D23's three-day takeover of Anaheim wrapped Sunday afternoon with the kind of ceremony Disney does best: part nostalgia trip, part coronation.
Anne Hathaway, Bob Iger, Dwayne Johnson, the Jonas Brothers and Lin-Manuel Miranda were among 11 honorees inducted as Disney Legends at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Ryan Seacrest hosted the awards ceremony, which closed out the company's biennial fan expo with tears, laughter and at least one crowd sing-along nobody expected.
The Disney Legends Award is the company's highest honor, a 39-year tradition that recognizes individuals who have made a significant impact on the Disney legacy. The program dates back to 1987, when Fred MacMurray became its first recipient. With the 2026 class, 329 people now carry the title.
Hathaway's induction felt like a full-circle moment. She was honored more than two decades after making her Disney debut as Mia Thermopolis in 2001's The Princess Diaries.
She reprised the role in the 2004 sequel, The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, and later starred as the White Queen in Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass. The Devil Wears Prada 2 grossed more than $690 million worldwide, pushing the franchise total above $1 billion.
Hathaway was presented with the honor by The Devil Wears Prada and The Devil Wears Prada 2 director David Frankel, who praised her dedication to her craft. Frankel shared a story about finding her crouched in a corner while filming the first movie, listening to Puccini's Madama Butterfly.
He initially questioned why she would be listening to an operatic tragedy, then realized she was using it to add real emotional depth. Anna Wintour also honored the actress in a prerecorded video message.
"She is an amazing actress, but also a devoted mother, a loving wife, and the very best of friends," Wintour said, adding that "nobody deserves it more."
Hathaway told the crowd, "I am here today because I'm one of the most insanely lucky people in the world." During her acceptance speech she expressed gratitude for spending her life doing what she loves. "As cool as all this is, just us being us is where I'm happiest," she said. She was joined onstage by husband Adam Shulman and their two sons, Jonathan and Jack.
Earlier in the weekend, Hathaway made a separate appearance at the Disney Entertainment Showcase. She announced that the team is working hard on Princess Diaries 3.
Johnson brought a different energy entirely. When he took the stage, he said there was no script in the teleprompter. He shared thoughts from his heart. Emily Blunt, his Jungle Cruise and The Smashing Machine co-star, made a surprise appearance to present his award.
"When I first met Dwayne Johnson, I had assumed wrongly that he would have the energy of a man who was a sort of walking suplex," Blunt said. What she found instead was "someone who was so disarmingly wise, gentle, curious, totally unpretentious."
As he took the stage, Johnson emphasized that his most important role is that of father. He recalled the first time he took eldest daughter Simone to Disneyland, when she was five years old, and they had breakfast with the princesses. He then honored her by leading the entire Honda Center in a round of "Happy Birthday." That wasn't on the call sheet.
Former chairman and CEO Iger received what amounted to an all-star send-off. Current CEO Josh D'Amaro introduced him as "one of the most consequential business leaders of our time." Robert Downey Jr., Diane Sawyer, Harrison Ford, Ellen Pompeo and Al Michaels all paid tribute.
"It's your integrity and your kindness that will be your legacy forever," Pompeo said. Iger reflected on the responsibility to help make the world a better place and said an executive's true job is to support the creative talent that drives a company forward.
Beyond the marquee names, the 2026 class stretched wide. The Jonas Brothers were recognized for shaping a generation of Disney music, and Miranda for his songwriting on modern Disney favorites.
Jerry Bruckheimer's producing career earned him a spot for defining blockbuster storytelling, while Kim Irvine's decades of leadership at Walt Disney Imagineering were recognized for preserving heritage and championing creativity. Chris Berman, Susan Egan, Eric Goldberg and Alan Tudyk rounded out the class.
Samantha Barks closed the ceremony with a performance of A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes before the inductees gathered for a group photo alongside Disney characters.
The most recent prior class, in 2024, included Miley Cyrus, Kelly Ripa, Angela Bassett, Jamie Lee Curtis and Harrison Ford. Sunday's ceremony kept the scale and emotion of that precedent fully intact.
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