Tim Burton says he's 'done' with Disney after Dumbo remake, compares it to working in 'horrible big circus'

After more than 40 years, Tim Burton is ready to hang up his Disney crown.

The Nightmare Before Christmas creator, who began working at the famed studio as an animator fresh out of college, told Deadline that he has little interest in collaborating with Disney ever again after the "horrible big circus" he found himself in while helming his 2019 Dumbo remake.

"My history is that I started out there. I was hired and fired like several times throughout my career there," he said. "The thing about Dumbo is that's why I think my days with Disney are done: I realized that I was Dumbo, that I was working in this horrible big circus, and I needed to escape."

Burton added, "That movie is quite autobiographical at a certain level."

The director also criticized how Disney has shifted away from smaller projects in favor of focusing on its more established Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars franchises. "It's gotten to be very homogenized, very consolidated," he said. "There's less room for different types of things."

And the idea of dabbling in the Marvel universe isn't exactly his thing. "I can only deal with one universe," Burton said. "l can't deal with a multi-universe."

Burton has directed, produced, and released multiple films with Disney, including the 1993 Halloween hit The Nightmare Before Christmas; 1996's James and the Giant Peach; 2009's Alice in Wonderland and its 2016 sequel, Alice Through the Looking Glass; 2012's Frankenweenie; and Dumbo.

So where does he go from here? Well, Burton's not entirely sure. However, he doesn't think independent films are the right avenue either. "Here's the thing: Independent film, I don't know," he said. "I've only worked mainly with studios, so I never really understood what an independent film was."

For now, fans can expect to see Burton's delightfully dreadful imagination come to life in Netflix's forthcoming Addams Family comedy series, Wednesday.

Representatives for Disney did not immediately respond to EW's request for comment.

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