A live-action Tiana movie is officially in development at Disney. According to an exclusive report from Deadline, Colman Domingo is in talks to co-write the untitled project, which is being developed as an original story about Princess Tiana rather than a direct remake of the 2009 animated classic The Princess and the Frog.
An Original Story, Not A Remake
Domingo would co-write the screenplay with Robert O’Hara, the 2020 Tony-nominated director of Slave Play. Sources stress that the project is still in its early days, particularly when it comes to deals, and no director, cast, or release timeline has been announced. The creative approach is the headline here: instead of retelling the story audiences already know, the film would give Tiana an entirely new adventure inspired by the animated feature.
Domingo comes to the project on a hot streak. The two-time Oscar nominee picked up two more Emmy nominations this year, and he continues to balance acting work with writing and producing projects across film and theater. Pairing him with O’Hara, one of the most celebrated voices in American theater, signals that Disney wants this Tiana story to carry real dramatic weight.
Tiana’s Growing Presence At Disney
The Princess and the Frog was released in 2009 and remains the last fully hand-drawn animated feature from Walt Disney Animation Studios, directed by John Musker and Ron Clements. Tiana has only grown in prominence since, headlining Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at the Disney parks after the attraction replaced Splash Mountain. On the animation side, a planned Disney+ series was shelved, but a standalone Princess and the Frog animated special is still in the works.
The original story angle is also notable given the current climate for Disney’s live-action slate. After softer than expected results for recent beat-for-beat remakes, building a brand new Tiana adventure could be exactly the kind of fresh approach the format needs. We will keep following this one as deals close and more creative details emerge.
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