Three decades after its theatrical release, “A Goofy Movie” is known to Black millennials as an undeniable Black Disney classic. The new Disney+ documentary “Not Just a Goof” gives a nod to lifelong Black fans and reflects on the 1995 Kevin Lima-directed movie and how it almost didn’t make it to theaters.

In “Not Just a Goof,” Lima admitted to being “quite shocked” upon the discovery that the African-American community had embraced this movie.” “Looking back at it, it lives in its DNA,” he shares.

While Disney’s ‘A Goofy Movie’ was intended to be for all backgrounds, at its core, the film particularly resonates with Black viewers for its relatability, character design (female characters are shapely in comparison to beloved Disney princesses) and a coolness that earlier, more child-like animated movies, didn’t have. The release of ‘A Goofy Movie’ also represented how different the story was compared to projects that included lily-white or anthropomorphic Disney characters. As covered in “Not Just a Goof,” in-house support was limited since the flick wasn’t focused on a hero vs. villain narrative, but instead, the father-son journey between Goofy and Max.

But ‘A Goofy Movie’ lived in Black fans all along, with the movie being saluted in a 2022  episode of former FX show ‘Atlanta.’ In the fictionalized documentary from the episode, titled ‘The Goof Who Sat by the Door,’ a Disney’s first Black CEO set out to make the “Blackest movie” ever, which he achieved with ‘A Goofy Movie,’ although meeting a tragic demise. In reality, the film isn’t just regarded for being a slow-burn success, but also had two classic songs that were courtesy of Black artists.

As revisited in “Not Just a Goof,” Bruce W. Smith, who would go on to create “The Proud Family,” was a character designer on “A Goofy Movie,” and would also bring vocalist Tevin Campbell to the table as fictional singer Powerline. The singer emulated Prince and Bobby Brown, with the latter being considered as voice actor, Campbell was eventually tapped, along with Rosie Gaines and backing vocalists The Waters. Motivational “Goofy” tracks “I2I”and “Stand Out” continue to be among ‘90s Disney classics and, in 2025, continue to be fan favorites on TikTok among those who grew up with the movie and first-time viewers. 

So even if “A Goofy Movie” didn’t exactly ‘stand out’ during the Disney Renaissance against powerhouses like “The Lion King,” “Aladdin” “Mulan,” in the Black community, its legacy is resounding for making us feel seen.