Don’t do it, Disney (Picture: Lucasfilm/Disney/Rex/Metro.co.uk)

Think of a Disney princess. Who comes to mind? Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty?

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The definition of the ‘traditional’ Disney princess may have changed over the years, with the House Of Mouse moving in new directions with their female characters, but the stereotype – the young, white female who needs rescuing from her terrible life by a Prince, – will undoubtedly always be the first image that comes into our minds when we think Disney Princess.

And that’s exactly why the petition to ask the Walt Disney Corporation to induct Princess Leia – the badass female from the Star Wars franchise, a diplomat, spy, warrior, and undercover agent – as the newest Disney princess is utterly wrong.



The petition has been formed due to the tragic passing of Carrie Fisher, who beautifully portrayed Leia across four films. But surely even Carrie would agree with how absurd this request is?


Who knows, maybe if Disney decide to accept this petition and induct Leia, it may be the first step towards really changing the public perception of the princesses – a change which is really needed.

The official princess line has three eras with the current modern era including Tiana, Rapunzel and Merida, the latter of whom is perhaps the most feminist of all the princesses so far; a young girl who rejects her ‘princessly’ duties, refuses to allow others to control her destiny and doesn’t end up with a love interest.

But Leia is more than even Merida.

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Princess Leia is a woman whom we first meet when she has no friends and no family and no planet to call home. Later, as General Organa, she is a woman who has lost even more; her son to the dark side, her brother to who knows where, and her partner.

Without Leia the rebellion would have long been over; it is Leia after all who gets the plans for the Death Star out to Obi-Wan Kenobi before being captured and tortured by Darth Vader.

Leia is, at times, a damsel in distress but only because the men around her put her that way; Luke and Han may have to rescue her from Darth Vader’s clutches on board the ship Tantive IV in A New Hope but it is Leia who is ready to go and complains about their operational laziness when it came to finding her.

Leia has every single reason to give up her fight but she never, ever does.

Leia is a character who is infused with the warmth and smarts of an actress who admitted that when she first read the script she wanted to be Han Solo because Leia is ‘much more worried and pissed than Han Solo ever was and those aren’t fun things to play’.

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But Leia became much more complicated and interesting than anyone could have ever predicted, a character who, for a generation – in fact, several generations – has come to represent that hard work, perseverance and dedication will get you much farther than any title you are born in to.



Is there a single Disney princess who we can say all of the above about?

Cinderella certainly didn’t grow and adapt and fight back against her Wicked Stepmother, while Aurora was naive enough to blindly follow everyone else’s instructions and ignore her own heart.

Meanwhile, Belle had an awful case of Stockholm syndrome, falling in love with the Beast after he held her captive, while Snow White was only accepted by the dwarfs after they learned she could cook and clean.

We love Leia and we love Cinders and Aurora and Belle and all the other Disney princesses too… but one of these names is not the same as the others.

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