When Disney bought 20th Century Fox, all eyes turned to 'X-Men', 'Deadpool' and the 'Fantastic Four', as the deal saw the franchises fall back into Marvel's hands. The superheroes aren't the only characters that Disney have bought however, because with the purchase comes Princess 'Anastasia' among other individuals.
Since its release, 'Anastasia', which tells the story of the youngest daughter of the Romanov family, has repeatedly been incorrectly considered a Disney film. The error isn't in vain however, because a handful of the animators that worked on the production have also been known to work for Disney, so the style of the images used for 'Anastasia' is very familiar. Despite the widespread confusion, 'Anastasia' has always belonged to Fox. Following the merger, fans all over are celebrating how 'Anastasia' is now technically a Disney Princess. Illustrator Dave Salamanca posted an image on his Instagram page depicting Anastasia being crowned by none other than Mickey Mouse. The image looks very similar and may even be based on a similar image from 'The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement'.
Me: The Disney buyout of 21st Century Fox is a chilling image of giant media corporations slowly fusing together into an omnipotent hydra of capitalism.
? Matt Kersey (@katmersey) December 14, 2017
Also me: Anastasia is a Disney Princess now!!! ???? pic.twitter.com/ZJSDn8qtMU
So all those years correcting people that Anastasia is not a Disney Princess was all for nothing, wasn't it?
? Michael Ruocco (@AGuyWhoDraws) December 15, 2017
Is Anastasia truly a Disney Princess?
Although the majority of us are celebrating the fact that 'Anastasia' now belongs to Disney, only eleven characters currently belong to the Disney Princesses club. The title isn't just awarded to anyone; those fortunate enough include, Snow White, Belle, 'Mulan' & Tiana. Princess Kida from 'Atlantis: The Lost Empire', Meg from 'Hercules' and Princess Eilonwy from 'The Black Cauldron' haven't made the cut. Giselle from 'Enchanted', 'Moana' and 'Star Wars' Leia are also excluded. Most shockingly of all, despite the success of the film, Elsa nor Anna from 'Frozen', have been invited into the club.
Why? I hear you ask. There's a variety of reasons; 'The Black Cauldron' and 'Atlantis', weren't considered successful enough, whilst there were issues over the image rights to Amy Adams' and Carry Fisher's characters in 'Enchanted' and 'Star Wars'. When a new Princess is crowned, a coronation takes place at Walt Disney World Orlando. The latest Princess crowned in this way was Merida from 'Brave'. Whilst it's highly unlikely Anastasia will be chosen to join the select group, it's still early days and so anything is possible.
