Disney Celebrates the 25th Anniversary of Anastasia!

Tis the season to appropriate princess movies your studio owns but didn't originally produce? After years of fans having to explain that Anastasia isn't a Disney Princess, Disney has decided to take advantage of their acquisition of this beloved property by releasing some new merchandise. Disney loves celebrating anniversaries of their films every time there is a milestone, and this year just happens to be the 25h anniversary of Anastasia. Now that the rights to this ground-breaking animated musical rest in the hands of the mouse, Disney is the only company that can celebrate this milestone, and they decided to do so in a small way--with some limited edition trinkets.

It started with a mug that was available for a short time on ShopDisney's website and at their theme parks. The mug featured a pattern of golden lace with ornate portraits of Anastasia and Dimitri on either side and an insignia of the famous "Together in Paris" necklace that Anastasia's grandmother presented her with at the beginning of the film. This single mug took the internet by storm due to being the first piece of Anastasia merchandise that was released under the Disney name. For a while, it seemed like this was the only promotional item the company was planning to reveal to celebrate the film's anniversary, though many fans are still clamoring for one of Disney's famous limited edition dolls. After the mug inevitably sold out, two more pieces of the December princess's merchandise appeared in their shops--a pin and a t-shirt.

As an owner of the San Fransisco Music Box company replica of the music box that helps Anastasia recover her memories in the film, I always secretly longed for the necklace that was meant to be the key to unwinding it. The new limited edition Disney pin is a perfect replica of that necklace with an intricate green and red Russian lotus on the front. It opens to reveal the famous "Together in Paris" message engraved on one side with an image of Anya and her dog Pooka as they begin their journey to find her identity on the other side. This pin is a beautiful collector's item that I feel is far more significant than the mug because it adds an authentic piece of the film to fans' ever-growing collection of pins and provides the perfect accessory to those who own the original music box. The pink women's shirt available on their website features an image of Anastasia in her yellow dress with a 25-year anniversary logo embroidered on the side.

So what does this mean for the movie's future? I don't think that Anastasia will ever be inducted as an official Disney Princess because doing so would be denying her roots as a film that Don Bluth created to compete with Disney. However, now that Disney owns this property, they can do whatever they want with it, which includes creating new merchandise. Right now, there are only two items available since the mug sold out, but that doesn't mean there won't be more in the future. I do not think that this movie will get the same treatment as the Disney Princess line, appearing on anything and everything found at department stores all over the world. Instead, I think these items will pop up throughout the year to celebrate the film's anniversary and come to an abrupt stop until the next milestone. It would be nice to have an array of dolls and accessories available from this beautiful movie, but to do that would most likely mean finding a time machine and traveling back to its initial release in 1997.

Seeing Anastasia merchandise produced by Disney came as a surprise to many fans over the past month considering the film's history with the company. I think this proves that you can't keep a great movie down, and as long as there are still people who love it. Anastasia has prove that it is here to stay by finding ways to continue appealing to its fanbase such as the Broadway show from a few years ago. Of the three items that Disney has released so far, my favorite is the limited edition pin because there has never been a piece of merchandise that portrayed the necklace from the film so accurately. Though it wouldn't surprise me if a few more odds and ends pop up here and there, I'm not expecting anything big in the future like a designer doll. That privilege is reserved for official Disney Princesses only. What would be your ideal piece of Anastasia merchandise, and what do you think Disney will release next from this beloved classic? Let me know in the comments!