DVDizzy Forum

friendoftheotherside wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 7:29 pm Hey, guys! I’m new here. I’ve just created my account here so I could ask if anyone knows what happened to this movie? Last October, I was told that the movie was far along in production. It was scheduled to be released this November and it would be announced after Wish. I don’t know much about the plot, only that it would have a female protagonist that was some kind of fairy/magical creature. I was very excited to learn more about it. So anyone have a clue?

Watch this 1 minute video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rdhqt6n2g1Q
She said the original movie is based on a Persian tale since the director is Iranian, I'm not sure what Persian tale the story is based on.

Someone made a tweet that two original movie is in development at Disney and they said that the earning call is for the investor and not the audience so he's announcing sequels to insure the investors that Disney will make bank this year. Disney will probably announce the original movie at D23, assuming it's not canceled. Also the fact the Moana is being animated at a different Studio and Zootopia 2 at the American studio, it's possible they are created two studios so they can make more movies. I really hope that's the case.

https://twitter.com/KyleKozmikDLuxO/sta ... 8219925741

reee9948 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 7:51 pm

friendoftheotherside wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 7:29 pm Hey, guys! I’m new here. I’ve just created my account here so I could ask if anyone knows what happened to this movie? Last October, I was told that the movie was far along in production. It was scheduled to be released this November and it would be announced after Wish. I don’t know much about the plot, only that it would have a female protagonist that was some kind of fairy/magical creature. I was very excited to learn more about it. So anyone have a clue?

Watch this 1 minute video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rdhqt6n2g1Q
She said the original movie is based on a Persian tale since the director is Iranian, I'm not sure what Persian tale the story is based on.

Thank you. I’ve seen that video before. But I don’t think that she was a Princess. At least, not in the same way that Jasmine was. All I know is that she was some kind of fairy and she was going to help a little girl.

reee9948 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 7:55 pm Someone made a tweet that two original movie is in development at Disney and they said that the earning call is for the investor and not the audience so he's announcing sequels to insure the investors that Disney will make bank this year. Disney will probably announce the original movie at D23, assuming it's not canceled. Also the fact the Moana is being animated at a different Studio and Zootopia 2 at the American studio, it's possible they are created two studios so they can make more movies. I really hope that's the case.

https://twitter.com/KyleKozmikDLuxO/sta ... 8219925741

I really hope we get to see this movie. But it really seems that it was cancelled. Because Disney Animation had only one slot per year reserved between 2024 and 2026. And now we know that Moana 2, Zootopia 2 and Frozen 3 will be released on those dates. Frozen 4 probably will be released in 2027. So we could only get an original movie in 2028? If we don’t get a Encanto 2 by then. Unless they change the calendar and we get a year with 2 Disney Animation movies, Suzi Yoonessi’s project was probably cancelled in favor of Moana 2

friendoftheotherside wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 8:18 pm

reee9948 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 7:51 pm

Watch this 1 minute video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rdhqt6n2g1Q
She said the original movie is based on a Persian tale since the director is Iranian, I'm not sure what Persian tale the story is based on.

Thank you. I’ve seen that video before. But I don’t think that she was a Princess. At least, not in the same way that Jasmine was. All I know is that she was some kind of fairy and she was going to help a little girl.

reee9948 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 7:55 pm Someone made a tweet that two original movie is in development at Disney and they said that the earning call is for the investor and not the audience so he's announcing sequels to insure the investors that Disney will make bank this year. Disney will probably announce the original movie at D23, assuming it's not canceled. Also the fact the Moana is being animated at a different Studio and Zootopia 2 at the American studio, it's possible they are created two studios so they can make more movies. I really hope that's the case.

https://twitter.com/KyleKozmikDLuxO/sta ... 8219925741

I really hope we get to see this movie. But it really seems that it was cancelled. Because Disney Animation had only one slot per year reserved between 2024 and 2026. And now we know that Moana 2, Zootopia 2 and Frozen 3 will be released on those dates. Frozen 4 probably will be released in 2027. So we could only get an original movie in 2028? If we don’t get a Encanto 2 by then. Unless they change the calendar and we get a year with 2 Disney Animation movies, Suzi Yoonessi’s project was probably cancelled in favor of Moana 2

They generally don't announce original animated movies until a year before it's released and who knows, maybe 2025 will be like 2016 when Disney released both Zootopia and Moana, two Disney Animated movies. I know they didn't released anything in 2017, but that's cause Gigantic was canceled mid production.

reee9948 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 7:55 pm Someone made a tweet that two original movie is in development at Disney and they said that the earning call is for the investor and not the audience so he's announcing sequels to insure the investors that Disney will make bank this year. Disney will probably announce the original movie at D23, assuming it's not canceled.

