Disney Shuts Down 'Tiana' Streaming Series, After Ending DEI Policies

The Walt Disney Company is going through a period of upheaval, as the once-invincible entertainment giant is dealing with a massive cultural shift away from its political ideology.

Disney spent much of the last five years reorganizing itself into a company that prioritized political activism over quality content. Predictably, it hasn't gone well. Disney movies have flopped, the stock price is down, and its secondary intellectual property is in disarray.

Marvel's "Captain America: Brave New World" may actually lose money, with a disastrous $342 million worldwide gross through the first three and a half weeks. Lucasfilm's "Star Wars" properties are flailing helplessly, so is "Indiana Jones." "Snow White" is set to become another flop. 

Perhaps finally reading the room, years too late, Disney announced this year that it was ending DEI policies in management decisions, and winding down its activism-heavy "Remagining Tomorrow" initiative. 

And now Disney has canceled a streaming series based on Tiana, the lead character in "The Princess and the Frog." After revamping its immensely popular Splash Mountain ride at both Disneyland and The Magic Kingdom to Tiana's Bayou Adventure.

What a mess.

Cinderella Castle in Walt Disney World in Orlando. (Photo by Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Disney Cancels Tiana Show, Cutting Losses

The Hollywood Reporter reported this week that the cancelation came as a result of Disney abandoning its "original longform content for streaming."

This will also impact "an unannounced feature-length project that was set to go straight to Disney+," presumably also set to continue the Tiana storyline. There's no indication that the cancelation was due to Disney's shift in political strategy, though it was initially announced in December 2020, capitalizing on the peak woke era. 

Therein lies the problem; for years, Disney assumed that any content that represented "diverse" audiences or featured "diverse" characters would be successful. This led to the addition of adult storylines in children's content, as well as obvious pandering to progressive consumers.

But what all viewers, outside of the fringe left, actually want, is quality family entertainment. "Moana" features enjoyable music and characters, and it's become one of the most popular Disney films in years. "Inside Out 2" completely avoided politics or agenda, and was a massive box office hit.

Parents want to take their kids to the movies, or give them family-friendly content to watch at home when they need a distraction. For decades, that meant Disney. Until the company prioritized targeting demographics instead of quality. 

The Hollywood Reporter said in its story that the series could never find its creative footing, despite nearly four and a half years in development. Under its prior operating mandate, Disney would have pushed forward anyway, believing that canceling a show based on a black character would be unacceptable to left-wing critics. Disney should absolutely make a show about "The Princess and the Frog." Just get it right instead of doing it to check a box. Finally, Disney seems to be learning a lesson.