic person who submitted comment, “and they are getting punished for things like not taking off their coat and for screaming out in pain from being shocked.” One parent of an autistic person noted that the stimulation devices “used at the JRC are much more powerful than the taser I carried” as a police officer—and that the criteria for shocking kids in the institution’s care were much looser.
As Mother Jones previously reported, several “students” died while receiving shocks at JRC. Dr. Matthew Israel, the center’s founder, resigned in 2011 after being accused of interfering with an investigation. Authorities were looking into an incident in which a person called the center impersonating a supervisor and demanded that two students be shocked. Administrators gave one teen 29 electric shocks and the other 77.
JRC’s practices have garnered international attention. Back in 2012, a UN special rapporteur on torture called for an investigation of its practices, telling the Guardian, “The use of electricity on anyone’s body raises the question of whether this is therapeutic or whether it inflicts pain and suffering tantamount to torture in violation of international law.”
KAGURABACHI Announces Anime TV Series In Sleek New Trailer
Kagurabachi fans, rejoice! This super popular manga is officially getting a television series anime adaptation. The news came during Jump Press’ showcase event and there’s even a Kagurabachi trailer to get fans totally hyped up. While some animated ventures seem to take many years between an announcement and actually airing its first episode, this one is coming in April 2027.
To celebrate the first Kagurabachi episode, there will be a world tour with dates and locations announced in the near future.
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13 Anime Series That We Can’t Wait to Watch This SpringTetsuya Takeuchi (From Bureaucrat to Villainess: Dad’s Been Reincarnated!) will direct the Kagurabachi TV anime series at studio CyPic with Keigo Sasaki (Blue Exorcist) doing the show’s character designs. Taihi Kimura (Takeru Narihira in Onmyo Kaiten Re:Birth Verse) will voice the main character, Chihiro Rokuhira.
Here’s the description from Viz Media to go with that Kagurabachi trailer:
As a young boy, Chihiro trains every day under his father to become a swordsmith. Although different in temperament, the two spend peaceful days laughing and working together. But one day, tragedy strikes… Now Chihiro burns with hatred and sets out to exact revenge. Following clues left behind by a ruthless yakuza organization, Chihiro confronts the Hishaku, a deadly group of sorcerers that may be behind his father’s murder.
SHOCHIKU anime Channel/YouTubeThe coming months will surely give fans more looks into what this show will offer.
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Sony Developing DJANGO & ZORRO Crossover Based on Tarantino Comic
Did you know that, in 2014, Quentin Tarantino co-wrote a comic that continued the adventures of Jamie Foxx’s titular character in Django Unchained? And did you also know that seven-part series also included a crossover with Zorro? Yes, the Zorro. No to both questions? Fair. Pretty wild, huh? That’s nothing compared to the latest news around the comic. One of the best screenwriters in Hollywood is turning it into a film.Sony Pictures
Deadline reports Sony Pictures has tapped Mystic River Academy Award-winner writer Brian Helgeland (L.A. Confidential) to adapt a story from Dynamite Entertainment’s Django Unchained graphic novel. The series served as a de facto sequel to Tarantino’s 2012 film starring Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Christoph Waltz, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, Don Johnson, and Walton Goggins.
Tarantino co-wrote the comic with Matt Wagner. While Tarantino will not direct this Django/Zorro crossover film, Deadline says he has given the project his approval. It also comes on the heels of the upcoming sequel The Adventures of Cliff Booth, which Tarantino did not direct, either.
This is not the first time a possible Django Unchained– Zorro adaptation was in development. However, the hiring of Helgeland (and new, less complicated rights issues) is the biggest step yet to making it real. As for the story, he is said to be penning a new tale that continues Django’s story as a man seeking out the worst of the worst. In the comics the former slave-turned-bounty hunter befriends Don Diego de la Vega, better known to the world as Zorro.
You can definitely do worse than having Zorro on your side while hunting villains. Whether or not this big screen team-up will feature either Foxx or Antonio Banderas returning to their iconic roles is unknown. But no matter who plays them, there’s no question we’re betting on this duo against anyone foolish enough to oppose them.
