Raya and the Last Dragon

[Clindor]

'tis okay

[DisneyFan09]

You know, I recently looked back at it and it didn´t looked misquoted. No offence. If so, could you show me the proof?

[Sotiris]

I already took care of it, fellas. It's all good.

[DisneyFan09]

Thanks, Sotiris

[D82]

Thanks for the info, Clindor! Is this how Raya looked in the footage shown as well?

Absolutely! In fact, before the directors and cast came on stage to present the movie and showed us, actually, quite a few things! (you can argue they showed us more about Raya and the Last Dragon than they did with Frozen II, the latter being, oddly enough, more hold into secrecy for commercial reasons than Raya), there was at the beginning of the panel a compilation film showing very short clips of the movies that were about to be discussed during the panel. When Raya turn came (and so nobody knew anything about it: we only heard about the Dragon Empire draft that leaked in 2018 back at this time) there were two frames of Raya herself walking through a large corridor inside a very dark temple. 1st frame: you could see her from behind holding a torch and with the same Asian conical hat (from the picture shared above) on her head. 2nd frame: it was a close-up on her face, half-masked, so basically a quick insight on her eyes ^^ (the third frame (actually the first) being the movie title.) All this is to say: you couldn't see much about the lead character herself until they present the movie.. one thing that struck me was how thin the character was, and how she had a long face ... so much that I first thought from this glimpse it was a male character ^^! (I can't remember if you could distinctly see her hair, but anyway they would have been in the obscurity and I think a piece of cloth covered them, also an Asian male lead could have had long hair) ... So it's a very different female design from what Disney got us used to! (and I like it!! )

EDIT: In the diverse footage showed during the movie presentation: she doesn't always look that serious though.

Thanks for the answer and for the new details!

[Farerb]

Get a first look at Disney's Raya and the Last Dragon starring Kelly Marie Tran
https://ew.com/movies/raya-last-dragon- ... arie-tran/

[estefan]

Also important to note Carlos Lopez Estrada is now co-directing the movie with Don Hall.

I'm not sure why Cassie Steele has been replaced, but I'm really happy for Kelly Marie Tran. I wonder if this article and announcement means there might be a trailer next week to time with "Mulan"'s premium debut. Would be neat if a teaser played before the movie to replicate the theatrical experience.

[Musical Master]

Interesting that Raya has been re-cast, Kelly might be the best choice for the part overall I think. Not to mention the director changes as well that honestly took me by surprise.

[Farerb]

I don't like this. It sounds like last minutes rewrites after some animation was done and movies like these tend to turn out mediocre. However they really need to find a new theme other than "she redefines the Disney Princess". It's really getting old and only creates antagonism.

[estefan]

Isn't this a normal occurrence in animated film production, though?

The movie in your avatar completely redid the ending, even though it was already animated. Aladdin was redesigned, even though animation had already started (some glimpses of his Michael J. Fox-inspired design still appear in "Friend Like Me"). The decision to change Elsa's personality and promote Jennifer Lee to director on "Frozen" happened well into production. Plus you have movies like "The Emperor's New Groove" and "Toy Story 2", that were almost entirely retooled even though animation had begun.

So I don't find these recent hires that unusual. Tran and Estrada have probably been on board the film for a while now. We're only just currently hearing about it, because I assume Disney is going to start the marketing campaign soon.

[Sotiris]

Wow, I didn't expect these major shake-ups in front and behind the camera when the film seemed so close to completion. The directors got replaced and the lead recast. Paul Briggs was demoted to co-director (aka assistant director) and Dean Wellins was completely ousted. I feel sorry for Dean Wellins because he's been trying to direct a feature at WDAS for decades. He got replaced on Rapunzel and Raya and his other project Cosmic 3000 was outright canceled.

I wonder what caused such radical changes so late in the film's production. Based on the information in the EW article, not a lot seems to have changed, at least not on the surface. Perhaps Raya no longer has a brother since he isn't mentioned at all. I assume the third female character the producer is talking about will be the villain.

Interesting that although Raya is the daughter of a chief she's already referred to as a princess unlike Moana. When the studio was promoting Moana they went to great lengths to distance themselves from the princess label. I think this means it's already been decided she will join the Disney Princess line-up. That will make her the third daughter of a chief in the line-up after Pocahontas and Moana.

[Jules]

Also important to note Carlos Lopez Estrada is now co-directing the movie with Don Hall.

I'm not sure why Cassie Steele has been replaced, but I'm really happy for Kelly Marie Tran. I wonder if this article and announcement means there might be a trailer next week to time with "Mulan"'s premium debut. Would be neat if a teaser played before the movie to replicate the theatrical experience.

Which means Dean Wellins is out?

It must be so frustrating for him that every film he as attached to as director is either cancelled or retooled or gets a director change. Why does this happen so much to him?

I’m friended with Mr Wellins on Facebook but I don’t dare ask him what happened both because of potential secrecy he may need to maintain and also because he may be feeling very bitter about it and the last thing he needs is some pesky fan pestering him for information.

[nomad2010]

I think a lot of you are forgetting Covid threw a major wrench into the production of this. A lot of films have used this time to step back, retool, and hone things in. They knew from the get go there was no way this would ever make its original release date. And if you’d watch the making of Frozen II you’d know the last 4 months are usually when animation is completed and fully rendered, not before. So for once, I really wouldn’t worry too much with this one. They have more time than normal, and that’s probably going to be a blessing for them.

Replacing directors probably also happened a while ago, but with the virus things have been delayed announcement-wise obviously. And recasting Raya, I don’t know. That’s actually the most interesting thing to me about the article. I’d love to know if they just wanted a bigger name or if the new time frame of the movie wasn’t lining up with the original actress’ other commitments? Either way, Kelly Marie Tran is wonderful and deserves this. I’m excited to see what she does with it.

