Disney reportedly canceled a new princess movie after several box office bombs. In recent years, the House of Mouse has been forced to rethink how it does its theatrical business, especially when it comes to its animated offerings. Movies like Wish, Strange World, and Pixar's Lightyear flopped at the box office, compelling the studio to focus more on known brands under the Disney umbrella rather than new IP.
This has resulted in movies like Moana 2 (which raked in over $1 billion at the global box office) being greenlit, as the studio seeks to reclaim some of the ground it has lost following the global COVID-19 pandemic. While this sequel-focused effort (which has bled into other parts of the Disney business, like at Pixar, Marvel Studios, and Lucasfilm) has seen some success for the Hollywood giant, it has also meant some projects may not get rubber-stamped that would have before.
According to The Wrap, one project that may have been abandoned in the wake of Disney's recent box office bombs was a new Disney Princess movie that never saw the light of day.
The canned Disney Princess project was reported to have been in development at Walt Disney Animation Studios. It would have focused on a new Persian princess and been primed for a 2024 release.
However, the studio reportedly abandoned the film after Strange World and Wish flopped at the box office, and Moana 2 was rushed into production (switching from a Disney+ series to a full-length feature film) to replace it.
Over the last decade, new additions to Disney's princess lineup have failed to take hold like those in the past have, with names like Wish's Ahsa and Raya and the Last Dragon's Raya.
The studio's last major success introducing a new princess character came in 2013 with Elsa and Anna, the leads in the beloved Frozen franchise.
Disney Animation returns to theaters later this year with the release of the long-awaited Zootopia 2. The new film marks the latest in a long line of sequels from the House of Mouse over the next couple of years. Following Zootopia 2, Disney's animated slate reads as follows: Hoppers, Toy Story 5, Gatto, and Frozen III.
Why Would Disney Cancel a Princess Movie?
Since Disney emerged as one of the biggest names in animation, the Disney Princess has been eternally attached to the iconic Hollywood studio. Whether it was Snow White, Ariel, Elsa, or Moana, dozens of princess characters have ingratiated themselves with fans over the decades.
That is why it may confuse some to see that a brand-new, never-before-seen Disney Princess movie got the boot amid Disney's change in theatrical strategy.
Ultimately, it likely has nothing to do with introducing a new Disney Princess character, but rather that it was an entirely unproven name with no history at the brand.
Disney (and the rest of the entertainment industry) has doubled down on known entities rather than entirely new ideas. This is why the studio has recently been greenlighting titles like Toy Story 5, a live-action Moana movie, and Frozen 3.
Audiences simply are not going to the theater to give something a chance like they were before, which likely scared Bob Iger and the rest of the Disney brass off producing this new Disney Princess film in favor of Moana 2 (read more about Moana's future here).
