Of all the memorable songs Disney has produced, the theme to the Mickey Mouse Club may be one of its most enduring. Get ready to get that one stuck in your head all over again. Disney is bringing back the classic Mickey Mouse Club for a whole new generation. This time, however, it's going by the name Club Mickey Mouse, and rather than being a television variety show, it's going exclusively online with a whole new format.
This marks the fourth iteration of the Mickey Mouse Club, which was launched in 1955, then revived in 1977, and again in 1989. What sets this version of the show apart from its predecessors is that, rather than being a variety show, including music, comedy, and other performances on television, Club Mickey Mouse will be found exclusively on Facebook and Instagram. Also, the show will have more of a reality show format, with most content being behind-the-scenes, as the new cast works on a project, like a music video, which will then be shown at the end of the week. The initial run of Club Mickey Mouse will last for seven weeks. Whether the show continues from there will likely depend on fan engagement.
The first cast of the new Club Mickey Mouse has now been introduced. They are, from left to right in the image above, Sean Oliu, Jenna Alvarez, Brianna Mazzola, Will Simmons, Leanne Tessa Langston, Regan Aliyah, Gabe De Guzman, and Ky Baldwin.
Of course, the question we all have to be asking is, is the next Ryan Gosling or Brittany Spears somewhere in this crowd? The 1990's version of the show famously produced some talent that went on to become major superstars, like Gosling, Spears, Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, and Keri Russell. Maybe the new Club Mickey Mouse will be the big break for another major talent. Could one of these kids eventually be nominated for an Academy Award? See if you can pick the breakout star of Club Mickey Mouse in the video below.
While I sometimes feel old enough to have watched the original Mickey Mouse Club back in the 1950s, I was an avid viewer of the 1990s version on The Disney Channel. Each version of the show was truly a time capsule of its era, and MMC, as it was known back then (because it was hip, you see?), was about the most 90s thing you ever saw. The show even had its own teen pop band, which somehow didn't include anybody who eventually actually became a pop star. All I'm saying is that the new Club Mickey Mouse has a high bar to clear. If they're going to be making music videos, can they possibly make one better than this 90s classic?
Full disclosure, it's possible this writer might have has a significant crush on Mouseketeer Tiffani Hale in 1990 and owned The Party's first album on cassette tape. Yes, I did say first, somehow there were two. Also, apparently the band has reformed and they're working on a third album? The 90s were weird, man.
Bringing the show into the internet age certainly makes sense, as that's how most of the kids that the show will be geared towards are consuming a lot of their media, which will make this version a product of its day as previous iterations have been. The kids each look to have unique styles and backgrounds, making the cast a diverse and potentially interesting one to see working together. In two or three decades this show might look incredibly cheesy too, but who cares? For the target audience, it looks like it could be a lot of fun.
