Disney+ is in Dire Need of a Scene Selection Option for ‘Hamilton,’ ‘Frozen,’ and More

Whenever I’m not sure what I’m in the mood to watch, my heart pulls me to Hamilton on Disney+, and whenever that happens, I’m confronted with a dilemma. Disney+’s title screen nobly asks if I want to start the film all over again or if I want to resume play wherever I last left off. The problem is I don’t want to do either of those things. I want to jump to a specific performance in the film — usually, ironically, Leslie Odom, Jr.‘s electric solo, “Wait for it” — but I can’t do that.

If I have one serious problem with Disney+, it’s that I can’t skip ahead to my favorite parts of any of their music-driven films. I have been spoiled by decades of skipping ahead on CDs, DVDs, Blu-Rays, and Spotify to believe it is my solemn right to jump to the song I want to enjoy at that exact moment. Most streaming services don’t offer track listings or the ability to hop to a specific time code — YouTube being an exception! — but I never truly noticed how frustrating this reality is until I started watching films on Disney+. The Mouse’s streaming service is chock full of musical-based films, each with their own stand out moments. Which is why if any big streamer should recalibrate its UI to let folks skip to specific scenes, it’s got to be Disney+.

When Disney+ launched last fall, it was considered a risky move for such an exalted media company. Traditionally, Disney had kept its vast library of hits in its “vault,” giving every new VHS, DVD, Blu-Ray, or theatrical release a sense of cache. By limiting the public’s access to hits, Disney was adding to their luster.

However that all changed when Disney+ launched. A treasure trove of vintage animated shorts, quirky mid-century films, and all the marquis hits of recent years hit the streaming service. Now Disney+ subscribers could watch everything from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to The Mandalorian to Beyoncé’s Black is King at their leisure, on demand, anywhere they wanted.

Call me peevish, but all this accessibility to Disney’s content makes me want more. It’s not enough that I can now watch the original Broadway cast of Hamilton perform their masterpiece of a show whenever I want. I want to be able to skip to “The Schuyler Sisters,” “Wait For It,” or any of the other killer songs when the mood strikes.

The thing about Disney+ is this desire to jump around a musical film extends to way more titles than just Hamilton. Disney’s traditional animated features have almost always come with infectious, iconic scores. From Cinderella to The Little Mermaid, to modern hits like Moana and Frozen, all of these Disney classics have stand out musical moments that folks might…you know…want to jump to and play on repeat. (Though I understand watching Elsa’s “Let it Go” scene over and over again on an infinity loop may do some households more harm than good.)

Then there’s Disney+’s growing music doc slate. Beyoncé’s Black is King and Taylor Swift’s Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions are both exquisite additions to the Disney library that give viewers an immerse album experience. Nevertheless, I have found myself frustrated on my third or fourth rewatches of these films. (No, I don’t want to sit through Taylor Swift’s explanation for “Epiphany” again. I want to skip ahead to “Peace.” Argh!)

And so far, I’ve only been championing the boon a scene skip option would provide for Disney+ users watching musical films. How many people would love to jump ahead to the iconic “on your left” scene in Avengers: Endgame? Or the dazzling lightsaber battle in Star Wars: The Last Jedi? Right now, fans are more apt to cut the scenes and share them on social media or search for these moments on YouTube. A scene jump feature would keep those eyeballs on Disney+.

Sure any of the major streamers could introduce scene skip options, but it makes the most sense for Disney+. Their library of films are full of show-stopping musical moments, iconic action scenes, and fabulous individual performances.

So how about it, Disney+? Give us a scene select option for all of our favorite films!

Where to stream Hamilton