Mickey’s Christmas Carol returns to ABC on Wednesday, November 25, 2026, airing from 8 to 8:30 p.m. ET/PT on The Wonderful World of Disney the night before Thanksgiving. It is reportedly the 1983 classic’s first ABC broadcast since 2003, and at Walt Disney World, fans can see the whole story told in six window scenes at the Emporium on Main Street, U.S.A. in Magic Kingdom.
The airing kicks off ABC’s 2026 holiday schedule, with Mary Poppins following on Thanksgiving night. Its last ABC airing was reportedly in December 2003, as part of A Merry Mickey Celebration for Mickey’s 75th birthday, and it later found a home on ABC Family, now Freeform. If you cannot wait until November 25, it also streams on Disney+.
The Story Behind Mickey’s Christmas Carol
Mickey’s Christmas Carol opened in U.S. theaters on December 16, 1983, alongside a rerelease of The Rescuers. It was the first original Mickey Mouse theatrical cartoon in more than 30 years, and it earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film. Director Burny Mattinson based much of it on a 1974 Disneyland Records album, An Adaptation of Dickens’ Christmas Carol, and Alan Young voiced Scrooge McDuck. NBC gave it its first TV broadcast on December 10, 1984.
The casting is half the fun. Scrooge McDuck plays Ebenezer Scrooge, Mickey is Bob Cratchit, Minnie is Mrs. Cratchit and Donald is nephew Fred. Goofy plays Jacob Marley, Jiminy Cricket is the Ghost of Christmas Past, Willie the Giant is the Ghost of Christmas Present and Pete is the Ghost of Christmas Future. Mr. Toad plays Fezziwig, Daisy Duck plays Isabel and Morty plays Tiny Tim.
Mickey’s Christmas Carol in the Magic Kingdom Emporium Windows
On Main Street, U.S.A., the story plays out in six dioramas in the windows of the Emporium, each paired with an open storybook that quotes the film. The scenes have a long history at Walt Disney World. They were first displayed at the old Disney Village, now Disney Springs, and moved into the Emporium windows for the 2009 holiday season. In recent years they have returned each holiday season, usually by early to mid November, so you may be able to see them in person before the ABC broadcast. Here is every scene from our photos, matched with its storybook page.
Scrooge’s counting house. Bob Cratchit, played by Mickey, works at his desk as nephew Fred, played by Donald, arrives with a holly wreath. Fred wishes everyone a Merry Christmas, Scrooge grumbles that Christmas is “just another workday,” and Fred answers, “I say Merry Christmas anyway.”
Marley’s Ghost. Goofy’s Jacob Marley drags his heavy chains into Scrooge’s room while Scrooge cowers in a red wingback chair. “I’m doomed! Doomed!” Marley wails, warning that the same fate is waiting for Ebenezer Scrooge. Look for the bronze door knocker shaped like Marley’s face in the display, a nod to Dickens’ original story, where Marley’s face appears on Scrooge’s door knocker.
The Ghost of Christmas Past. Scrooge and Jiminy Cricket peer through a frosty window at Fezziwig’s Christmas party, where young Scrooge stands with Daisy Duck’s Isabel. Scrooge spots “lovely Isabel” and his younger self, and the Ghost reminds him, “Yes, Scrooge, that was before you became a miserable miser consumed by greed.”
The Ghost of Christmas Present. Willie the Giant towers over a holiday feast as the Ghost of Christmas Present, while Scrooge peeks out from behind his bed curtains, begging not to be eaten. Willie asks why he would want to eat “a distasteful little miser like you” when there is so much generosity to go around.
The Ghost of Christmas Future. Pete, as the Ghost of Christmas Future, looks down through the graveyard fog as Scrooge slides toward a grave marked with his own name. Pete calls him “the richest man in the cemetery!” and Scrooge finally cries, “I’ll change my ways!”
Christmas Day at the Cratchits’. The final window shows a changed Scrooge arriving at Bob Cratchit’s home with gifts for the whole family, from a toy drum to a wagon full of toys. “Merry Christmas, Tiny Tim!” Scrooge says, and Morty’s Tiny Tim answers, “And God bless us, everyone!”
Mickey’s Christmas Carol airs Wednesday, November 25, 2026 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. ABC’s holiday season continues with The Wonderful World of Disney: Holiday Spectacular on November 30 and the Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade on Christmas morning.
