The LEGO Group is a privately-owned Danish multinational company that manufactures and licenses LEGO brand toys, video games, and theme parks. Though technically a competitor in the theme park industry, LEGO has produced toy lines based on Disney intellectual properties since 1999 and has operated retail stores at Disney theme park resorts since 1997. Its manufacturer company, The Lego Group, is based in Billund, Denmark.
Lego toy lines based on Disney intellectual properties include Mickey Mouse, Toy Story, Cars, Pirates of the Caribbean, Marvel Super Heroes, Disney Princess, Simpsons, and perhaps most famously, Star Wars. Lego has produced Star Wars toys since 1999, thirteen years before Disney's acquisition of the franchise. Due to this, Star Wars Miniland attractions appear in several Legoland theme parks. The only other instances of Disney-owned intellectual property existing in a competitor's park are Marvel Super Hero Island and The Simpsons Ride at Universal's Islands of Adventure. There is a blind bag series packaged with iconic characters from various Disney franchises in LEGO form.
The LEGO Store
LEGO operates retail stores worldwide, with several locations at Disney Parks, Experiences and Products:
- Disney Springs, Walt Disney World Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Florida (opened October 6, 1997)
- Downtown Disney, Disneyland Resort, Anaheim, California (opened January 12, 2001)
- Disney Village, Disneyland Paris, Marne-la-Vallée, France (opened February 28, 2014)
- Disneytown, Shanghai Disney Resort, Shanghai, China (opened June 16, 2016)
Trivia
- In latin, LEGO means "I put together".
- In LEGO's The LEGO Movie franchise with rival Warner Bros., Chris Pratt voiced Emmet Brickowski and Rex Dangervest, Elizabeth Banks voiced Wyldstyle/Lucy, Will Arnett voiced Batman, Alison Brie voiced Unikitty, Charlie Day voiced Benny, Nick Offerman voiced Metal Beard, Will Ferrell voiced Lord Business (aka President Business) and played the Man Upstairs, Morgan Freeman voiced Vitruvius, Keegan-Michael Key voiced Foreman Jim, Liam Neeson voiced Good Cop and Bad Cop, Stephanie Beatriz voiced General Sweet Mayhem, Tiffany Haddish voiced Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi, Maya Rudolph played Finn and Bianca's mother, Jadon Sand played Finn, and Brooklynn Prince played Bianca.
- A few elements from The LEGO Movie are similar to that of Toy Story.
- Bionicle: Mask of Light was co-distributed under Walt Disney Home Entertainment with Miramax Films (who released the film internationally) and was branded as a Walt Disney Home Entertainment/Disney DVD film on the front/back covers of some of the few more-obscure releases in Europe, as well as Africa and Asia and Walt Disney Home Entertainment returned to co-distribute the second film, Bionicle 2: Legends of Metru Nui, exclusively in the Czech Republic, under exclusive license from Imperial Entertainment, however the second film lacked the Disney DVD branding. Additionally a Disney DVD branded release for the third film, Bionicle 3: Web of Shadows, has been found in the Netherlands.
- Walt Disney Character Voices International, Inc. was also the service provider for handling the Finnish cast and recording operations.
- The first film also received a Disney Special Edition release exclusively in Russia.
- A brick-built statue of the character Tahu in his original Mata form from Bionicle could've also been spotted at the LEGO Imagination Centers at Downtown Disney in Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort.
- The weekly Disney magazine comics by the Egmont Group also contained a few promotional polybag sets from themes such as Lego City, Bionicle, Exo-Force, Ninjago, Chima, etc. throughout the years.
- Living Mobile, through Disney Mobile (uncredited) launched two mobile app games known as Bionicle Challenge and Bionicle Defenders in 2006 and 2007 respectively.[1]
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