Disney Princess
Disney Princess, also called the Princess Line,[2] is a media franchise and toy line owned by the Walt Disney Company. Created by Disney Consumer Products chairman Andy Mooney, the franchise features a lineup of female protagonists who have appeared in various Disney franchises.
Disney Princess
Animated films
2000–present
- Kilala Princess
- Disney Princesses series
- Disney Princess Comics
Disney Princess
- Dolls
- Palace Pets
- Comics line figures
Palace Pets[1]
The franchise does not include all princess characters from the whole of Disney-owned media, but rather refers to select specific female lead characters from the company's animated films, including only protagonists of animated films from Walt Disney Pictures, with twelve characters from the Walt Disney Animation Studios films and one character from a Pixar film, and with the term "Princess" for the franchise being used as a title in a way unrelated to the royal title, being used as a term for specific heroines who have shown notable qualities. The thirteen characters in the franchise consist of Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Rapunzel, Merida, Moana, and Raya.[3]
The franchise has released dolls, sing-along videos, apparel, beauty products, home decor, toys, and a variety of other products featuring some of the Disney Princesses.[4] Licensees for the franchise include Glidden (wall paint), Stride Rite (sparkly shoes), Fisher-Price (plastic figurines), Lego (Lego sets), Hasbro and Mattel (games and dolls).[5]
Fantasy Faire
Operating
March 3, 2013
Carnation Plaza Gardens
Princess Fairytale Hall
Operating
September 18, 2013
Storybook Court
Operating
May 7, 2016
June 16, 2016
The Royal Reception Hall
Operating
December 13, 2017 (temporary)
December 14, 2017 (temporary)
November 21, 2020 (reopened)
Princess Pavilion
Operating
Meet-and-greet location
Gothic-inspired village & fair
Media[edit]
Films and television[edit]
Princess Party Palace (formerly known as The Princess Power Hour) was a programming block on Toon Disney from 2000 until 2007, where it used to air episodes of The Little Mermaid and Aladdin.
The Disney Princesses' television appearances were compiled into the Disney Princess Collection, a series of compilation VHS cassettes containing episodes from Aladdin and The Little Mermaid as well as two Beauty and the Beast specials. A later DVD series was released, entitled Disney Princess Stories, featuring content similar to the previous release.
Belle had her own live-action television series titled Sing Me a Story with Belle. The first eight Disney Princesses also made appearances on the animated TV series House of Mouse. Cinderella, Belle, and Snow White also made cameo appearances in the TV animated series Mickey Mouse. The television special The Little Mermaid Live! starred Auliʻi Cravalho as Ariel.[58] The 2022 TV special Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration starred H.E.R. as Belle.[59]
In early 2007, Disney announced Disney Princess Enchanted Tales, a new series of direct-to-video features that feature new stories for the Disney Princesses. The first film in the series entitled Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams, was released on September 4, 2007. It is a musical film featuring a new tale about Princess Jasmine and the first new tale about Princess Aurora since the original Sleeping Beauty. Originally, Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: A Kingdom of Kindness was announced as the first film in the series, which contained a different Princess Aurora story, and had a Belle story rather than a Princess Jasmine story. Disney made this change without any sort of notice. The series was cancelled and only Follow Your Dreams exists.[60]
The TV series Once Upon a Time, which aired on the Disney-owned ABC, featured live-action versions of Snow White, Cinderella, Belle, Aurora, Mulan, Ariel, Rapunzel, Merida, Jasmine, and Tiana. Snow White and Belle are main characters, while the rest made recurring and/or guest appearances. Beginning in season 7, Cinderella, Tiana, and Rapunzel are main characters. Many of these characters are patterned after the Disney versions, but a few draw inspiration from older stories.
The TV series Sofia the First premiered on January 11, 2013, on Disney Junior. Cinderella appeared in the first film, Once Upon A Princess. Jasmine, Belle, Aurora, Snow White, Mulan, Tiana, and Merida have appeared on the show, and Ariel and Rapunzel appeared in the TV specials The Floating Palace and The Curse of Princess Ivy, respectively. However, Sofia is a minor princess and not in the royal court. She is voiced by Modern Family star Ariel Winter. In 2017, the TV series Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure debuted with the television film Tangled: Before Ever After serving as the pilot. In December 2020, it was originally announced that Tiana and Moana would have spin-off TV shows, both airing on Disney+, with Moana: The Series debuting in 2024 and Tiana set for a later date. However, in February 2024, Moana: The Series was transformed into Moana 2, which is set for release on November 27, 2024, while Tiana will still be airing on Disney+ at a later date.[61]
In the films Maleficent (2014) and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019), Elle Fanning plays Aurora.[62][63] Lily James portrays Cinderella in the eponymous 2015 film.[64] Emma Watson is seen as Belle in the 2017 film Beauty and the Beast.[65] Naomi Scott stars as Jasmine in the 2019 film Aladdin.[66] Liu Yifei appears as Mulan in the eponymous 2020 film.[67] Halle Bailey plays Ariel in the 2023 film The Little Mermaid.[68] Rachel Zegler has been cast to portray the title character in the upcoming 2025 film Snow White.[69]
The Princesses, along with Anna and Elsa (and Moana, who was not included in the franchise until the following year), make guest appearances in the 2018 film Ralph Breaks the Internet. This film marks the first direct interaction between the characters in an animated Disney feature.[70] Rich Moore and Phil Johnston, the directors of Ralph Breaks the Internet, said that a film focusing on the Disney Princesses could be made depending on the audience's response and "if there's a good story to be told."[71]
In 2021, Disney Channel began to air shorts in the Chibi Tiny Tales series, a loose follow up to Big Chibi 6 The Shorts, based on the Disney Princess franchise. The first episode, "Moana As Told By Chibi", was released on August 27, 2021.[72]
An animated Lego special, Lego Disney Princess: The Castle Quest, was released on Disney+ on August 18, 2023. The special stars Snow White, Ariel, Tiana, Rapunzel, and Moana, in an adventure to stop the evil plans of Gaston (main antagonist of Beauty and the Beast).[73]
The Princesses, excluding Merida, appeared in the short film Once Upon a Studio (2023) in celebration of Disney's 100 anniversary.[74]
As of 2024, five Disney Princess films have been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant":
