Disney Princess is a media franchise owned by The Walt Disney Company. Created by Disney Consumer Products chairman Andy Mooney in the late 1990s, the franchise spotlights a line-up of fictional female heroines who have appeared in various Disney animated feature films. The franchise is currently comprised of eleven female protagonists from ten different Walt Disney Animation Studios films and one Pixar film who are either royal by birth, royal by marriage or considered a "princess" due to their significant portrayal of heroism in their film. Most of the unofficial Disney Princesses don't join the line-up either because marketing is not successful, their film's box office gross did not fare well, or they are too young.
The original Disney Princess line-up featured Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas and Mulan. It later expanded to include Tiana, Rapunzel and Merida after the successes of their respective films. Princess Moana, the star of Disney's upcoming feature Moana, is expected to join the line-up in 2016.
The Disney Princesses are featured in various sing-a-long video series released through The Walt Disney Company. In addition, the franchise includes dolls, miniature castles and other toys. The Princesses are also featured very prominently at the Disney theme parks.
Since 2013, with the exception of those created after the Disney Renaissance, the Princesses are showcased in their enhanced and modified redesigned outfits (excluding Ariel and Mulan) instead of the ones that they wear in their own movies.
It is heard that Anna and Elsa the Snow Queen from Frozen will not join the Disney Princess line-up.
Moana[]
Moana is an upcoming Disney Princess musical film set to be released on November 23, 2016, featuring Moana, a spirited teenager who will also be Disney's first Polynesian princess.
