Princesses and Dragons

Princesses and Dragons would be a 2029 American fantasy adventure buddy musical film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by Spielberg, Ted Ellitott, Terry Rossio, and Bill Kelly, and a story by Spielberg and Kelly. A co-production by Walt Disney Pictures, Amblin Entertainment, and Burr! Productions, the film would star Anika Noni Rose, Chiwetel Eijofor, and the voice of Lupita Nyong'o. Recurring Disney songwriters Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz would write new songs for the film, with Menken also composing the score, as well as serving as an executive producer alongside Sunil Perkash, Christopher Chase, Ezra Swerdlow, and Don Hahn.

Development on a fantasy musical film directed by Spielberg, produced by Burr, and written by Kelly would start in early 2025, with Disney set to produce the film. In mid-2025, Elliott and Rossio would join the film as co-screenwriters, while Menken would join as executive-producer as well as a composer and co-songwriter alongside Schwartz. In mid-2026, Noni Rose and Nyong'o would join the film's cast in its lead roles, while Chiwetel Eijofor would join the cast in late 2026. Filming would begin in early 2027, in Atlanta, Georgia. The writers would draw inspiration from films such as Disney's Enchanted (2007) and the Dreamworks Animation films Shrek (2001) and How To Train Your Dragon (2010), for the film's tone and story.

Princesses and Dragons would be released on November 22, 2029, and would become a critical and commercial success. Critics would praise the film for its direction, screenplay, subject matter, performances, songs, and visual effects. The film would earn 1.1 billion dollars at the worldwide box office over a budget of 150 million dollars. Princesses and Dragons would earn two Academy Awards for Best Original Song and Best Original Score, as well as a Golden Globe nomination for Best Film.

Synopsis
Once upon a time, in a far away land, a brave knight named Reignald goes on a quest in order to rescue Princess Daisy, who was kidnapped by a ferous dragon... or was she? In reality, Daisy was conviced by the dragon, named Snow, to reclutantly help her find a new home after her previous one was destroyed, througth she only does it because its the only way to get the "dangerous" dragon away from her kingdom. As the two travel and face several dangers, Daisy and Snow develop a strong friendship, and Daisy comes to realize that not all things are as dangerous as they seem, and discovers how to bring peace to her realm once and for all.

Cast
Additionally, composer and executive-producer Alan Menken would make a cameo as a pianist in a bar.
 * Anika Noni Rose as Princess Daisy, a princess from a fairy tale kingdom, who reclutantly agrees to help a dragon to find a new home. Noni Rose would say that "she is the typical fairy tale princess living in a typical fairy tale world, but when she leaves that kingdom, she enters the real world".
 * Lupita Nyong'o as the voice of Snow, a dragon who has been a victim of discrimination and abuse at the hands of humans, causing her to both fear and hate humans, only to be forced to ask Princess Daisy for help when her home is destroyedm in order to find a new home. Nyong'o would describe her as "a very traumatized dragon, and a very hurt and sympatetic person".
 * Chiwetel Eijofor as Reignald, a knight who goes to "rescue" Princess Daisy, believing Snow kidnapped her. Eijofor would describe him as "a delusional man who believes his fairy tale world is the only world that exists".

Music
Executive producer and recurring Disney composer Alan Menken would compose the film's score. Menken would describe working with Steven Spielberg "a mind blowing experience" due to Spielberg's filmography as director and reputation. Menken would compose a score "that combines fairy tale music with a more realistic melody". Menken would compose a theme for Daisy that "can work for Snow White and Moana", while his theme for Snow would be "something that combines her tough exterior and her tragic inner self". Menken would be inspired by his theme for Judge Claude Frollo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) for Reignald's theme, as he would want his theme to "truly reflect his delusions and insanity".

Menken would also write songs for the film alongside recurring lyricist Stephen Schwartz. Schwartz would be recruited to write the lyrics due to his work on both The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Enchanted (both in which he worked with Menken), as Spielberg would feel that his work on those films "showed how Schwartz can get both this film's fairy tale satire style and inner seriousness".

Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, Princesses and Dragons would have an approval rating of 90%, with an average rating of 9.2/10, based on 295 reviews. The website's critical consensus would read, "Satirizing the fairy tale tropes in a darker way than usual, Steven Spielberg's Princesses and Dragons is a timely story that is rendered into the timeless film category througth its beautiful plot, A-list performances, and a new bunch of Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz-penned classic songs". On Metacritic, the film would have a weighted rating of 81 out of 100, based on 50 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

Trivia

 * This would be the first time Alan Menken, Stephen Schwartz, and Steven Spielberg worked together in a film.
 * This would be Chiwetel Eijofor's third time starring in a Disney film, after the 2019 films The Lion King and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil.
 * This would also be Eijofor's second time starring in a live-action Disney film, as The Lion King was done enterely by photorealistic computer-animation.
 * It would also be Eijofor's second time playing the main antagonist of a Disney film, after The Lion King, in which he voiced Scar.
 * This woulbe be the first film Alan Menken worked in as an executive producer.
 * The film would mark the first time Steven Spielberg has directed a fairy tale film.