Disney Will Not Allow Grieving Family To Use Spiderman Image On Young Boy's Grave

Sep 09, 2019 by apost team

When it comes to a parent’s worst nightmare, losing their child is one of the first things that comes to mind. That’s exactly what the parents of Ollie Jones found themselves experiencing when their sweet son lost his two-year battle with a rare genetic disease. Ollie and his six-year-old sister, Laillah, both suffered from something called leukodystrophy and, sadly, the disease finally took the little boy’s life.

A huge fan of Spiderman, Ollie loved his superheroes. In an effort to honor his little boy’s love for the character, Ollie’s dad decided that the best way he could send his son on to his final destination was with a huge Marvel-based funeral and a headstone with Spiderman etched into the stone.

While the funeral went forward as planned complete with a horse-drawn carriage that was arrayed in blue and red balloons, Ollie’s dad was heartbroken to discover that the headstone would be more challenging to accomplish.

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After speaking with Disney and pleading for their permission to use the superhero’s image on Ollie’s headstone, Mr. Jones was discouraged when Disney announced that he could not move forward with his plan.

Why was Disney so opposed to the family’s wishes to honor their little boy? According to Disney, it was because they wanted to maintain Spiderman’s sense of “innocence” and “magic”. While it’s understandable that Disney might not want their character associated with a funeral, it was terribly discouraging to Mr. Jones, who can only guess that it is an issue of money.

Mr. Jones explains that his entire point of having Spiderman on the stone was simply to capture his little boy’s sweet spirit when he goes to visit his tomb at the Maidstone Peninsula at Kent in The Independent. He baffled by their decision.

Mr. Jones refused to accept that Disney truly is worried about maintaining a sense of innocence since, as he pointed out, Disney movies frequently have characters that die. Instead, he can only feel like the choice has something to do with money and the need for more cash for the large company.

During Ollie’s time on earth, the Jones family was happy to purchase him as many Spiderman toys as they could find; however, their time spending money on Disney is a thing of the past. After seeing the lack of regard that Disney has for their loss, Mr. Jones explains in The Sun that they “don't care” and that their time spending extra money was over.

Despite their decision, Mr. Jones has not given up. Instead, he has taken to Facebook to spread his story in hopes that Disney will have a change of heart and will allow Spiderman to be included on the memorial.

While Disney recognized his public appeal, they remain staunch in their decision. They offered a hand-inked, hand-painted celluloid that was personalized to commemorate Ollie’s love for the popular Marvel character; however, they continue to say that the memorial engraving is out of the question.

Can you understand Disney’s decision or do you think that they are being ridiculous when they chose not to allow Ollie Jones to have Spiderman on his memorial? Leave your thoughts below and then ask your friends to chime in as well!