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Romantic Medieval Cover of the Imperial March Somehow Works
We tend not to think of John Williams’ “Imperial March” as anything other than an aural cue to signify intergalactic fascism and incompetent officers getting force-choked. We definitely don’t think of classical romance. Well, we don’t, but clearly, YouTuber Algal the Bard sure does. In his latest video, he gets out his medieval lute-guitar and harp, and gives us Star Wars‘ iconic Imperial March, only the “romantic serenade” version. And you know what? It works. Who knew Darth Vader’s theme could put us in the mood for Arthurian fantasy and kingly courts? You can watch Algal the Bard’s version of “Darth Vader in Love” below:
One nice touch from Algal the Bard is that the “Imperial March” eventually segues into “Across the Stars” from Attack of the Clones. Most Star Wars fans will recall that this is the romantic love theme of Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala. Now that track absolutely evokes classical romance in every single way. All of those romantic vistas shot in Italy, where they shot the planet Naboo, were directly inspired by Renaissance paintings. Sure, Anakin’s dialogue in those scenes wasn’t exactly Shakespeare, but bless their hearts for trying. But both those pieces of music are Anakin’s theme music in very different eras of his life.
LucasfilmMost of Algal the Bard’s other videos are Medieval-style covers of classic rock songs. There’s Iron Maiden, Blue Oyster Cult, you name it. But there are other nerdy selections among his works. There’s The Legend of Zelda, Conan the Barbarian, and even the music from Fallout. Hopefully, we get some other Star Wars offerings in the future. After all, who deserves a romantic classical tribute more than Princess Leia? John Williams’ Leia theme would be perfect for this style of music. To check out more videos, be sure to head on over to Algal the Bard’s YouTube channel.
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BIG BANG THEORY Stuart Spin-Off Gets a July HBO Max Release
Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, the upcoming spin-off of The Big Bang Theory, has itself an official release date. Via Deadline, we’ve learned that the comedy series will hit HBO Max this July. The announcement was made at CCXP Mexico over the weekend. The series focuses on the character of Stuart David Bloom, the owner of the comic book shop Comic Center of Pasadena, who was a regular recurring character on The Big Bang Theory. David Sussman will once again play the character of Stuart. At the CCXP panel, they also announced that iconic composer Danny Elfman is writing the show’s theme music. Elfman most recently created the theme music for Wednesday on Netflix.HBO Max
The series will deal with Stuart attempting to restore reality after he breaks a device built by Sheldon and Leonard, accidentally bringing about a multiversal Armageddon. It sure seems as if everyone is all about the Multiverse these days. Even sitcoms. Stuart’s girlfriend Denise (Lauren Lapkus) helps Stuart out during this cosmic adventure, along with his geologist friend Bert (Brian Posehn), and quantum physicist Barry Kripke (John Ross Bowie). In the upcoming series, the cast will meet alternate-universe versions of characters we’ve come to know from The Big Bang Theory. Although who exactly is still under wraps. And we can imagine, much wackiness shall ensue.
Chuck Lorre, the co-creator and executive producer of The Big Bang Theory and all of its spinoffs to date, writes and executive produces the new series. Joining him is Big Bang co-creator Bill Prady. Another name among the executive producers is Zak Penn. Penn got a writing credit on the first Avengers, even though Joss Whedon completely tossed out his script. It’s wild how Hollywood works. With a July release date, we expect to hear more about Stuart Fails to Save the Universe around Comic-Con time.
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The Girls Are Fighting, AI Edition
Elon Musk and Sam Altman are set to square off in court over OpenAI’s mission.
In his lawsuit, Musk accuses Altman of illegally transforming OpenAI from a nonprofit into a massive for-profit organization—one that is expected to go public as early as this summer at a valuation of nearly $1 trillion.
Here’s the messy backstory: The week after Musk sued OpenAI in 2024, the company claimed that its founders realized early in its development that it needed to raise money to obtain enough computing power and other resources to build its AI. To acquire investors, it first had to become a for-profit company. The nonprofit—now called the OpenAI Foundation—created the for-profit OpenAI as a subsidiary. OpenAI claimed in December 2024 that, back in 2017, Musk agreed that a for-profit move was necessary, but wanted “absolute control” as sole CEO—and a merger with Tesla. Following a reported power struggle with Altman to take control of OpenAI in 2018, Musk left the company’s board. OpenAI said that Musk left to avoid potential conflicts of interests as the CEO of Tesla.
