Anika Noni Rose, the Tony Award-winning actress who brought Disney’s first Black princess to life in The Princess and the Frog (2009), has broken her silence following Disney’s abrupt cancellation of the highly anticipated Tiana spin-off series.
The project, announced in 2020 as a Disney+ original, was set to continue Tiana’s journey as she navigates life as a restaurateur and leader in 1920s New Orleans. But after years of development, Disney quietly scrapped the series earlier this month, a decision Anika Rose called “deeply disappointing” in an emotional Instagram post.
Rose, who reprised her role as Tiana for the series, shared her candid thoughts with fans:
“I, too, am deeply disappointed that the continuation of Tiana’s journey in series form has been cut short,” she wrote. “The series was a long time coming, and a lot of beautiful work was put into it by all of the creatives involved, including but not limited to long-time champion Jenn Lee, our wonderful writer/director Joyce Sherri, some fabulous animators, and an amazing music team.”
In sharing her disappointment, the Tony-winning actress urged her fans to come out and support when the “Tiana” special is broadcast.
“As hurtful as it is for anything you’ve put your heart and soul into to be prematurely ended, my hope is that when what is now to be a Tiana Special Event airs, that all of you beautiful, loving, loyal fans who’ve been championing not just the series, but a Princess and the Frog sequel, tune in. Tell your friends, family, coworkers, babysitters. Show your love and your desire in the numbers. Make that desire an undeniable and real thing.”
Last week, after five years of development and facing challenges with updating Splash Mountain, including backlash from Song of the South fans, Disney decided to cancel the unreleased spin-off, Tiana, based on The Princess and the Frog. While company insiders assert that the show “could not get to where it needed to be given production costs,” given the situations with the trans character in Win or Lose and the company’s commitment to dismantling its DEI initiatives, it was inevitable that CEO Bob Iger would recall working on a project featuring its only Black princess.
