Princess And The Frog Live-Action Remake: Colman Domingo To Co-Write Disney Movie

Princess And The Frog Live-Action Remake: Colman Domingo To Co-Write Disney Movie

Disney is heading back to the world of The Princess and the Frog with a fresh live-action project and the studio has tapped an Emmy-winning and Oscar-nominated actor to help.

By MarkJulian - Jul 18, 2026 03:07 PM EST
Filed Under: Disney
Source: Toonado.com

Following the disappointing box office performance of Disney's live-action Moana, the studio seemingly remains undeterred with its remake strategy as it has unveiled plans for yet another live-action adaptation.

Per Deadline, Emmy-winning and Oscar-nominated actor Colman Domingo is currently developing a live-action adaptation of the 2009 Disney animated feature The Princess and the Frog.

Domingo is writing the screenplay with Tony Award-nominated director Robert O'Hara. While Disney hasn't confirmed whether he'll also appear in the film, his deep creative involvement makes it a strong possibility.

The announcement (particularly the timing of it) is an interesting one, especially considering Disney's recent uneven track record with live-action remakes. 

The studio has certainly scored major hits with films like Lilo & Stitch and Mufasa: The Lion King, but others, including Snow White, Moana, and The Little Mermaid, failed to meet expectations at the box office or divided audiences.

What potentially sets this Princess and the Frog live-action project apart is that it's reportedly "inspired" by the 2009 film as opposed to a one-for-one remake.  What that exactly means at this early stage of development is anyone's guess.

Before it was a Disney movie, The Princess and the Frog was a 2002 novel by E. D. Baker called The Frog Princess. But the story's roots go back even further, as the ultimate source material is the Brothers Grimm’s classic German fairy tale, The Frog Prince.

Set against the vibrant backdrop of 1920s New Orleans, the 2009 animated musical centers on Tiana, an incredibly ambitious waitress working around the clock to open her dream restaurant. But her life takes a wild, magical detour when she meets Prince Naveen. He’s an arrogant royal who has been turned into a frog by a scheming voodoo sorcerer named Dr. Facilier.

 Domingo's Princess and the Frog project joins a growing list of Disney live-action remakes, which includes Tangled (which is currently filming), Lilo & Stitch 2, HerculesThe Hunchback of Notre Dame, and Bambi.

The upcoming live-action movie will keep Princess Tiana fresh in fans' minds, filling the void left by a recently axed Disney+ project. First announced back in 2020, that animated musical series was supposed to bring back most of the original movie's voice cast.

However, Disney quietly shelved the show in early 2025 due to ballooning production costs and a massive corporate pivot away from long-form streaming content.

In other Tiana Disney news, Disney World opened a reimagined version of Splash Mountain in 2024, rethemed to The Princess and the Frog.

About The Author:
MarkJulian
Member Since 6/8/2011
CBM writer for a decade+.
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Nolanite
Nolanite - 7/18/2026, 3:17 PM
Disney just doesn't learn from their own mistakes.

They should quit while they are ahead.

Nolanite out
TheStranger
TheStranger - 7/18/2026, 6:01 PM
@Nolanite - It's all they have, they're out of ideas...
XenoJazz
XenoJazz - 7/18/2026, 3:21 PM
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FireGunn
FireGunn - 7/18/2026, 3:28 PM
No one [frick]ing asked for this. When will it end?

