Should Disney Stop Making Princess Movies?

How valuable are the Disney princess movies and what would we lose if there were no more of them?

The LA Times recently reported that Disney had decided to make no more princess movies after their newest release "Tangled" which is a re-telling of the Rapunzel story.

Disney jumped to dispute the LA Times report on their own Facebook page declaring that the Disney princesses, a line that includes such legendary figures as Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and Ariel the Mermaid, are "alive and well."

"We have a number of projects in development," an executive wrote on Disney's Facebook page.

That will come as a relief to scores of girls everywhere who idolize the Disney princess line. As someone who has a lot of experience having helped raise four girls I can tell you that the Disney princesses are still plenty loved and respected by today's modern girls.

Many of the series' heroines in movies like "The Little Mermaid" and "Aladdin" help portray positive self-images for young girls in a way far better than the sterile environment of...say...the Barbie lineup of dolls and DVDs.

That's only reinforced by the success of "Tangled" which almost beat out "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part One" in its first weekend at the movies, far surpassing industry estimates. It's unlikely, however noble they are, that the fact is Disney would never seriously consider pulling the plug on the movie and merchandising cash cow that is the princess line.

More likely someone at Disney had a bright idea to 'widen their appeal' beyond young girls. While that isn't a bad idea, it can easily be done by making additions to the Disney roster and not by resisting the tradition of the Disney princesses.

In the comments that led to the LA Times article, Disney Animation co-chief Ed Catmull also indicated Disney was not currently working on any musicals or fairy tales, something the company later came back and denied.

"Films and genres do run a course," said Catmull. "They may come back later because someone has a fresh take on it ... but we don't have any other musicals or fairy tales lined up."

It's good that Disney is re-examining that approach since fairy tales, musicals, and princess stories have always been at the heart of the company, and have maintained a very high quality throughout the years. The loss of such family films from Disney would be a blow to the movie market for youngsters likely to be filled by lesser works.