Well that's somewhat of a relief, really hope that's the case because I really do like WDAS's original ideas. It's just that in some of them, the execution felt flat and needed to be more fleshed out, Strange World and Raya and the Last Dragon specifically.

friendoftheotherside wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 8:18 pm Thank you. I’ve seen that video before. But I don’t think that she was a Princess. At least, not in the same way that Jasmine was. All I know is that she was some kind of fairy and she was going to help a little girl.

If that is the premise, then I SO wanna watch that...Argh! We would've had another Disney character that was a humanoid magical creature just like Ariel! Also, welcome to the forums friendoftheotherside! Would it be okay if you can share other information about this if you're okay with it please, if you do have any though.

MoonMarc21 wrote: ↑Tue Feb 13, 2024 1:00 am

reee9948 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 7:55 pm Someone made a tweet that two original movie is in development at Disney and they said that the earning call is for the investor and not the audience so he's announcing sequels to insure the investors that Disney will make bank this year. Disney will probably announce the original movie at D23, assuming it's not canceled.

Well that's somewhat of a relief, really hope that's the case because I really do like WDAS's original ideas. It's just that in some of them, the execution felt flat and needed to be more fleshed out, Strange World and Raya and the Last Dragon specifically.

friendoftheotherside wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 8:18 pm Thank you. I’ve seen that video before. But I don’t think that she was a Princess. At least, not in the same way that Jasmine was. All I know is that she was some kind of fairy and she was going to help a little girl.

If that is the premise, then I SO wanna watch that...Argh! We would've had another Disney character that was a humanoid magical creature just like Ariel!

uhh i totally missed that post! that sounds really awesome! But I hope she doesnt turn out to be some traditional fairygodmother type, because such a premise would have been more fitting for Wish and there are so many different types of Fairy creatures. The rumored setting sounds promising tho.

MoonMarc21 wrote: ↑Tue Feb 13, 2024 1:00 am Would it be okay if you can share other information about this if you're okay with it please, if you do have any though.

yes please

reee9948 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 08, 2024 8:23 pm
They generally don't announce original animated movies until a year before it's released and who knows, maybe 2025 will be like 2016 when Disney released both Zootopia and Moana, two Disney Animated movies. I know they didn't released anything in 2017, but that's cause Gigantic was canceled mid production.

There was a brief rumor about Elio being released this year this November. But since Iger announced Moana 2 for that date, I don’t think Elio is coming this year anymore. So maybe we still can get two WDAS in 2025. We can only hope, right?

MoonMarc21 wrote: ↑Tue Feb 13, 2024 1:00 am
If that is the premise, then I SO wanna watch that...Argh! We would've had another Disney character that was a humanoid magical creature just like Ariel! Also, welcome to the forums friendoftheotherside! Would it be okay if you can share other information about this if you're okay with it please, if you do have any though.

Thank you so much for the welcome, MoonMarc21! Right!? Since my friend told me about this movie, I’m dying to know more. I was so upset when Iger announced Moana 2 instead of this movie!

The Disneynerd wrote: ↑Tue Feb 13, 2024 3:52 am uhh i totally missed that post! that sounds really awesome! But I hope she doesnt turn out to be some traditional fairygodmother type, because such a premise would have been more fitting for Wish and there are so many different types of Fairy creatures. The rumored setting sounds promising tho.

From what he told me, the lead is more like a Tinker Bell type of fairy instead of a fairy godmother type.