Reboot the MCU and DCU
epc1122
epc1122 - 7/18/2026, 4:20 PM
@FireGunn - no one asked for obsession, back rooms, project Hail Mary, lion king remake, lilo and stitch remake, amongst others. Sometimes it’s lightning in a bottle. It’s good that it says it’s not a 1:1 remake.
FireGunn
FireGunn - 7/18/2026, 5:06 PM
@epc1122 - Imagine comparing auteur directorial visionary films like Obsession, Backrooms, and Project Hail Maru to absolute bullshit corporate brand synergy slop like Lion King remake, Lilo and Stitch and "Others" (presumably other Disney live action remakes) which are made with no intention other to farm money. This film will be awful just like Moana was awful, just like Lion King was awful, and just like Lilo and Stitch was awful. These "films" are a cancer to cinema.
RolandD
RolandD - 7/18/2026, 5:42 PM
@FireGunn - He didn’t compare them you misanthrope. He responded to exactly what you said. Reading comprehension. It’s a thing.
epc1122
epc1122 - 7/18/2026, 5:44 PM
@FireGunn - this is a completely ridiculous take as all movies are made to make money. It’s no different then when back in the day Shakespeare and theater companies would retell many of the same stories over and over again. It’s also why musicians tend to play their big hits in concerts bc people want to hear their favorites. It’s no different than musicians making a remix or remaking their songs to add more instrumentation. It’s not some big conspiracy. It’s about making money and giving a new visual. Live action and animation give very different takes to the same story but make no mistake about it, all movies are trying to make a profit. Some make money, some don’t. Lilo and stich resonated with the audience but Moana didn’t. It happens. But it’s not a cancer, you can just choose not to see it. Just bc you think it’s awful, doesn’t make it so bc it’s art which is subjective. Under no metric, based off of reviews, reception, and profit, wad lilo and stich awful or a failure.
FireGunn
FireGunn - 7/18/2026, 8:42 PM
@RolandD - He responded to what I said by comparing you [frick]ing moronic lunatic. You're a [frick]ing retard of the highest order. Get off my dick and take your own advice.
RolandD
RolandD - 7/18/2026, 9:04 PM
@FireGunn - You really must be a totally miserable person and also very good at projection.
FireGunn
FireGunn - 7/18/2026, 9:11 PM
@RolandD - No one cares what you think meathead.
FireGunn
FireGunn - 7/18/2026, 9:13 PM
@epc1122 - If you enjoy what's barely a step above ai slop content, you do you. You can't ask me or anyone else to enjoy this dreck. Content like this is just that. Content. There is a massive difference between making an original film as art WHILE hoping to make a profit vs making a film FOR PROFIT ONLY. These are two wildly different things. Nobody is arguing that films are charities but Disney is, and has been, systematically mining DECADES of beloved IP's because executives know audiences already recognize the brand. These films aren't made to do anything but line the pockets of executives.

I had a longer reply but it was deleted. Anyways, I hope you enjoy your slop. Never thought I'd see someone actually defend these remakes but whatever.
RolandD
RolandD - 7/18/2026, 9:32 PM
@FireGunn - Keep telling yourself that as if people care what you think. There was a major pile on yesterday because a lot of people here are tired of your shtick, your constant trolling, but you have a good night.
FireGunn
FireGunn - 7/18/2026, 9:37 PM
@RolandD - You think I care about what people on here care about? 😂😂 I come on here to get news and then make fools like you bitch and moan about my opinions. You're a fool.
RolandD
RolandD - 7/18/2026, 10:28 PM
@FireGunn - The way you reply back to everything, yes, I do think you care what other people think about you. Keep on trolling and I’ll keep on laughing.😂😂😂😂
FireGunn
FireGunn - 7/19/2026, 1:25 AM
@RolandD - Glad we can entertain each other
epc1122
epc1122 - 7/19/2026, 8:27 AM
@RolandD - it’s amazing how he doesn’t even know what the original comparison was about. How none of the movies mentioned were asked for. Such a low I.q. individual. Pretty pathetic 🤷‍♂️
RolandD
RolandD - 7/19/2026, 12:30 PM
@epc1122 - The vast majority of his comments are pure trolling so I don’t think it matters to him if he’s addressing the actual point.
epc1122
epc1122 - 7/19/2026, 12:44 PM
@RolandD - yeah, and I’m a natural debater so admittedly it bothers the hell out of me which it shouldn’t lol
ModHaterSLADE
ModHaterSLADE - 7/18/2026, 3:37 PM
Hope he can play the villain from the animated movie as well.
ModernAudience
ModernAudience - 7/18/2026, 3:40 PM
Damn.They can't learn a lesson,can they? 😂 Just rerelease this and make money.
Gnostic
Gnostic - 7/18/2026, 3:56 PM
Yeah, I honestly think Disney should give up on making these.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 7/18/2026, 5:32 PM
@Gnostic - Why?.

Just because Moana or Snow White last year failed , they aren’t gonna abandon the live action remakes since Lilo & Stitch also made a billion and was one of the highest grossing movies of last year so its not 1:1.

Unless they fail in a row , I don’t see these stopping tbh!!.
Pathogen
Pathogen - 7/18/2026, 4:35 PM
So where the hell did Coleman DOmingo COME from? He's so pervasive, quietly so, these days.
I'm not complaining, just surprised. The first I saw him was in Fear the Walking Dead. Now he's like the TEMU Pedro Pascal?
FireGunn
FireGunn - 7/18/2026, 9:33 PM
@Pathogen - Don't ever compare the two again. Colman is an actual talented actor. Glad he's getting his due
Lokiwasright
Lokiwasright - 7/18/2026, 5:00 PM
if trailers at least look right, this could make 1 billion.
ThouBear8
ThouBear8 - 7/18/2026, 5:03 PM
If this is even close to the animated version, I could see him doing a great job with Facilier.
grif
grif - 7/18/2026, 5:07 PM
after the success of the recent moana this sounds like a good idea
Lucasberg
Lucasberg - 7/18/2026, 6:41 PM
@grif - lol
Odekahn
Odekahn - 7/18/2026, 5:25 PM
Well here’s one character we know isn’t getting race swapped lmao!
Vigor
Vigor - 7/18/2026, 5:42 PM
@Odekahn - ok?
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 7/18/2026, 5:34 PM
I’m honestly dissapointed that this is a Mark Julian article because I don’t expect shoddy reporting from him but here we are…

Deadline says it’s not a remake of “Princess and The Frog” but moreso a spin off or original story “inspired by” the animated film or set in that world with the character of Tiana akin to Maleficent or Cruella so reporting it as such (even though you cite them as a source) is inaccurate.

