The companies deny that the end of the 10-year deal has been brought about because of fears about the obesity crisis, particularly the issue of marketing junk food to children.
The Los Angeles Times had reported that family-friendly Disney broke off the agreement because it did not want to be associated with obesity.
But McDonald's released a statement saying the newspaper's story was based on hearsay. The ABC News website, which is owned by the Walt Disney Company, is reporting that the two companies may work together again in the future.
The ABC site reports Lisa Howard, a spokeswoman for McDonald's, saying: "The only thing that's changing is that it's no longer an exclusive arrangement. Previously, if we wanted to partner with Sony, we couldn't. Now we can go to Sony, DreamWorks, Disney, etc... We're talking with a number of other studios about a variety of promotions."
The deal between McDonald's and Disney is set to cover two more films, the 'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest' sequel, which sees Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley and Jack Davenport all return, and the animated feature 'Cars'.
McDonald's has been responding to criticism by introducing healthier foods and choices such as fresh carrots, bottled water and sugar-free soft drinks, along with the traditional French fries, burgers and chicken nuggets.
If you have an opinion on this or any other issue raised on Brand Republic, join the debate in the .