As Disney retains rolling out live-action variations of its traditional animated films, costume and manufacturing designers preserve dealing with the problem of constructing engaging animated pictures look equally good in the actual world.
Contemplate the Disney Princess characters: All of them have iconic attire that look attractive of their unique animated outings (besides Aladdin’s Jasmine, who rocks a pants-and-crop-top mixture). In animation, these robes are all spectacular. However how do they match up in reside motion?
Up to now, seven princesses from the official Disney Princess lineup have gotten live-action remake films. The most recent, Snow White, offers its protagonist a deeply… disappointing wardrobe, which prompted us to look again and see which remake workforce did and didn’t perceive the task.
- I solely included theatrically launched Disney live-action films — sorry to the Descendants-verse and the Brandy Cinderella!
- I’m solely contemplating princesses from the official Disney Princess lineup. This implies Jasmine makes the reduce, though she isn’t the titular character in Aladdin, however Mia Wasikowska as Alice in Tim Burton’s tackle Alice in Wonderland doesn’t. Take it up with Disney!
- Some characters have a couple of Defining Robe. I’ll be evaluating their wardrobes as an entire, wherein case a satisfactory further outfit may make up for a horrible primary gown. Or not!
- No sequel attire included. Sorry, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil!
I’m additionally not essentially on the lookout for constancy to the animated model. Generally that’s not a very good factor (cough, Snow White, cough). The outfits ought to merely look good, even when they aren’t essentially direct replicas.
So as from worst to finest, listed here are all of the live-action Disney Princesses and their wardrobes, ranked.
7. Snow White in Snow White (2025)
Designer: Sandy Powell; Princess: Rachel Zegler
I’ve seen Halloween costumes that look higher than this gown. I really feel like I can inform precisely what kind of thick, foam-like materials makes up the sleeves. I’m additionally zeroing in on a budget vinyl stuff within the collar that’s suspended between some stiff wires. The skirt is that this plastic-looking tulle monstrosity that’s a shade of yellow not even within the unique animation.
Sure, the unique Snow White gown does have some questionable shade decisions, however the live-action answer is not to crank the saturation up on the crimson, blue, and yellow. Snow White’s plot-relevant necklace — a present from her father with 4 bland adjectives to ✨ encourage ✨ her — appears to be like like one thing I may order off Etsy for $20. It’s simply lazy! I don’t know the place Snow White’s almost $300 million funds went, however it definitely was not the wardrobe.
Snow’s different attire on this film are so briefly worn and so unremarkable that they will’t save the travesty of the primary one.
6. Belle in Magnificence and the Beast (2017)
Costume designer: Jacqueline Durran; Princess: Emma Watson
Belle’s core wardrobe isn’t horrible. The blue-and-white gown she wears within the village truly appears to be like like a pleasant up to date model of her animated going-to-town outfit. And her crimson winter cloak has some beautiful embroidery. However in terms of her huge showstopping robe, the one she wears through the romantic ballroom scene — woof.
For starters, in contrast to her different attire, it appears to be like so distinctly trendy. And never even in a enjoyable, anachronistic manner! I don’t give a hoot about whether or not or not she wore a corset, however its tiering and silhouette simply appears to be like extra like late-2010s promenade gown than 18th-century French ballgown.
Her finale gown is fortunately a bit higher, at the least by way of the form, however the sample appears to be like like a tea towel I’d discover in a grandma’s kitchen.
5. Jasmine in Aladdin (2019)
Costume designer: Michael Wilkinson; Princess: Naomi Scott
I’m a bit torn about Jasmine’s outfits, that are so gaudy and excessive, they virtually really feel like a parody of the unique film. However then once more, the complete film performs into that aesthetic, so her appears to be like do cohesively slot in. The turquoise ensemble that almost all instantly imitates her animated counterpart is the most effective, because the others begin to encroach on discordant shade clashing. They may be splashy, however at the least they don’t look low-cost!
They do, nevertheless, look extra like they belong within the Broadway present — shiny and glittery, so even audiences within the low-cost seats can recognize them. However up shut, they appear somewhat too intense.
Costume designer: Bina Daigeler; Princess: Liu Yifei
For essentially the most half, Mulan’s wardrobe is understandably utilitarian. In any case, she spends a lot of the film within the navy, carrying an official uniform. It really works! She has one different gown — the robe she wears when her household hauls her off to see the matchmaker. It’s completely different from the animated model, however it nonetheless serves the aim of exhibiting that Mulan isn’t comfy in a flowery gown.
3. Ariel in The Little Mermaid (2023)
Costume designer: Colleen Atwood; Princess: Halle Bailey
Ariel mainly will get two attire when she’s in human type, and each of them are callbacks to her animated film robes, whereas nonetheless becoming in with the brand new film’s visible aesthetic. One is the blue gown she wears whereas exploring the city with Eric, which within the film appears to be like prefer it’s fabricated from a really mild, breathable materials that’s nonetheless tremendous cute. It’s now a reasonably seafoam inexperienced, and the beachy design feels proper consistent with the Caribbean-inspired setting!
The opposite is the pink ballgown she wears to dinner with Eric and Grimsby, the one the place she makes use of a fork to comb her hair. Let’s be actual: The unique shiny pink gown by no means actually labored with Ariel’s ketchup-red hair. However the reside motion mutes the colours a bit, making it the softer pink of a conch shell. It’s undoubtedly imagined to be impressed by that pink ballgown with the puffy sleeves, however it has its personal distinct look, evoking seafaring pirate-y apparel.
2. Aurora in Maleficent (2014)
Costume designer: Ellen Mirojnick; Princess: Elle Fanning
Maleficent is instructed from the perspective of Angelina Jolie’s eponymous darkish fairy, however the robes her adopted daughter Aurora wears undoubtedly give main-character power. They actually match the film’s darkish medieval-fantasy aesthetic, with delicate embroidery and extra muted (however nonetheless attractive) shade palettes. The blue robe she’s carrying when she pricks her finger within the fortress doesn’t appear to be the animated model, however it has a stunning, elegant silhouette, and it really works higher on this context, because the character isn’t dressed up for a ball.
She ends the film in a very attractive gold robe with some intricate floral detailing, which actually hammers residence the entire “baby raised by fairies in a magical forest” vibe!
1. Cinderella in Cinderella (2015)
Costume designer: …additionally Sandy Powell; Princess: Lily James
I’ve this understandably ridiculous principle that each cent of the live-action-Disney-movie costume funds, previous, future, and current, went to Cinderella, leaving nothing for every other Disney live-action redux. This has to be the case, as a result of apparently the costume designer behind the travesty that’s the 2025 Snow White is additionally liable for Cinderella, and I genuinely can’t consider one other clarification as to why the distinction in high quality between the 2 is so huge.
Each costume Cinderella wears — even her servant-girl outfit! — appears to be like so ethereal. The pink gown her stepsisters destroy is gorgeous, and the marriage gown she wears within the finale, with its attractive flower accents, is totally gorgeous.
However the pièce de résistance is her iconic ballgown. It’s clearly impressed by the animated film, however Powell gave it an identification of its personal. It appears to be like like a watercolor portray come to life, and strikes with such class that it’s laborious to not gawk at Cinderella as she glides throughout the ballroom. No surprise everybody within the kingdom instantly falls in love along with her, the prince included.
Maybe Powell knew her Disney live-action remake profession peaked in 2015, and she or he didn’t raise a finger for the 2025 Snow White? I get it. Why mess with perfection?