Anyway in regards to Colman Domingo who is co-writing the film , that’s cool since he’s a playwright himself and I hope he has a role in the film aswell…

If this was a remake , he would have been a great Dr Facilier though!!.

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RolandD
RolandD - 7/18/2026, 5:39 PM
@TheVisionary25 - To be fair, Mark did say that it’s inspired by the movie rather than a one for one remake
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 7/18/2026, 8:22 PM
@RolandD - true i guess but he says remake in the headline.
RolandD
RolandD - 7/18/2026, 9:02 PM
@TheVisionary25 - Good point.They never do misleading headlines here do they? 😂😂😂
epc1122
epc1122 - 7/19/2026, 8:48 AM
@FireGunn - you didn’t debunk anything and honestly, I did respond but it didn’t go through and i didn’t want to rewrite it. So I do apologize that it came off as me not commenting, not that it matters. You generally pick and choose what to respond to instead of the heart of this whole exchange which was no one asked for these movies. And again, most movies people don’t ask for so to say that specifically about Disney remakes is ridiculous. Also, there was no “hate brigade” until you got nasty but it’s doubtful you ever self reflect to see what you can do better or differently. Just the same tone deaf, nasty comments.
FireGunn
FireGunn - 7/18/2026, 9:10 PM
@epc1122 - If you enjoy what's barely a step above ai slop content, you do you. You can't ask me or anyone else to enjoy this dreck. Content like this is just that. Content. There is a massive difference between making an original film as art WHILE hoping to make a profit vs making a film FOR PROFIT ONLY. These are two wildly different things. Nobody is arguing that films are charities but Disney is, and has been, systematically mining DECADES of beloved IP's because executives know audiences already recognize the brand. These films aren't made to do anything but line the pockets of executives.

Shakespeare wasn't remaking previous plays scene-for-scene. Playing your old songs live is NOT the same as recording the exact same album again every few years because nostalgia sells. That's the true equivalent. A remix adds new arrangement, different tempo, maybe even entirely different interpretation period. Again, not at all comparable.

No one said it was a conspiracy. Saying something is corporate slop isn't me saying there's some grand conspiracy by Disney to destroy cinema. Hollywood executives openly discuss reducing financial risk through established ip. Nothing I am saying is new. What new visuals? Photorealistic animals that can't emote? Less expressive characters in general? Flatter color palettes and cinematography? Genuinely, what "new visuals" could you possibly be talking about. It all looks like absolute shit!

"But it’s not a cancer, you can just choose not to see it."

And you could've chose not to reply to my comment yet here we are. I don't watch this garbage. I'm still going to criticize it because people can criticize harmful trends. I don't buy physical discs anymore for games, yet I'm criticizing Sony for making them obsolete. When Disney spends hundreds of millions on another remake that's money, marketing, talent, dates, and other resources not being given to actual original films. Obviously I and others would criticize it.

"Art is subjective"

It doesn't matter if you think this so I won't even talk about that but it's not my point. Enjoyment is subjective. That doesn't mean every criticism becomes meaningless.

"Under no metric, based off of reviews, reception, and profit, wad lilo and stich awful or a failure."

This confuses quality with success. Blade Runner, The Thing, Iron Giant, and Fight Club all flopped and had middling reviews on release. It being a successful and even liked film does not mean it was good. I did watch this one with my little cousin and it was horrible as expected. Lilo and Stitch being successful also doesn't invalidate overall criticism. Moana flopped miserably and was panned. You can find many more examples.

If you enjoy this slop, have at it. I never thought I'd actually see someone defend this unoriginal garbage but have at it.

Spidey91
Spidey91 - 7/18/2026, 5:56 PM
how about you hire those same writers and, I don't know, make something new for once? it doesn't even have to be something original, just take one of the thousands of fairy tales you haven't adapted yet and do one of those, geez.
DocSpock
DocSpock - 7/18/2026, 6:41 PM

El Crappo mundo.

Batmangina
Batmangina - 7/18/2026, 7:07 PM
I can't [frick]ing wait!!! This will be EPIC!! BOX OFFICE BONANZA!!!

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