Yara Shahidi made headlines last year when it was announced that she will be Disney's new live-action Tinker Bell, playing the role in the developing Peter Pan And Wendy. And while the film isn't scheduled to actually start filming until March, it sounds like the actor is already having a blast simply preparing for the role.
With her series Grown-ish resuming its third season on Freeform, Yara Shahidi was recently a virtual guest on Good Morning America, and during the interview host Robin Roberts asked her what it has been like preparing to be Tinker Bell for a whole new generation (showing off a bunch of fan art on screen while doing so). Discussing her experience, Shahidi talked about how she has been working on the specific physicality for the performance, saying,
It's been fun and a bit absurd. I know my brother, who is my theoretical next door roommate, has heard me putting around my room trying to figure out, 'How does Tinker Bell walk? How does she land?' But it's been a really fun prep process. I've started the kind of motion capture of it all and we're just trying to figure out how we portray Tinker Bell and she's gonna be like five inches tall on screen. But we've had a really fun time and preparation has ranged from running through lines to creating playlists.
It's certainly a funny thing to imagine both doing and watching. If Yara Shahidi is doing motion capture work to play Tinker Bell, that probably means that she'll be doing plenty of wirework on set, but it's funny to think about her taking leaps off her bed so that she can perfect her landings before the start of production.
Unfortunately, all of our expectations for her performance come from our imaginations for now. Peter Pan & Wendy has not yet shown off any official concept, so we find ourselves patiently waiting for the reveal of Yara Shahidi's costume. That being said, it's pretty easy to predict that she'll be wearing a sparkly green dress, as that's the classic Disney look.
Set to be directed by David Lowery, who previously made the recent Pete's Dragon with Disney, Peter Pan & Wendy features an excellent cast beyond just Yara Shahidi as Tinker Bell. Young performers Alexander Molony and Ever Anderson will be playing the titular roles, and they will be joined by a ensemble of adults stars that includes Jude Law as Captain Hook, and Jim Gaffigan as Hook's first mate, Mr. Smee.
Like Lady And The Tramp, and other upcoming projects like Pinocchio and The Sword In The Stone, the new live-action Walt Disney Animation remake is being made specifically as a Disney+ release, though it has not been given a specific date. With production on Peter Pan & Wendy set to start soon, we may know much more in just a few weeks.
