Cultural symbol or stereotype? Disney’s Captain Durag divides opinion

Disney is currently facing criticism for its new children’s TV show, “Hey A.J.”, specifically regarding the introduction of a superhero character called Captain Durag. Critics accuse Disney of disrespecting Black culture by using a durag as the character’s mask to conceal his identity.

This followed after Captain Durag’s clip from the series trended on X. People started pointing out that Disney used stereotypes and made a disrespectful portrayal of the black community because the durag is often used by the Black community.

The American animated children’s television series debuted on Disney Jr. on January 13, 2026, and became available for streaming on Disney+ the following day.

🔥🚨BREAKING: Disney is under massive backlash from the Black community for launching a children’s tv show featuring a new superhero created by Disney Jr. called Captain Durag who can be seen flying around the with Durag covering his face as a mask.

Many Black Americans feel… pic.twitter.com/PEFK7hLMjQ

— Dom Lucre | Breaker of Narratives (@dom_lucre) February 16, 2026

The series draws its inspiration from Martellus Bennett’s book, “Hey AJ, it’s Saturday,” which he wrote about his children. Captain Durag, a character who appears in the series, was created by Bennett and is based on a figure from the book.

The series centres on AJ, an imaginative preschooler (voiced by Amari McCoy), who transforms everyday situations into extraordinary adventures through imagination. With her best friend, Jessie (Juliet Donenfeld), and her parents, Mom (Jhené Aiko) and Dad (Bennett), AJ demonstrates that imagination can be just as exciting as reality.

Then there is Captain Durag, who can be seen in the show flying around with a durag on his face as a superhero’s mask, serving the duties of a hero.

The depiction of the durag in the cartoon “Hey A.J.” sparked a controversy on X, dividing opinions among users as they commented:

User @IndiaDionna commented, “As for me and mine, we love Hey A.J. and will continue to watch… some of us do way too much over nothing. Super proud of Martellus Bennett and this cartoon he brought to life that represents our culture. My 2.5-year-old loves it!”

Another user @Minuvovn commented, “Disney really sat in a meeting and said yeah lets make a superhero whose power is wearing a durag during black history month, and NOBODY raised their hand.”

@AyooTexanNation also commented, “I don’t see a problem. A black father, representation, & durags have been said to be a cape for black men.”

pic.twitter.com/PV6C0PKkZk

— Martellus Bennett (@MartysaurusRex) February 17, 2026

Following significant public backlash and comments from netizens, Bennett took to X to release a statement defending his work. He asserted that “Captain Durag is not a distortion of Black life. Your views on him are. Captain Durag is a celebration, a reflection of Black life.”

He further elaborated, “he’s a reminder that the things we grew up with, the things we used to transform ourselves in the mirror, the things that shaped our sense of self. The things that made us feel bigger and braver than the world allowed are sacred. And they deserve to be treated that way, even on Disney.”

He elaborated that if the durag offends, the issue might not lie with the durag itself. Instead, the real problem could be the lack of exposure to seeing Black creativity treated as something sacred, heroic, and deserving of a cape.

According to Dom Lucre, Disney took down this video and many other Captain Durag videos from their YouTube channel. “I was able to recover this footage of his theme song.”  

Disney has not yet addressed the accusations regarding the content’s alleged stance against Black culture.

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