Musk is now demanding that the billions of dollars made by the for-profit be returned to the OpenAI Foundation. He also wants Altman to be kicked off the leadership team of both the for-profit and non-profit organizations.
OpenAI was founded in 2015 by Musk, Altman, and nine others. Musk and Altman were named co-chairs, and on the day of its launch, the nonprofit stated its goal to “advance digital intelligence” in a manner “to benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return.” In its 2018 charter, the company promised to halt focusing on its own models and help another group “if a value-aligned, safety-conscious project comes close to building AGI [or artificial general intelligence that outperforms the work of humans] before we do.”
To put it lightly, this is a far cry from what the company looks like today. It’s got energy-guzzling data centers, a chatbot that’s been involved in multiple mass shootings, and, according to what tech journalist Karen Hao told us in 2025, poses “the greatest threat that we’ve seen to democracy to date.” Oh, and not to mention the deal with the Pentagon to provide its technology for military purposes. (Following backlash from users, Sam Altman posted on X last month that they would amend their agreement to “not be intentionally used for domestic surveillance of U.S. persons and nationals.”)
Here is re-post of an internal post:
We have been working with the DoW to make some additions in our agreement to make our principles very clear.
1. We are going to amend our deal to add this language, in addition to everything else:
"• Consistent with applicable laws,…
OpenAI has gone from trying to benefit humanity to making humanity clean up its messes. As I wrote earlier this month, the company released 13 pages of “ambitious ideas” to add safety nets as AI advances to outperform human beings, even those who are assisted by AI.
Altman and OpenAI’s decisionmakers clearly don’t care about their lasting damage. They attribute the growing animosity toward AI to the struggle to, as OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman put it last week on the science and tech podcast Core Memory, “help people really understand what it is that this technology can do for them.”
But there’s a difference between what AI can do and what it should do. While Musk and Altman fight over OpenAI’s structure, and Musks licks his wounds after potentially losing yet another power struggle, they don’t seem to be listening in any real way to the people this technology is meant to help.
(Disclosure: The Center for Investigative Reporting, the parent company of Mother Jones, has sued OpenAI for copyright violations. OpenAI has denied the allegations.)
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Looking for Walt Disney’s Presence Along Disneyland’s Railroad
“You can really feel Walt’s presence here.”
For years, countless Disneyland fans and cast members alike have told me that. It’s not something you hear nearly as often at Walt Disney World, though. That always made sense to me. Walt personally oversaw the construction of Disneyland, but died almost five years before Magic Kingdom opened. If you’re going to feel his presence anywhere, it’s at the park he built.
That oft-shared sentiment was very much on my mind before I made my first visit to the Happiest Place on Earth recently. Would I, someone who has loved Walt Disney World for almost 40 years, feel Walt’s presence at Disneyland? I had my doubts for my own reasons, but I wanted to try. And to make that happen I knew where to look for him. If I were going to find Walt, I’d try finding him in the part of the park that meant the most to him personally, the Disneyland Railroad.
NerdistMy doubts over feeling Walt’s “presence” had nothing to do with doubting anyone else’s sincerity. It is quite the opposite, actually. I absolutely believe they have that experience. As someone who loves learning the history and lore behind the places I care about, I would be the exact type of person who would have a similar one at Disneyland. I’m also a sentimental person, and no one does sentiment better than Disney. Plus, you know, I also really love going to Walt Disney World. I know some will scoff at that, but being there make me feel close to my late sister and our childhood family trips.(Go ahead. Scoff now. Scoff now.) Now it brings me joy as something my wife and I share with our son. (Still scoffing? Bold. But, uh, he wasn’t on this trip because we were in Anaheim for a wedding, so….)
The difference is those are real people I have real memories with. I’m sentimental, yes, but I am sentimental about places and the people who went there with me. I’ve never been nostalgic about famous people*, especially historical figures. That’s what Walt Disney is to me. He created something tangible and enduring I love, but he also died long before I was born. Disney as a place might be real to me, but Walt Disney is more like a legend.