[Farerb]

Isn't this a normal occurrence in animated film production, though?

The movie in your avatar completely redid the ending, even though it was already animated. Aladdin was redesigned, even though animation had already started (some glimpses of his Michael J. Fox-inspired design still appear in "Friend Like Me"). The decision to change Elsa's personality and promote Jennifer Lee to director on "Frozen" happened well into production. Plus you have movies like "The Emperor's New Groove" and "Toy Story 2", that were almost entirely retooled even though animation had begun.

So I don't find these recent hires that unusual. Tran and Estrada have probably been on board the film for a while now. We're only just currently hearing about it, because I assume Disney is going to start the marketing campaign soon.

You may be right, but all I was thinking while reading this is that this is going to turn out like Brave. Don't know why. I do like KMT and I'm glad she's in it.

[Sotiris]

Close-up of Raya. Is it me or does she look a little different? The angle makes it difficult to tell.


Source: https://twitter.com/DisneyRaya/status/1 ... 6474408974

[DisneyFan09]

Well, it`s nice that there`s finally an article about Raya. Thought it`s still a pity that it doesn`t reveal much, besides the picture. But it`s remarkable how the article states that it will have a third female protagonist. Wonder who she`ll be. But due to Disney`s secrecy-policy, I`ll bet she`ll be revealed at the very end (just like the secondary characters of Ralph Breaks the Internet and Frozen II). It`s notable how also the article cites that Raya will be a skilled warrior. But wonder if she`ll actually save the day through her fighting and action, instead of being promoted as a badass heroine who doesn`t save the day with violence (cough, Merida and Moana, cough).

Interesting that although Raya is the daughter of a chief she's already referred to as a princess unlike Moana. When the studio was promoting Moana they went to great lengths to distance themselves from the princess label. I think this means it's already been decided she will join to Disney Princess line-up. That will make her the third daughter of a chief in the line-up after Pocahontas and Moana.

Yup, it`s interesting, indeed. I thought Disney would actually dare to break the mold and make a female lead who`s not a princess, for once. After having a whole decade churning out Princess after Princess. But nope, I guess they couldn`t resist to fill her in the lineup. But at least she`ll be more suitable for the lineup than Mulan.

[disneyprincess11]

What a huge shakeup for not only the lead actress, but the production team as well! Poor Paul Briggs! I met him when I visited WDAS (He gave me a exclusive Elsa sketch as a prize for their trivia dinner ) and he was gushing about the movie. At least, it has the new direction team is good.

I, for one, am not shocked about Cassie Steele being replaced. Disney thrives on big name stars now and I was shocked that they hired a former TV actress from the 2000s for a leading role. It seems like they had auditions right after Cassie left too, so it doesn't seem like the executives randomly hired her for name value.

I'm also really glad that we have official princess confirmation and that we will have a second Asian Disney Princess. It does sound like a last-second change since D23 only described her as a warrior. I have it on good word that it sounds like that the heroine in Encanta is also a "princess" type character, so we'll have two Disney Princesses in 2021. I just hope Disney makes boy movies again. They're on girl overload And yay, new villain! FINALLY!

[Sotiris]

But it's remarkable how the article states that it will have a third female protagonist. Wonder who she'll be.

It's going to be this character (unless things got changed since then) who's probably going to be the villain. If she were a mentor to Raya or some other benevolent character the producer wouldn't have a problem revealing it.

I have it on good word that it sounds like that the heroine in Encanto is also a "princess" type character, so we'll have two Disney Princesses in 2021.

Do you know if she fits with the rest of the princesses in terms of design and age? Is she a kid like Alice or Penny or is she a late teen like the other princesses?

[disneyprincess11]

It's going to be this character (unless things got changed since then) who's probably going to be the villain. If she were a mentor to Raya or some other benevolent character the producer wouldn't have a problem revealing it.

Interesting guess. I assumed that it's her mother. Now that Raya is indeed a princess, her elegant dress explains a lot. Or could the third female protagonist be a love interest?

Do you know if she fits with the rest of the princesses in terms of design and age? Is she a kid like Alice or Penny or is she a late teen like the other princesses?

From what I can remember and without saying too much, my source just told me that she's "the youngest" of her family. I honestly had a kid pictured in my mind, but we all know Disney enough to know that she should be a late teenager, esepecially if she's a "princess." And plus, there are no kid princesses in the lineup at the moment and I honestly can't picture a kid princess. Gigantic was cancelled a year or two after its announcement, so God knows what would have happened to Inma, esepecially since she was going to be a literal giant princess. Little Mermaid 2 was a DVD sequel, so Melody, despite being Ariel's daughter, doesn't count. Ralph Breaks the Internet flopped, so that unfairly destroyed Vanellope's inclusion, besides her big connection to the princesses and how Disney pretty much re-wrote her to be included in the lineup. Sofia the First was a TV show, so no Sofia.

[Disney's Divinity]

What a shame Steele was re-cast. And a director change, too? I thought this was chugging along, not having problems. :/ I just hope there's not drama BTS and that the film still turns out good regardless.

Naturally Raya will be joining the princess line. Now Mulan is no longer the only Asian princess in the line. You know, on that point, with both this and the Mulan re-make intended for 2020--I wonder if both films were put into production based on a decision to cater to the Chinese market? It might explain why both Mulan's music was removed and why this wasn't a musical if, for whatever reason, they think musicals somehow don't appeal to Chinese audiences? I don't know why they would think that though.

@Sotiris: I agree, her face looks different there, but hopefully it is just the angle and they didn't change the design. I liked what they had revealed for the character before. The sword also looks more like the sword Mulan takes from Shan-Yu than what we saw in the first concept image for the film