Susan Egan has been spending a bit of her 2026 movie calendar continuing her campaign for Zendaya to play Megara in Disney’s live-action Hercules. Apparently, nobody from Zendaya’s household has asked her to stop yet, so the original voice of Meg is keeping the campaign alive. She can’t stop, won’t stop, and honestly I’m here for it.
Egan doubled down while speaking with People at the 2026 Disney Legends Awards Ceremony in Anaheim. The Broadway veteran previously pitched Zendaya and Tom Holland as Meg and Hercules, and she knows she may be reaching the point where Hollywood’s favorite married couple starts screening her calls. Egan joked:
Zendaya and her husband [Tom Holland] might be like, ‘Honestly, maybe we need a restraining order against Susan Egan at this point. Yeah, she’s a little too enthusiastic.’
I still support the enthusiasm. I was already completely sold when Egan floated Zendaya for Meg earlier this month. Holland as Hercules? I need a little more convincing there. Zendaya walking into the Russos' live-action take with Meg’s purple dress and general refusal to be impressed by anyone or anything–especially Hercules? I can see that immediately.
Egan’s latest comments also make clear that this goes beyond picking one of the biggest actresses in Hollywood because she happens to be available for fantasy casting. She added:
But I do love her, and I have since she was younger. She’s always been such a dynamic performer. She’s such a grounded woman, and I really am an admirer of hers.
Egan knows the character better than almost anyone. She voiced Meg in Disney’s 1997 animated movie and has continued performing music from Hercules at Disney events decades later. She told the outlet that Meg was particularly fun because the character let her move away from the “good girl” parts she was accustomed to playing and embrace someone sarcastic enough to manipulate both Hercules and Hades.
That edge is exactly why Zendaya makes sense to me. Meg needs someone who can make “I’m a damsel, I’m in distress, I can handle this” sound like a genuine warning. Zendaya has spent years playing characters who can communicate annoyance with approximately half an eyebrow. She can sing, too, which becomes rather important when “I Won’t Say (I’m in Love)” is sitting there waiting for somebody to perform it.
Disney first announced its live-action Hercules remake in 2020, with Avengers: Endgame filmmakers Joe and Anthony Russo producing. Joe Russo later said the filmmakers wanted something “more experimental” than a straightforward recreation of the animated movie. Six years later, though, Disney still has not announced a cast or release date.
That prolonged silence has given Egan plenty of time to keep campaigning. At some point Disney will actually have to cast Meg, and I’m not sure what else Egan can do here. She has publicly endorsed Zendaya multiple times. She has explained why she loves her. She has now acknowledged the possibility that she is approaching restraining-order-level enthusiasm. Frankly, I respect the commitment.
While we wait for more info about the upcoming live-action remake, and all new Disney films, for that matter, we can revisit the original animated feature, as it’s streaming with a Disney+ subscription.
