Disney’s been on a live-action kick, with entries ranging from fine to abysmal. But it’s hard to overlook the popularity and success of Maleficent, which follows the villain from Sleeping Beauty. Now it seems that Disney is hoping lightning strikes twice with their latest live-action solo project, Cruella.
Starring Emma Stone as the titular character, Cruella follows the rise of fashion designer and future-puppy-thief Cruella de Vil in 1970s London. The trailer shows how Cruella fights her way to the top of the fashion world through big gestures, grand designs, and a little bit of chaos and crime. The film also star Emma Thompson as the Baroness, who is Cruella’s boss, Emily Beecham as Cruella’s friend Anita, Joel Fry and Paul Walter Hauser as Cruella’s faithful henchmen Jasper and Horace Badun, respectively. Also in the cast are Mark Strong, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, and Jamie Demetriou.
If you’re going to go for another villain to build a live-action franchise around, Cruella is a strong candidate. While 101 Dalmatians is not Disney’s most popular films, Cruella’s got both an iconic look and song that people love. And Ursula was probably off the table with the upcoming Little Mermaid adaptation. Cruella also pulls the Disney live-action out of the fantasy genre and squarely into historical fiction (looks like there’s no talking dogs in this one at least), which could draw in a different crowd.
However, unlike movies like Mulan and Raya and the Last Dragon, Cruella will not be premiering on Disney+ simultaneously. It will likely be out on the streaming platform at a later time, but likely not until early 2022. It is interesting to see that Disney is trying to go back to the old model of having films premiere in theaters, especially after Warner Bros. announced they’d simultaneously release their films on HBO Max for all of 2021. Will this strategy work out for them? Or will this film be another cinematic casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic?
Cruella is set to premiere in theaters on May 28, 2021.
