The Sweatbox: The Disney Documentary Disney Doesn't Want You To Watch

The Chaotic Production of The Emperor's New Groove

Disney has been involved in various controversies throughout the years, and there’s one documentary that Disney doesn’t want the general audience to watch due to the chaos shown in it. Disney’s reign in the world of animation began in 1937 with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the studio’s first animated feature, and since then, it has become a powerhouse in animation and family-friendly content. Surely, the Mouse House has had some failures with its animated movies, but most of them have now become classics of not only the studio but film history, in general.

The Sweatbox title card

Disney has given its touch of magic to fairy tales, folk tales, mythology, legends, and more, and it has also brought original stories, but many of these have some complicated backstories. One animated comedy, in particular, had such a chaotic production process that it almost didn’t happen, and its original concept was different from what made it to the big screen. The behind-the-scenes chaos of this movie was immortalized in a documentary, but the harsh reality of the making of this movie was so disastrous that Disney doesn’t want the documentary to be released to the public.

Yzma pulling her bottom eyelids in The Emperor's New Groove

The Sweatbox Chronicles The Chaotic Production of The Emperor’s New Groove

The Sweatbox is a documentary by Trudie Styler that chronicles the messy production of Disney’s 2000 animated comedy The Emperor’s New Groove. Directed by Mark Dindal, The Emperor’s New Groove tells the story of Incan Emperor Kuzco (voiced by David Spade) who is transformed into a talking llama by Yzma (Eartha Kitt), his former advisor who wanted Kuzco’s throne for herself. Despite being a critical success, The Emperor’s New Groove underperformed at the box office (especially when compared to past Disney animated movies), but found success when it was released on home media, building a solid and loyal fanbase.

Kuzco as a human with Kronk and Yzma in The Emperor's New Groove

The Emperor’s New Groove’s disappointing box office performance wasn’t the movie’s only issue, as it went through a lot behind the scenes. When The Emperor’s New Groove was in pre-production, Sting was invited by director Roger Allers to write various songs for the soundtrack, and he agreed on the condition that his wife, filmmaker Trudie Styler, could document the production process. The Sweatbox takes its name after the screening room at the Disney studio in Burbank, which used to have no air conditioning, causing animators to sweat while their work was being reviewed.

Kuzco as a llama in The Emperor's New Groove

Styler recorded the struggles, troubles, and controversies that The Emperor’s New Groove went through way before it was titled like that, as the movie went through various changes before becoming the story that everyone now knows. The Sweatbox featured interviews with directors Allers and Dindal, producer Randy Fullmer, story artists, voice cast, and Sting, showing the many struggles, stress, and disappointment they went through when the story had to be changed and production was rushed and then delayed, and even included the moment Sting was informed that his songs weren’t going to be used anymore.

Happy Kronk with annoyed Yzma in The Emperor's New Groove

What Happened To The Sweatbox (& Where You Can Watch It)

The Sweatbox was originally planned to be released in early 2001, but later, a Disney-approved version premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2002. It later had a very short, limited, and unpublicized theatrical run before Disney decided not to release it. Disney owns the rights to The Sweatbox but hasn’t officially released it, and when parts of it leaked online in 2012, all videos were pulled. Scenes from The Sweatbox were later reworked into behind-the-scenes featurettes for the DVD release of The Emperor’s New Groove, but the full version of The Sweatbox has never been released and can’t be found online.

Kuzco in trouble as a llama in The Emperor's New Groove

How Different Was Kingdom of the Sun From The Emperor’s New Groove

When The Emperor’s New Groove was in pre-production, it was titled Kingdom of the Sun, and it was described as an “Inca-themed original story”. The crew even traveled to Machu Picchu, Peru, to study Inca artifacts and architecture as well as the landscape of the empire. Kingdom of the Sun followed a greedy, selfish emperor (also voiced by David Spade) who finds a peasant (Owen Wilson) who looks exactly like him, so they swap places. Meanwhile, Yzma plans to summon the evil god of death, Supay, to destroy the sun so she can become young and beautiful forever, and after learning of the switch between the prince and the peasant, she turns the real emperor into a llama. Yzma threatens to reveal the peasant’s identity unless he obeys her, while the emperor-llama learns a lesson of humility.

Kronk offering food to a happy Yzma in The Emperor's New Groove

The Emperor’s New Groove kept its Incan influence and setting but got rid of the peasant and changed Yzma’s plans. Kuzco, like the emperor of Kingdom of the Sun, learns a lesson of humility and kindness during his time as a llama, which is the same message the original movie planned to give. Although the behind-the-scenes chaos of The Emperor’s New Groove is now well-known, Disney continues to refuse to release The Sweatbox, which would be a very interesting look into the not-so-glamourous process of making animated movies and the many obstacles these can come across.