In fact, there were also a significant number of Black commenters calling it Disney's "lazy" attempt at on-screen representation, with one person writing, "The reason studios make beloved characters black in the live action adaptations is so they don't have to go to the trouble of actually giving special, brand new ...
Disney casting a black actress to play Tinker Bell has caused backlash. Disney has been trying to be diversely inclusive in their casting towards Disney remakes so that a range of actors can audition for roles that were previously played by white actors.
Yara Shahidi knows that being the first Black actor to play Tinker Bell is bigger than just her. The "Black-ish" actress opened up on "Good Morning America" Monday about playing the beloved Disney character in the live-action film "Peter Pan & Wendy," premiering Friday, April 28, on Disney+.
Representation of an African American woman as a love interest and a beautiful being should become natural. This version of The Little Mermaid is great for young people because it allows them to better appreciate diversity and gain a better sense of the world.
Ultimately, The Little Mermaid is fiction, and, as an imaginary character, Ariel can have skin of any color. Given that the cartoon versions of the princesses are dominantly white, Black and brown children will benefit greatly from being able to view more Disney princesses who look like them.
Voiced by Anika Noni Rose, Princess Tiana marked an important shift in the way Disney portrays its princesses, bringing us not only a princess who is willing to roll up her sleeves and work hard for what she wants, but also the very first Black princess in Disney history.
In Disney's nearly 100-year history, there has been only one Black Disney princess — Princess Tiana in “The Princess and the Frog,” a 2009 animated feature starring Anika Noni Rose. The singer Brandy starred in a 1997 made-for-TV film version of “Cinderella,” a remake of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical.
Inspired by Polynesian mythology, Moana is depicted as the strong-willed daughter of a chief of a Polynesian village, who is chosen by the ocean itself to reunite a mystical relic with the goddess Te Fiti.
John Lasseter suggested taking the fairy tale The Frog Prince and setting it in New Orleans. The idea of making our heroine African American simply grew out of the setting and that was an integral part of the story we pitched to John in March of 2006. We all thought it was a great idea.
No one tossed food or popcorn," Edie clarified, adding, "We kept the money." But with the water a bit over-chlorinated and the slight problem of those overeager male guests, the park stopped hiring swimmers to play mermaids, former Disney Imagineers Bruce Gordon and David Mumford wrote in Disneyland: The Nickel Tour.
Tinker Bell's situation was quite different, because she was removed so that she could star in her own franchise known as Disney Fairies.
Tinker Bell was an original member of the Disney Princesses,but it was quickly decided that she was so special that she should have a group of her own, leading to the creation of the Disney Fairies. She is joined by Silvermist, Rosetta, Fawn, and Iridessa.
First there was the issue of casting an actress of color in the role of Ariel, the mermaid protagonist who in the 1998 cartoon was white-skinned and red-haired. Now another controversy has arisen with actor Stefano Tomadini, who plays one of the tritons in 'The Little Mermaid'.
Tinkerbell will also be portrayed by mixed heritage actress Yara Shahidi, best known for her role in the sitcom Black-ish (2014-2022), which marks a first for Disney, in a marked deviation from the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Tinkerbell that is arguably the most well-known Disney mascot after Mickey Mouse.
Disney already has a black fairy (Iridessa); they could have fleshed out a story with her and the other fairies,” another said, referring to one of the main characters in the Disney Fairies franchise.
Her country of origin, for example, has been frequently disputed. While some claim Jasmine is Arab because the movie opens with a song called Arabian Nights, others believe that the architecture in Agrabah is clearly based on the Taj Mahal, making Jasmine Indian.
Born Angela Gisela Brown, Princess Angela of Liechtenstein – wife of Prince Maximilian – is known as the first European princess of African origin to marry a member of a reigning European dynasty. She was originally born in Bocas del Toro, Panamá, though her parents primarily raised her in New York City.
Princess Tiana, the main character of “The Princess and the Frog”, is the only African American Disney Princess on record. She is a young woman with big dreams, and literally works to achieve them.
Although Moana is from the fictional island Motunui some 3,000 years ago, the story and culture of Moana is based on the very real heritage and history of Polynesian islands such as Hawaii, Samoa, Tonga, and Tahiti. In fact, once you start looking for ties to Polynesian culture in Moana, it's hard to stop!
So it all works out in the end: Moana is not from Hawaii, and neither is she from New Zealand. She has to come from Tonga or Samoa, the two first archipelagoes where the Polynesian People was born. They were the only Polynesian islands with a population at the time…
Elena de Avalor is Disney's first Latina princess.
Princess Ananya, has been confirmed by the team, but they have also added that it's quite in the early stages and the team isn't even close to launching her. Having grown up with Ariel, Elsa, Rapunzel, and Snow White, having a Disney Indian princess is a big step towards cultural representation.
There are currently only seven Caucasian Disney Princesses: Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Rapunzel, and Merida. Snow White and Rapunzel are German. Cinderella, Aurora, and Belle are French. Ariel is Danish.
1. The little mermaid in the book was white. Here is how Hans Christian Andersen described the little mermaid: “They were six lovely girls, but the youngest was the most beautiful of them all.