About sharing more: sadly I don’t know much more. Besides what I already shared, I only know that the movie was set in a small village and the fairy was called Ava (which was also the working title of the movie). I really hope that we get to see something about this movie soon because my friend said that the movie was visually stunning.

friendoftheotherside wrote: ↑Tue Feb 13, 2024 2:07 pm About sharing more: sadly I don’t know much more. Besides what I already shared, I only know that the movie was set in a small village and the fairy was called Ava (which was also the working title of the movie). I really hope that we get to see something about this movie soon because my friend said that the movie was visually stunning.

Aww man...that's such a cool premise! I really hope that the movie still uses the animation style of Wish, albeit a much better version of it from what you said in the last sentence, since I don't want them to give up on using different animation styles. Also, I though the fairy's name being Ava felt weird to me because I usually correlate that name to the singer Ava Max But after looking it up, the Persian meaning of the name means "filled with spirit" so it's fitting given that, well she's a fairy. And I checked out how fairies in Persian mythology looked like and OMG!
Apparently, they're called Peri and they're designs look very different than a traditional fairy, which the mythology buff in me makes me so giddy to see how they'll look in the movie, especially Ava's, if it ever does come out. Hopefully, next year.

MoonMarc21 wrote: ↑Tue Feb 13, 2024 3:37 pm Aww man...that's such a cool premise! I really hope that the movie still uses the animation style of Wish, albeit a much better version of it from what you said in the last sentence, since I don't want them to give up on using different animation styles. Also, I though the fairy's name being Ava felt weird to me because I usually correlate that name to the singer Ava Max But after looking it up, the Persian meaning of the name means "filled with spirit" so it's fitting given that, well she's a fairy. And I checked out how fairies in Persian mythology looked like and OMG!

220px-Pari_detail_from_Pari_holding_a_unique_animal._19th_cent._Rajput_style_Bhopal_museum_(cropped).jpeg

Apparently, they're called Peri and they're designs look very different than a traditional fairy, which the mythology buff in me makes me so giddy to see how they'll look in the movie, especially Ava's, if it ever does come out. Hopefully, next year.

LOL. I’ve done the same thing and searched the meaning of the name and how fairies looked in Persian culture. And it looks so cool!!! I’m losing my mind with the possibility that we won’t get to see this movie Hopefully, the official announcement will come at the new D23!

For the Persian protagonist, they better not give her a small nose because most Persian people have tall, long noses. It would be piss me off if they do that because it would prove my point that Disney doesn't really care about minorities and celebrating our differences since they give every one from every ethnicity the same face.

I also wonder who the cast would be cause generally they would try to cast people of the same ethnicity as the characters, but I don't know much Iranians in Hollywood. One I could think of is Amir Talai, who is a Broadway actor and singer. He voiced Alastor in Hazbin Hotel so he's pretty well known. They could also hire Afghans to voice some of the characters, but generally they are more religious and conservative compare to Iranians who very irreligious or don't even believe in any religion so I highly doubt they would be any in Hollywood or any other acting industry unfortunately.

So apparently Suzi Yoonessi has left Walt Disney Animation Studios. I was checking her website earlier today, and I noted that she updated her biography to “Yoonessi most recently directed an original feature film at Disney Animation Studios for 5 years.”. https://www.suziyoonessi.com/about. I don’t know exactly when she updated it, because the last time I checked it was in the last semester. And at that time, her biography said she was currently working at the studio. She removed the “Director at Disney Animation” from her X/Twitter bio too, although it’s still in her Instagram.

And I also found this article from last June, saying she was going to direct a new movie lead by Melissa Leo, which would shoot in New York in August. https://thecinemaholic.com/melissa-leo-mother-wolf/. But there is very little information about this movie available. The most recent I could find was this article from EW about SNL’s new season from September 29th, in which comedian Denny Dillon says: “Last month I worked on an independent film starring Melissa Leo called Mother Wolf, and directed by Suzi Yoonessi.” https://ew.com/snl-recap-season-50-premiere-8720033

Unless someone took over the movie, everything points to her original fairytale movie being cancelled in the last months, sadly

I checked with the Wayback Machine and she still had the "currently a director at Disney Animation Studios" line up until May 2024. I believe her film was scrapped altogether and she wasn't just replaced as the director. A recent report from Film Threat also claimed her film was cancelled outright and not just postponed. Maybe the 2026 WDAS film will be Josie Trinidad's project or something else entirely.

