The D23 Expo Is Here With Lots of Disney Princess Announcements!

Disney fans from all of the world are gathering at the Anaheim Convention Center this weekend to celebrate the D23 Expo, the ultimate Disney fan event. The Expo contains all the biggest announcements about upcoming Disney shows, experiences, and merchandise, and it is an absolute blast to experience in person. Its most anticipated event, the Disney Entertainment Showcase, took place Friday night. A whole slew of trailers, performances, and exclusive footage was revealed for all of the upcoming Disney movies over the next three years. Three of these included Disney Princess franchises – Snow White, Moana 2, and Frozen 3 and 4. However, the vast majority of the announcements consisted of sequels, remakes, and spinoffs, meaning there is still no update on the Penelope movie that was announced two years ago.

The Snow White trailer was one of the last to be revealed during the Disney Entertainment Showcase due to it being one of the most heavily anticipated (or dreaded, depending on your stance) projects of Disney's upcoming itinerary. The trailer contained the first official footage of this film released, confirming that Rachel Zegler's cartoony-looking dress leak was in fact her official costume. Although this film's very existence makes a mockery of the historical impact of the first fully animated feature film of all time, the trailer does a good job of recreating some of the most iconic moments of the original film in live-action. It teases glimpses of Snow White at the wishing well, Gal Gadot as the jealous even queen, the impending threat of the apple, and Snow White's gentle nature when she flees from a deer in the forest thinking it's a monster and then befriends it. The cozy look of the film with its warm sunlight, lush greenery, and whimsical-looking CGI dwarves create a feeling of magical realism, which makes sense for this story but takes away from the magic of the original hand-drawn medium.

Another clip that was revealed exclusively at the Expo was a full performance of the song "Whistle While You Work." Unlike the trailer, this scene had many differences  in comparison to the original film. Since Rachel Zegler is a talented singer, I was surprised that the sang the song in a low pitch compared to her more Snow White-like performance in the 2021 remake of West Side Story. There are noticeable lyric and story changes to this scene that unnecessarily detract from Snow White's femininity. In the original film, she gave some commands to her animal helpers and finished with "I'll take the broom." Here, she gives the same commands to the dwarfs, implying that she has already met them before she began cleaning their house, and tells Happy "You take the broom," which he responds to with his usual cheer. This sets Snow up as a strong independent woman who doesn't need to do menial tasks to earn her keep. The new Snow White tells the dwarfs what to do and doesn't need their permission to stay in their home. The line from the original song about imagining that the broom is someone that you love has also been changed because true love is now a bad thing that modern princesses don't need.

Earlier in the showcase, the full-length trailer for Moana 2 was released along with an exclusive performance from Auli'i Cravalho. The trailer introduces Moana's new little sister, Simea, securing the modern status quo for Disney Princesses valuing sisterly love over romantic love. This footage reveals more of the plot than the teaser did, but it still sounds similar to the original film. Once again, there is a supernatural threat that forces Moana to set sail across the sea to protect her people, and she must reunite with Maui. It even shows her encountering the coconut enemies from the first film again. The biggest difference in this movie is the presence of Simea, which gives Moana someone to protect and foreshadows that Moana 2 might have a similar climax to Netflix's Damsel and Hulu's The Princess. Instead of embarking on this quest alone, Moana leads a team of new wayfinders who she likely trained in her village, giving the film Raya and the Last Dragon vibes.

The final set of princess-related announcements from the Entertainment Showcase revolved around Frozen, a movie that I have a love/hate relationship with. Not only are the two more sequels in the works for this box office blockbuster, but there is also a pro-shot of the Broadway musical coming to Disney+ next year. I am personally more excited about the pro-shot than I am about the sequels. Frozen the Musical is by far my favorite Disney on Broadway adaptation of an animated film. Since not everyone has the budget to take themself and their family to see live theater, I support the professional filming and distribution of these shows to make them available to a wider audience. I am less eager to see another mediocre sequel that will end on a cliffhanger in anticipation of yet another sequel to come at a later time. Wicked seems to have started a trend of two-part movies amongst the musical community, and we are not amused. Frozen 3 is scheduled for 2027, so it's too early for any footage, but the panel presented a beautiful concept art of Anna and Elsa riding horses in what appears to be an enchanted glen. Though the film promises to present stunning visuals, the convoluted plot of the second installment is likely to get even more unnecessarily complicated by a two-part story.

Aside from the Entertainment Showcase, there were many princess performances and displays for fans to enjoy. The D23 Expo did not present a panel with more news about the Tiana series that was announced four years ago, but they did have a beautiful display on the exhibit floor to remind fans that it might still happen someday. In honor of this iconic character, there was a new performance of "Almost There" by Coco Jones and a Sunday panel detailing her history. Another exciting presentation was an exclusive performance of Disney Princess: The Concert featuring a star-studded cast of Susan Egan, Paige O'Hara, Jodi Benson, Syndee Winters, and Courtney Reed. Lucky fans who waited in line for the Shop Disney booth had a chance to purchase some of the newest additions to the Midnight Masquerade collection, which premiered at the Expo I attended in 2019. The Limited Edition Designer Dolls were inspired by new artwork by Steve Thompson. In addition to these limited edition dolls, the Shop Disney website recently released a gorgeous replica of Ariel's music box from the animated version of The Little Mermaid that is available right now in honor of the film's 35th anniversary.

This year's D23 Expo delivered a plethora of exciting announcements and performances for Disney Princess fans. The Disney Entertainment Showcase revealed exclusive footage and trailers for upcoming movies, including Snow White, which is coming out March 21st of next year, Moana 2, which is coming this November 27th and Frozen 3 in 2027, as well as a pro-shot of the musical in 2025. While some announcements were met with excitement, others, like the lack of updates on the Penelope movie, were disappointing. The Expo also featured princess performances, displays, and exclusive merchandise. Although there was no update on the Tiana series, the exhibit floor display and concert performance hinted at the possibility of its eventual release. Overall, the D23 Expo is a celebration of all things Disney, with a focus on nostalgia, magic, and the future of Disney Princesses.