The Princess and the Frog: Reflecting and Foresight
Before the release of The Princess and the Frog in 2009, there were several princesses of color. Jasmine from Aladdin, the titular Pocahantas and Mulan, Kida from Atlantis, and Esmeralda from The Hunchback of Notre Dame were of varying backgrounds but showed Disney’s newfound commitment to make both educational stories and those that happened to have leads of color. Movies like Pocahontas are criticized, however, as a result of their tendency to remove atrocities for the sake of a heartfelt story. A similar sentiment is held by viewers for The Princess and the Frog.
Photo by Brett Wharton on Unsplash
My personal favorite Disney Princesses growing up were The Little Mermaid’s Ariel and Beauty and the Beast’s Belle. When The Princess and the Frog was released, I was only 6 years old. While Tiana was the first Black Disney princess, I couldn’t yet conceptualize the magnitude of such a character. The attributes that most resonated with me were Tiana’s creativity, tenacity, and dedication to her dreams. This allowed me to feel as connected to her as I did with my long-standing favorites, Ariel and Belle. Many people who saw the film when it was first released felt the same way, as explained by an NPR article from 2009. While it was remarked that early viewers expected Tiana to be yet another damsel in distress, she subverted this trope by being an independent woman.
The Princess and the Frog continues to hold cultural significance as a result of the milestone of Tiana’s Black identity. However, as we revisit, we are allowed to examine the critiques of this film and how they work to counteract this monumental moment in history. The most prominent criticism of The Princess and the Frog lies in Tiana being a frog for most of the film’s runtime. Black characters spending most of their screen time in animal form is not an uncommon occurrence, as seen in films like Soul and Spies in Disguise. In both films, like The Princess and the Frog, the Black protagonists spend a significant amount of time not being represented as human.
Of the total 97-minute run time, Tiana is a frog for 60 of them. While the filmmakers' creation of Tiana showed efforts to be more representative of our world, it even more so highlights the ways in which movies have fallen short. Representation of women of color in film does not simply mean having the character be a certain race, but also acknowledging the importance of telling a meaningful story. Writer Paula Barrow reiterates this in a 2022 article for Medium. “Tiana) is only allowed to be Black when it is convenient to explore, but not in the reality of being Black in New Orleans in the 1900s.” In other words, the mere implication of a Black lead seemed like an opportunity to meet a quota as opposed to one to explore the intricacies of the climate the story is set.
Photo by Ka’Neisha Davis, shown is the theming inside Tiana’s Bayou Adventure in Disney World
Neither The Princess and the Frog nor audience responses can be altered retroactively. However, Disney has made efforts toward amending the negativity associated with the film. Unveiled in 1989, Splash Mountain was a ride formerly themed after the movie Song of the South until its redesign started in 2020. Now, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, the log-style water ride, embraces much of Tiana’s culture, including references to the music of New Orleans and the intricacies of her job as an entrepreneur. Despite this, Tiana—a show greenlit by Disney as part of its efforts to promote diversity—has since been canceled. This inconsistency raises questions about Disney’s true commitment to diversity, suggesting that its efforts may be more about optics than sustained, meaningful change.
The Princess and the Frog will always be a milestone film. Tiana was able to combat the Black stereotype of laziness by being a hardworking, autonomous, and vocal Black woman with aspirations to start her own business. Though this is the case, the film still falls short in ways that I could only realize as I got older. For this reason, I think it is imperative that films aimed at a younger demographic still highlight the realities of experiences for women of color. The Princess and the Frog, while exceeding expectations at the time, could be a better film if made today. This emphasizes the importance for us to look back with a critical lens, as this is the most likely way for us to make contemporary films that have meaningful representation. What messages did The Princess and the Frog leave with you, and how have your views on it changed over time? In what ways do you think future films can build on its legacy to better reflect the experiences of women of color?
