‘Tiana’ Disney+ Series Canceled, Special Moving Forward Instead
Writer-director Joyce Sherri will stay on to develop the new Disney Animation project with Stephen Anderson The post ‘Tiana’ Disney+ Series Canceled, Special Moving Forward Instead appeared first on TheWrap.
“Tiana,” a streaming series from Walt Disney Animation Studios that was meant to debut on Disney+ and continue the adventures of Disney’s first Black princess (voiced by Anika Noni Rose), is no longer moving forward at the animation studio.
Instead, Joyce Sherri, who was writing and directing on the animated series, will be helming an animated special that will find its home on Disney+. “Meet the Robinsons” director Stephen Anderson will also direct on the new project.
This is part of the House of Mouse’s strategic shift away from long-form animated series to instead focus on both its one-movie-a-year theatrical cadence, which will mix original series with sequels like the upcoming “Frozen 3” and “Frozen 4,” along with its short-form content like the “Zootopia+” and “Baymax!” series (both of which are Emmy winners).
There will also be a small reduction in staff at the Vancouver studio, but this indicates that Walt Disney Animation will operate like it did on “Moana 2,” with one studio stretched across two locations (the other location, of course, being the main Burbank campus).
“Moana 2” was originally envisioned as a streaming series before being reconfigured as a theatrical film. Released this past Thanksgiving, the “Moana” sequel ultimately made more than $1 billion worldwide.
“Tiana” served as a follow-up to 2009’s traditionally animated “The Princess and the Frog,” which was a new telling of “The Frog Prince” by the Brothers Grimm, only this time set in jazz-era New Orleans. While it wasn’t the biggest hit upon initial release, it has had a long tail, becoming one of the most popular titles in Disney Animation’s vast library and inspiring a popular Disney Parks attraction that opened at both Walt Disney World and Disneyland last year.
Walt Disney Animation Studios’ next feature, “Zootopia 2,” hailing from Jared Bush (also the studio’s chief creative officer) and Byron Howard, will hit theaters on Nov. 26, 2025.
The post ‘Tiana’ Disney+ Series Canceled, Special Moving Forward Instead appeared first on TheWrap.
