Disney just announced that Tim Burton is going to be making an adaptation of its classic cartoon, “Dumbo,” and now People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has jumped into the picture, saying it’s the perfect time to change the ending and give the elephant and its mother a happier life.
The ending of the classic includes a shot of Dumbo flying, and a story line that finds him obtaining a private train car for him and his mother, who’s no longer chained. But PETA pointed to the fact that the elephants are still bound to their circus jobs, Mediaite reported.
“We’re hopeful that in your adaptation of Dumbo, the young elephant and his mother can have a truly happy ending by living out their lives at a sanctuary instead of continuing to be imprisoned and abused in the entertainment industry,” PETA senior vice president Lisa Lange said in a letter, the Hollywood Reporter said.
Lange also said in her letter that she does like “Dumbo” because “it tells the story of the heartbreaking abuse that elephants in circuses endure,” and sheds light on the reality that circus elephants only perform “because they’re afraid that they’ll be beaten if they don’t.”
Ringling Brothers, meanwhile, just announced they’re phasing elephants out of future circus acts.
