Miley Cyrus tearfully accepts Disney Legend, makes history

ANAHEIM, Calif. − It took two Hollywood stars to welcome Jamie Lee Curtis into the Disney Legends club.
A pair of “Freaky Friday” leads − Lindsay Lohan, who starred in 2003 remake, and Jodie Foster, who starred in the 1976 original − inducted Curtis, 65, during the Disney Legends Awards Ceremony on Sunday. The event, held before an audience of 12,000 fans at the Honda Center, closed out Disney’s D23 Fan Expo.
“The magic of Jamie Lee Curtis is that she is timeless,” said Lohan, who is making the sequel “Freakier Friday” with Curtis. “I feel so blessed to have Jamie as a friend in my life, and lucky to work with a woman I love so much.”
This year’s 14 Disney Legends honorees also include actors Angela Bassett, Miley Cyrus and Harrison Ford; actress and host Kelly Ripa; filmmakers James L. Brooks, James Cameron and Frank Oz; composer John Williams; Disney costumer Colleen Atwood; tour guide-turned manager/producer Martha Blanding; comics artist and writer Steve Ditko; animator Mark Henn; and theme park designer Joe Rohde.
The Disney Legends Awards Ceremony will stream on Disney+ starting Monday (5 EST/2 PST).
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Foster gave a laughter-filled speech thanking Curtis for their long Hollywood friendship, pointing out that the “Scream Queens” star is a prolific online shopper for her friends.
“She’s so thoughtful and kind, she makes me want to punch her in the face,” said Foster. “She did buy me the best bras I have ever owned. Thank you, Jamie, for looking out for my boobs.”
Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger inducted “Star Wars” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark” legend Ford, 82, who received a deafening standing ovation. Ford was emotional in his speech, holding back tears as he said to fans, “I love the life you’ve given me.”
Ford returned to the stage with Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy to honor legendary composer Williams, 92, who was unable to attend.
“It’s no exaggeration to say that John Williams is the greatest film composer of all time,” said Kennedy of the five-time Oscar winner.
“John has written the soundtrack of our lives,” Ford added.
Disney Legends host Ryan Seacrest introduced his “Live With Kelly and Ryan” co-host Ripa, 53. “You have a magic power, you really do,” Seacrest told her.
Ripa immediately took a loving swipe at Seacrest on the stage. “I’m just so glad you found something else to host,” she said.
Employed by ABC for 34 years, Ripa said she owed “everything” to Disney, right down to meeting her “smoking hot husband,” Mark Consuelos, on the set of “All My Children” 30 years ago.
“We even made our three children in the Disney lab backstage,” said Ripa. “Just kidding. We made them in our dressing room. Just kidding again.”
Country singer Lainey Wilson introduced Cyrus, pointing out that her first job was performing as Hannah Montana at “birthday parties, festivals, you name it.”
Wilson performed “Best of Both Worlds,” one of 15 “Hannah Montana” tracks she learned “from front to back” for the job.
“You inspired me to believe in myself,” Wilson said, thanking Cyrus for “kicking butt no matter what.”
The pop icon, 31, made Disney history as the youngest-ever Disney Legend. Cyrus immediately got choked up when she took the stage to accept her Legend award, predicting, “I’m definitely going to cry.” She followed through on her own promise while reminiscing about her breakout role on the Disney Channel teen TV sitcom Hannah Montana, which ran from 2006 to 2011.
“There was a buzz in that Burbank Disney office where it’s rumored that they create all of us Disney Kids,” said Cyrus. “I definitely wasn’t created in a lab, but if I was, there must have been a bug in the system that caused me to malfunction somewhere between the years of 2013 and 2016.”
Cyrus thanked her “Hannah Montana” army.
“Much has changed since that day, but at the same time, nothing has changed at all,” Cyrus said. “I stand here still proud to have been in ‘Hannah Montana.’ This award is dedicated to Hannah and all of her amazing, loyal fans. To quote the legend herself, ‘This is the life.’ ”
“Black Panther” filmmaker Ryan Coogler welcomed Angela Bassett into the Legends club and recalled watching the movie “Boyz N the Hood” in 1991 at age 5 and “Malcom X” in 1992.
“I remember being blown away by Angela’s performance,” said Coogler. “That was the start of our relationship.”
Bassett, who received an Oscar nomination for her role as Ramonda in 2022’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” called Coogler a “true visionary” and thanked fans.
“You are the magic,” said Bassett. “There are not enough words to say how much I appreciate you.”
She concluded: “Thank you once again for recognizing me. I am now a Disney Legend.”
Animator Mark Henn was honored for his work animating or creating some of the most timeless characters in Walt Disney Studios history, including Tiana, Mulan, Simba, Jasmine, Belle, Ariel and Mickey Mouse.
The voices behind famed Disney Princesses took the stage to honor Henn: Jodi Benson (Ariel, “The Little Mermaid”), Paige O’Hara (Belle, “Beauty and the Beast”), Linda Larkin (Princess Jasmine, “Aladdin”), Ming-Na Wen (Fa Mulan, “Mulan”), and Anika Noni Rose (Tiana, “The Princess and the Frog”).