The Princess and the Frog
Disney’s upcoming movie The Princess and the Frog has caused much controversy surrounding the main character’s ethnicity. For the first time ever, Disney features an African-American princess. Most people would think this is a beginning to a new start, but Disney has received so much criticism from the public concerning the stereotypes of the princess.
Issues/Changes:
- The original title of the movie, The Frog Princess
- The Princess’ original name, Maddy
- The Caucasian prince
Movie Title
The original movie title was The Frog Princess, but some people felt it implied black women are ugly and it just wasn’t an appealing title.
Comment from blog
“I am African-American female, who longed to see positive fairy tale type images of an African-American young lady. I must say however, I was IMMEDIATELY taken aback by the title The FROG PRINCESS. Ok, just think of the titles, CINDERELLA, Sleeping BEAUTY, POCAHONTAS, ALLADIN, all sound fantastical, fun and light. (And who did “the Princess and the Pea? Was it Disney) Anyway, she wasn’t called THE PEA PRINCESS. Uggh. The title THE FROG PRINCESS just didn’t sound in any way beautiful, fun, glamorous soft or light. It sounds hard.”
Princess’ Name
The original name of Princess Tiana was Maddy. People complained the name was a typical “black” person’s name and took offense to it.
Comment from blog
“I think changing the name from Maddie (The complaints I read noted that Maddie sounds a bit too similar to “Mammy”…and oh do we hate that stereotype) to Tiana is a good change. Tiana not only sounds more “ethnic” but also more regal and calls the image of a tiara, perfect for a princess.”
Caucasian Prince
Princess Tiana and Prince Naveen
There are many mixed feelings regarding the prince being Caucasian and not African- American. Many African-Americans found this offensive and wonder why the prince couldn’t be black.
Comment from blog
“What is wrong with the prince being black?? Why MUST he be anything but?? I don’t want my daughter growing up with fantasies of a white guy “rescuing” her. It kind of seems that the “prince” in Disney movies is usually white though, even with the other “ethnic” “princesess”. I was very excited about the movie until I found out that little tid bit…”
Other Racial Issues:
- The setting of the movie in New Orleans, dominantly African-American community
- Voodoo magic, stereotype of African-American
- Princess Tiana’s black features of wide hips and bigger lips
- Princess Tiana originally was a chambermaid
Although Disney has been blamed for being racists and stereotypical, the majority of the public feels people need to back off and stop making a big deal out of nothing. People should be more focused around the fact Disney is finally featuring an African American princess.
YouTube videos of people’s opinion
From a public relations perspective, I feel Disney is handling the issue very well. Racism is a sticky topic in general and mixing it with a well established movie corporation like Disney can be difficult. I think it was a good move on behalf of Disney to change some of the underlying problems the public was complaining about, like the title of the movie, the princess’ name, etc. For Disney, this isn’t the first time it has been blamed for being “racist.” Disney has received racial accusations from the movies Mulan, Aladin and Pocahontas. I feel the public needs to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. We should be celebrating the fact that Disney has incorporated an African-American princess into a movie .
Your Opinion
- What are you thoughts on the controversy?
- How do you feel about Disney incorporating an African American character?
- What are you thoughts on the prince being Caucasian?
- Is Disney handling the racial issues surrounding the movie well?
Media Diversity 