Bruce Vaughn, the president and chief creative officer of Walt Disney Imagineering, has started writing on the side. On November 5 he launched a Substack under the pen name B. Evan Vaughn, a space he calls The Curious Mind, and his first full essay takes on simulation theory, the idea that our universe could itself be a simulation.
The publication’s own description doesn’t hide who is behind it. It says B. Evan Vaughn explores imagination, creativity, human behavior and the stories we tell ourselves, and that as Bruce Vaughn he is president and chief creative officer of Walt Disney Imagineering.
What He Plans To Write
Vaughn’s welcome post lays out the plan: essays, observations and occasional fiction about human behavior, science, philosophy, art, belief and memory. He is upfront that he isn’t writing as an expert.
“I’ve spent much of my professional life creating worlds. Imagined places made real through storytelling, technology, design, and the collective efforts of extraordinarily creative people,” he writes. “It’s a wonderful way to make a living, and it has taught me something I’ve come to believe deeply: imagination isn’t simply an escape from reality. It’s one of the ways we understand it.”
He also warns readers that the fiction “may wander into darker territory,” listing mystery, wonder, humor, love and loss among the places it could go, and says he reserves the right to change his mind.
The First Essay Starts In The Parks
The second post, “The Comfort of an Answer, the Power of a Question,” runs more than 3,000 words, and early on it turns to something any Disney fan will recognize. Vaughn writes about watching an idea that started as a conversation become “a place that thousands of people can enter and experience,” and about guests who know a world was built by people and still feel real wonder inside it.
“The castle may be an architectural invention, the landscape carefully arranged, the characters performing roles, and the sounds and lighting entirely deliberate,” he writes. “None of that necessarily diminishes the experience. The emotions are real. The joy is real. The memories are real.”
From there he moves to simulation theory and why the idea “doesn’t particularly disturb” him. He is careful to say it is not a religion, and that religious belief is not a technological hypothesis, but he argues the two can share some of the same psychological appeal. He also points out the obvious catch: if our universe is simulated, asking who built it just moves the mystery one level higher.
Free To Read
Both posts are free and open to everyone, and readers can subscribe at no cost to get new pieces by email.
Vaughn’s day job is keeping Imagineering busy too, including testing robots that could help guide drivers in Disney parking lots.
For all the Disney news without the clickbait make sure to follow our accounts! Facebook | Twitter | Threads | Instagram | TikTok
