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Gravity Falls Creator Reveals Disney's Most Ridiculous Attempts at Censorship

Alex Hirsch shared emails detailing Disney's efforts to remove words like "poop face" from the animated series.
  • Gravity Falls (Photo: Disney Channel/Everett Collection)
    Gravity Falls (Photo: Disney Channel/Everett Collection)

    Gravity Falls creator Alex Hirsch is opening up about the lengths to which Disney went to censor the show's content. In a video shared on Twitter, Hirsch compiled some of the most ridiculous emails he received from Disney, including those taking issue with phrases like "poop face" and "a man from Kentucky."

    "Ever curious about the fights I had with the censors on Gravity Falls?" wrote Hirsch, who has spent much of Thursday celebrating the 10th anniversary of the animated series on Twitter. "I probably shouldn't share this but here are some REAL NOTES from DISNEY S&P and my REAL REPLIES. You are not prepared."

    Some of the funnier emails include a request to remove the use of the word "poop face" because it "comes across as a replacement for 'shitface,'" with a note explaining, "Prior use of Mabel saying 'Poop. Poop. And Butts' ... came across as more childlike and not as offensive."

    To that, Hirsch responded, "I've never met a human on earth of any age who would be offended by a cartoon saying the word 'poop face.' Not changing it."

    In another email, Disney wrote, "Please revise Soos' line about dressing as a giant teddy bear. It may call to mind the people who dress up as stuffed animals as a 'furry' fetish."

    Hirsch shared email after email of Disney's requests, and he refused to back down on many of their issues with the show. "I have literally *thousands* of these," Hirsch wrote in a follow up tweet. "Each one still haunts me."

    Gravity Falls is currently streaming on Disney+.

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    Deena ElGenaidi's writing has been featured in Nylon, MTV News, Insider, The AV Club, and more. You can follow her on Twitter @deenaelg.

    TOPICS: Gravity Falls, Disney+, Disney Channel, Alex Hirsch