‘Raya and the Last Dragon’: Is Raya the Next Disney Princess?
Raya is a fearless warrior, who even teamed up with a dragon in Disney’s latest animated film, Raya and the Last Dragon.
Is this character, voiced by Kelly Marie Tran, a Disney princess? Which characters are included in the studios’ official lineup? Here’s what we know about this animated movie, now available on Disney’s streaming platform.
Raya of ‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ is the first Southeast Asian Disney princess
Humans and dragons once lived together in harmony. After the dragons made big sacrifices to save humans, most of them perished. Years later, it was up to one brave warrior and her dragon friend to team up to save their world from monsters.
That warrior was Raya, a princess who put everything on the line to stop the Druun for good. Outside of her role in Raya and the Last Dragon, Raya is also a historic character in the Disney universe, as she is the first Southeast Asian princess.
Is Raya included in Disney’s ‘official princess lineup’?
There are twelve characters included in Disney’s official Princess Lineup. Those princesses are Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Rapunzel, Merida, and Moana.
There are some characters of royal descent in the Disney universe that aren’t in this lineup. That includes the sister duo, Anna and Elsa from Frozen and Vanellope von Schweetz.
Although Raya has not officially been added to the princess list, some expect her to join characters like Mulan, Belle, and Ariel later this year.
Kelly Marie Tran of ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ voiced Raya
Some know her as Rose from movies of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, including The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker. Tran voiced the title character in this Disney movie, a warrior named Raya.
“It carries a lot of weight,” Tran said during an interview with ET Online. “Now we’re at this movie that really broadens the narrative in terms of, ‘What do we think of when we think of the word princess? What do we think of when we think of the word hero?’”
“It’s really cool to be part of something that feels really monumental to this current time,” she continued. Other voice actors in this adaptation include Awkwafina as the dragon, Sisu, and Gemma Chan as Namaari.
Raya and the Last Dragon is available for streaming on Disney+ with “Premier Access.” That means that for an extra fee, Disney fans can watch this animated feature on any device. This wouldn’t be the first or the last Disney flick released with Premier Access.
In 2020, the live-action adaptation of Mulan became available early for an additional fee before it was released to all Disney+ users. To learn more about Disney’s subscription service, visit their website.