Modern Disney never cease to disappoint me.

What was the rumoured plot for this movie?

Disney originals “Strange World” and “Wish,” however, failed to generate interest, and another original, rumored to focus on a Persian princess, was quietly pulled off the schedule for 2024. In its place, the studio hastily reconfigured a “Moana” streaming series into a feature film sequel.

Source: https://www.thewrap.com/animated-origin ... -analysis/

In response to the article's title, that "original animation hasn't died, it's just gone to streaming," that's not exactly a comforting thought. Streaming original films just have absolutely no hold on the pop culture conversation. Like, the only Netflix original films that I think get any discussion are probably Roma, Don't Look Up, and maybe Marriage Story. (I'll admit I was pleasantly surprised that people apparently liked The Old Guard enough to give its sequel a glance, something I have yet to do myself). As far as animation goes, I know Klaus still gets like its seasonal reappraisal, but has anyone gone back to see like The Sea Beast? Vivo? Mitchells vs the Machines? Once a streaming original falls out of the top 10, no one ever thinks about it again.

Even if streaming is where they get their long-term attention, Disney and other studios ought to still afford their movies a participation run in theaters at least. Like, that's just the only way these movies ever get a chance.

Sotiris wrote: ↑Mon Jul 14, 2025 5:11 pm

Disney originals “Strange World” and “Wish,” however, failed to generate interest, and another original, rumored to focus on a Persian princess, was quietly pulled off the schedule for 2024. In its place, the studio hastily reconfigured a “Moana” streaming series into a feature film sequel.

Source: https://www.thewrap.com/animated-origin ... -analysis/

Really? If that`s true, what a pity. A movie about a Persian Princess seemed intriguing (despite how it would`ve been comparable to Princess Jasmine in Aladdin). Let`s hope that it will be greenlighted again.

I agree. Hopefully it gets revived down the line perhaps. I still think they should focus on some kind of trio of fairy tale adaptations, not something purely original. But if they ever get going on a roll again, they could bring it back then.

Disney's Divinity wrote: ↑Tue Jul 15, 2025 6:16 pm I agree. Hopefully it gets revived down the line perhaps. I still think they should focus on some kind of trio of fairy tale adaptations, not something purely original. But if they ever get going on a roll again, they could bring it back then.

True. Let`s remember that Disney`s comeback movies have usually been based on fairy tales. However, Disney still haven`t abandoned their bread and butter completely, as they`ve still made films that has been steeped in their traditions (Wish and Moana 2). Despite how they haven`t based their latest properties on a well-known story since Frozen.

Sotiris wrote: ↑Mon Jul 14, 2025 5:11 pm "a Persian princess, was quietly pulled off the schedule for 2024."

pulled off the schedule for 2024 means delayed or cancelled?? Its sad because a Persian Fairytale sounds so interesting and like a breathe of fresh air instead of the typical classic European tales, although I start to miss those too. But 2020s WDAS cant really pull off great organic material so its for the better great tales get spared from them, someday they will embrace their values again but it could take up to a few decades. Also they shouldnt act as if Fairytales can only have female protagonists, thats what makes it so clichee and slams the door infront of male Audiences with its girly branding, even tho 10 years ago it was the complete opposite with the swag like adjective titles. Hopefully Sony or Dreamworks picks up on fairytales this would be a dream (works ha ha ha .)

Disney's Divinity wrote: ↑Tue Jul 15, 2025 6:16 pm still think they should focus on some kind of trio of fairy tale adaptations,

i also agree, its what always brought them back from bankruptcy and back into Pop culture spotlight in the 50s 90s and 2010s . They need a classic famous fairytale with a household name and put a loveable (not predictable) disney spin on it and they are back. Red Riding Hood, Beanstalk, Princess and the Pea, Goldie Locks etc. Disney has so much to pick from.
Hopefully Frozen 3 &4s undoubtful success makes them more comfortable to branch out with their fairytale stories and tropes.