Nerdist(*This has been true my entire life. I’m from Massachusetts, but when I stand outside Paul Revere’s house in Boston’s North End I don’t “feel” his presence. It’s incredible his house is still there and you can go inside. But all I tend to “feel” is hungry since it’s right near one of my favorite restaurants.)
Despite all of that, I wanted to give myself the best shot to have this exact Disney fan experience. And as someone deeply invested in the history of both Walt Disney and all of the parks that bear his name, I knew the best shot I had to “feel” his presence was on the Disneyland Railroad. That was always going to be my best shot I had to find Walt.
Although this little vacation was personal, I spoke to a Disneyland rep about my visit before I went. Without me mentioning any one of this, she said, unprompted, the same thing so many others had. “You can really feel Walt’s presence here.” I then told her what I just told all of you, that I was curious if I would have that experience but wasn’t sure I would. I then told her my plan was to ride the train since it meant the most to Walt. That’s when she asked if my wife and I would be interested in Disneyland’s Railroad Guided Tour. It’s an intimate 90-minute excursion you can book. It lets guests “get a look into Walt Disney’s love for trains and discover the impact it had on the Disneyland Resort.”
Yes, I did want to do it.
NerdistThe tour meets on Main Street, the other part of the park I most associate with Walt since he had an apartment there. Guests receive a commemorative pin with their name, a tour badge with a lanyard you get to keep, a hand fan, and a snack. (Our group of 10 got a Strawberry-stuffed Croissant from Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe. It not only ruled, it was on my “must-try” handwritten “snack list,” a real thing I spent real time coming up with before visiting. At the end of the tour, we also got a great Disneyland map poster.)
The tour then takes you to different parts of the park, starting out front, to learn about Walt’s lifelong relationship with trains. His passion led directly—as in “Disneyland might not exist if Walt didn’t love trains” kind of directly—to the creation, shape, design, and construction of the park. As we would learn, it also shaped many of the attractions throughout. Those attractions then went on to influence Disney parks around the world. Each park is essentially a stop along Walt’s own enduring train line.
Our guide was Giorgio, a wonderfully affable and knowledge host whose Jungle Cruise skipper sense of humor helped keep the experience from ever feeling dry. The tour includes a lot of information and anecdotes spanning Walt’s childhood to the construction of Disneyland and beyond. The laughter from the group showed Giorgio’s puns, some truly terrible in the best way, helped keep everyone engaged. He was polished but wholly sincere the way the best cast members always are.
It helped he was always easy to hear even amid a packed spring break crowd, because the tour includes ear pieces. Disneyland makes it so you never have to huddle or worry about your host getting drowned out. That also allows you to look around while your guide is speaking.
NerdistFor the first half of the tour, Giorgio took us along multiple spots on Main Street, U.S.A. We then went to Frontierland, the Central Plaza, and Fantasyland. The last stop, in the shadow of the Matterhorn, was my favorite. There we learned about how Walt’s vacation to Germany led to Disneyland’s monorail. As the monorail (which I loved as a kid at Walt Disney World) quietly glided past Giorgio as he spoke it was hard not feel sentimental.
As someone who cares about the history and development of Disney Parks, I found the tour informative and fun. I already knew a lot of what we learned, but there were still new insights and stories I had never heard or read before. But what I really appreciated is that the tour is also really peaceful even among the throngs of people in the park. I’m someone who tends, no matter how much they try otherwise, to go 900 mph at Disney. The tour forced me to slow down and take the whole park in, all without worrying about wait times or lightning lanes. It was just really nice.
Only, I hadn’t felt Walt’s presence. Not yet. But something fundamentally changed for me when I asked Giorgio a question between stops. I told him I was planning to write about this tour and was curious what he thought was the most important thing for people to know. What Giorgio told me instantly changed how I felt about what I was doing. “It’s not that Walt loved trains,” he said, “It’s that he was obsessed with them.”
Nerdist“Obsession.” It seemed so obvious the second Giorgio said it. It should have been, considering everything we’d been hearing about Walt’s lifelong experiences being around, working on, and building his own trains both at home and in his park. And yet, it hadn’t been the word or idea that had shaped the way I understood Walt’s relationship with trains.
