Disney reportedly puts live-action Tangled on ice

Disney’s latest live-action remake of a beloved animated film, Snow White, managed to piss everyone off a year before it premiered and then tanked at the box office when it officially opened three weeks ago. Did it also manage to make Disney reconsider its current rate of live-action remake production? Honestly, maybe. 

The Hollywood Reporter reports (likely thing for it to do) this afternoon that Disney’s planned live-action remake of 2010’s Tangled has been placed on pause. The trade notes that the project had been in active development, with The Greatest Showman and Better Man director Michael Gracey at the helm and featuring a script from Thor: Love And Thunder scribe Jennifer Kaytin Robinson. THR writes that it’s unclear whether their project “will move forward down the road or undergo a creative rethink,” which means that the TikTokkers who have spent the better part of a decade fancasting Florence Pugh in the lead role may get their wish yet.

Just how much this is related to the disappointing return on Snow White is unclear, but it’s hard to imagine the studio pressing pause had the Rachel Zegler-led film made a billion dollars. This would suggest there’s quite a bit riding on the next couple live-action remakes Disney has cooking: Lilo & Stitch, which arrives over Memorial Day, and Moana, which bows in July 2026. Even Disney’s recent successes in this area have grown increasingly muted. 2024’s Mufusa has so far grossed about $720 million against a $200 million budget; undoubtedly a financial success, but still a far cry from the nearly $1.7 billion 2019’s The Lion King brought in. But fear not, Tangled heads—if there’s money to be made on this property, you can bet that Disney will find it.