Disney’s live-action remake franchise has become a very successful corner of its studio production, and while not all the movies are hits, when they do win at the box office, they tend to win really big. Yesterday, Disney took a big step toward its next major remake project when it announced that Teagan Croft and Milo Manheim would take on the roles of Rapunzel and Flynn Rider, respectively, in Disney’s live-action adaptation of Tangled. Now, the Flynn actor has reacted to the news in a sweet way.
These were very hotly contested roles, with numerous names swirling around for months. Manheim reportedly beat out at least two other actors who tested for the part of Flynn, and upon the announcement that he’d captured it, he posted to Instagram, promising fans that he is the right choice, saying…
TOO GRATEFUL TO PUT INTO WORDS 🤍I WILL DO HIM JUSTICE I PROMISE 🦎🍳
Doing the character “justice” is certainly a key part of these live-action remakes. The ones that have been the most successful with audiences are the ones that have remained the most faithful to the original animated film, like The Lion King. People probably aren’t looking for a radical reinterpretation of the character here, and it has to be said that it’s not difficult to imagine Manheim looking like Flynn Rider, so he’s got that part nailed down already.
Doing some quick math, Milo Manheim was about 9 years old when the original Tangled hit theaters. One can certainly imagine that, as a young kid, he saw the movie and likely enjoyed it as much as everybody else. It reminds me of the love Rachel Zegler had for Snow White before she played her. Honestly, it’s quite likely Milo Manheim feels the same way about Flynn Rider.
Among his various Instagram posts about the news was a picture of Rapunzel’s Tower at Tokyo DisneySea, one of the best new Disney attractions in recent memory. The emoji of eyes tearing up is really all you need to see. Perhaps there's a trip to Tokyo Disney Resort in Manheim's future. You know, for research.
Tangled was Disney’s first Princess movie to be filmed entirely with computer animation rather than traditional hand-drawn animation. It was a big deal, at the time, and the movie was a monster hit. It never got a theatrical sequel, but it did get a follow-up in the form of a Disney Channel animated movie and series, as well as a theatrical short.
With Manheim on board as Flynn and Teagan Croft, the new Rapunzel, there’s only one piece of significant casting left. The role of Mother Gothel, Rapunzel’s “mother” and the film’s antagonist, remains uncast. Scarlett Johansson was reportedly attached to the role at one point, but that seemingly fell through, and she has moved on to work on The Batman: Part II.
Michael Gracey, who previously directed The Greatest Showman and the absolutely wild Robbie Williams-but-as-a-monkey biopic Better Man, is set to helm the remake. A release date has not been set, but filming is expected to take place this summer, which would likely set the film for a summer or holiday season release in 2027.
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