“Passion.” “Love.” Those are the words I’d been thinking of. “Love” is the word Disney itself uses in the description for the tour. But those are different in meaningful ways from “obsession.” They don’t have the same connotation. They don’t suggest “compulsion” the way obsession does.
Once I heard Walt’s relationship to trains expressed that way, it reshaped the way I thought about every Disney park. Every attraction with a train element—the Disneyland Railroad, the monorail, Big Thunder Mountain, Casey Jr. Circus Train, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway—whether Walt built them or not, they suddenly became a tangible extension of him. If all of Disneyland is special to Walt, his trains were something extra special within it. I knew that before. This was when I truly understood why.
NerdistI was thinking about what Giorgio said and what Walt’s obsession meant as we headed off for the second part of the tour. In ToonTown, we would finally ride the Disneyland Railroad inside the Lilly Belle.
Disneyland’s Lilly Belle is named for Walt’s wife, Lillian. She helped design and decorate the special parlor car in 1974, almost a decade after her husband’s death. It’s reserved for tours and VIP guests at the park. (The Lilly Belle was also the name of the miniature ridable model train Walt had at his own home. It was hugely influence in the creation of the Disneyland Railroad.)
The Lilly Belle contains personal items and decor taken from and inspired by the Disney family. It also looks a lot like it did when it first made its way around the park’s perimeter, the berm. That’s also why the Lilly Belle doesn’t have air conditioning. Excessive heat isn’t always a problem when you ride inside the enclosed parlor car. It was an issue on the record-setting hot March day we were there. To help us deal with the heat, everyone got personal electric fans.
Nerdist(We actually missed the Lilly Belle’s train by a minute when we got to ToonTown. We had to wait for it to go around the whole park before getting in. Giorgio made up the delay to everyone by giving us two special Lightning Lane passes instead of just the guaranteed one that comes with the tour. That second Lightning Lane easily made up for the extra 45 minutes the tour ran. My wife and I used it to skip a two-hour wait for DCA’s Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! later in the day. Like I said, well worth it.)
The Lilly Belle is a very cool attraction, especially if you care about trains, the history of the park, or Walt himself. It’s also a very unusual one at Disneyland, and not just because you can only ride it under special circumstances or via a pricey luxury tour ticket. It’s not a recreation of a train car Walt built or road. (Though it does resemble his Main Street apartment in many ways.) He never road in it himself, either. It’s just something fun and different that was made for VIPs. And yet, like everything else in the park, it felt very much like an extension of Walt. It was inspired by him and made to honor him. It was a tribute to his obsession. And that can be felt at every attraction in Disneyland and the many parks it spawned, because they only exist because of that obsession.
Nerdist(That might sound like hyperbole, that without Walt’s love of trains Disneyland might not exist. That is until you learn about Ward Kimball, his own train obsession, and his long and vital partnership with Walt. Disneyland without Ward Kimball is impossible to even imagine.)
As our tour ended I was grateful to have done it. It’s expensive, yes, but it’s perfect for history lovers and those looking to experience the park in a different way. I also think it makes for an amazing gift.
And now is when I’m supposed to tell you that as we drove around the park—past scenes of dinosaurs and into Main Street U.S.A. (where we briefly met the train conductor), through Frontierland’s quiet beauty, and back to ToonTown—that it finally happened. This where I’m supposed to tell you that like so many others I felt Walt’s presence at Disneyland.
Only I didn’t. At least not in the way I feel my sister’s at the Magic Kingdom or my Uncle Peter’s when I’m in Boston’s North End. Instead I felt something else entirely: a new appreciation for something I already loved. Because while Walt Disney will always feel like a historical figure to me, as I rode in the Lilly Belle, Walt’s parks and what they mean to me felt more real than ever.
NerdistThat tour helped me understand how Walt Disney turned his own obsession into something he could share with others. I understood how his obsession gave me something I love so much I feel compelled to share it with the people I love.
So no, I didn’t find Walt on the Disneyland Railroad. I found something even better. Fittingly, his train made me feel more connected to him.
Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. He wants to do more tours at Disney Parks. You can follow him on Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.
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