Walt Disney Animation Studios has officially abandoned its plans for the Tiana animated series.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the entertainment giant decided to scrap the animation series amid the company’s shift away from making original long-form content for streaming.
An unnamed animated feature set to go straight-to-streaming has also reportedly been canceled.
The Tiana series was first announced in December 2020 and was set to be a follow-up to Disney’s 2009 animated feature The Princess and the Frog, a film focused on the story of Tiana, Disney’s first Black canon princess.
The series, which was slated for release in 2024, would have seen Anika Noni Rose reprise her role as Tiana and, like its feature counterpart, would likely have showcased music inspired by the characters’ New Orleans roots.
Sources say repeated staffing changes prevented Tiana from reaching a viable development stage, making production costs unjustifiable.
Instead, Disney+ is now working on a short-form special based on The Princess and the Frog, written and directed by Joyce Sherri alongside Steve Anderson.
However, it’s still unclear whether the special will be a direct continuation of the beloved Louisianian culinary prodigy-turned-amphibian-turned-princess or an all-new twist on the classic Grimm Brothers’ tale.
Of course, fans were outraged by the cancellation, with many accusing Disney of paying into Trump’s DEI rollbacks. Others pointed out the recent uptick in the cancelation of Black-led productions.
Just last week, the Black Panther spin-off focused on Okoye, a fan favorite character portrayed by Danai Gurira, was also axed.
Universal also recently canceled Pharrell Williams’ Golden musical starring Halle Bailey, Janelle Monáe, Anderson Paak, and more. Even MTV’s Daria spinoff titled Jodie, starring Tracee Ellis Ross, met the same fate last year.
How to Die Alone star and creator Natasha Rothwell recently spoke on the matter after her show, which received 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, was canceled by Hulu.
“Now more than ever, television that amplifies previously unheard voices, and that prioritizes hiring and casting decisions that accurately reflect the diversity of the world, is essential,” Rothwell told Variety.
“Representation isn’t just about visibility — it’s about ensuring that our stories, our existence, and our cultural contributions are not erased.”
Rothwell said she’s continuing her search for a new home for her hit show, and maybe that’s the answer for other Black-led projects —finding a platform that truly supports Black creatives and audiences.
But at the end of the day, Hollywood needs to recognize the real value of Black talent and, more importantly, pay them what they deserve.
I’m still not over Princess Tiana Show being canceled. The way black girl content has been handled and treated by Disney and alot of the fans has left me so disheartened and tired. If it’s not there mostly conservative higher-ups, it’s the racist, misogynistic, and transphobic… pic.twitter.com/sb14aFSrCo
— Bella ????✨???? (@BellaLoveNote) March 4, 2025
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tiana cancelled but we getting frozen 3 and 4 AND a tanged remake pic.twitter.com/Degnok69kr
— ♍︎ (@eliyasnachos) March 3, 2025
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This was a chance for the first black Disney princess to truly have a moment & further develop her character & not be a damn frog the whole time…..
Moana’s show can get turned into a sequel but Tiana’s show just gets cancelled…. let that fcking sink in. https://t.co/G3dXPphsQg
— Elizabeth????Invincible Era (@Elizabeth_JxJ) March 3, 2025
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mind you disney scrapped the tiana series just after black history month ended…. i can smell the racism through and through pic.twitter.com/pfpqlxUAdJ
— angela ???? httyd era (@astrolst) March 3, 2025
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All that promo they did for Little Mermaid using black people for profit just to cancel all their original black properties like Tiana and Moon Girl…”Disney cares for black people” my ass https://t.co/DhAv6Zyf39
— KB (@KEB_20) March 3, 2025
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so trump win and disney cancels dei programs, cans the tiana series, cuts a trans plotline in a disney+ series, and stops promoting snow white properly, oh okay https://t.co/mVMEmFjTBG pic.twitter.com/vViMrWuwVo
— Emperor (@EmperorPiplup) March 3, 2025
