By Kayla DeKraker
Disney wants in on the Labubu craze, so they released their own plushy line called Urupocha Chan.
The Disney-themed line feature characters like Winnie the Pooh, Donald Duck and Eeyore. While Urupocha Chan items were previously only available in China and Japan, they recently became available in America on the DisneyStore.com website.
One Instagram user posted a video inside a Disney store and highlighted all of the cute, classic characters available.
People in the comment section seemed to love them. “What an adorable series!” one user said. Another person added, “They look so soft.”
Variety explained that “Each of the palm-sized figures have exaggerated ‘teary-eyed’ proportions. In Japanese, uru means ‘teary‑eyed,’ pocha means ‘chubby,’ and ‑chan is a suffix conveying affection.”
The Labubu craze has taken culture by storm, but the toy’s story begins as a character in a book titled The Monsters by Kasing Lung.
The Hong Kong native moved to the Netherlands when he was 7 and became fascinated with Nordic mythology. Lung said of the Labubu craze in an interview, “That’s why I wanted to create something that I’ve always known existed in my heart. It’s amazing that so many people love it.”
Related: What’s a Labubu? The Internet’s Latest Viral Sensation Explained
Disney’s Urupocha Chan line, on the other hand, was originally created for “aesthetics-driven Japanese domestic market, where storytelling and cuteness in merchandise are a core aspect of much of the country’s culture and art,” Variety said.
Although speculations about Labubu’s popularity continue to swirl, the monster key-chains have clearly tapped into something.
Michelle Parnett-Dwyer, a curator at the Strong Museum of Play in Rochester, N.Y., believes the Labubu obsession stems from childhood nostalgia.
“I think there’s a lot of things where the popularity among adults or young adults stems from childhood nostalgia,” she said. “I think play is crucial for everybody at all ages. It helps us to engage with each other. It helps us in a way — it’s a cliché — but it helps us to stay young.”
This week, a crew of burglars even stole thousands of dollars’ worth Labubu merchandise. The burglary occurred at One Stop Sales in Southern California, and CBS News reported that some of their “higher-end” Labubus can go for as much as $500.
The Urupocha Chan line isn’t the only plush toy Disney hopes to sell fans. The company just announced a new line-up of Squishmallows, a super soft plushy, and “Wishables,” Disney character plushies with sparkly eyes.
Will Disney’s Urupocha Chan line be able to oust Labubu’s dominance? Probably not, but plushy fans will certainly love the nostalgic items.
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