21 Kick-Ass Disney Princesses
Fairytale beauties turned fist-bruising babes
Beauty & The Beast (1991)
The Princess: Belle, a gentle soul who resides in a French village with her inventor father. She becomes the prisoner of a prince cursed with the appearance of a Beast, but manages to melt his ice-encrusted heart.
Coolest Moment: When the Beast reacts angrily as Belle tends to his wounds, the young lass is quick to snap back with a stinger of a retort.
If She Was In An Action Flick: She’d be part of a travelling circus troupe, and use her quick tongue and new-found fighting prowess to defend her unusual friends from judgemental outsiders.
Just keep her out of the lion's cage.
Aladdin (1992)
The Princess: Jasmine, the princess of Agrabah. Finding royal life to be a right royal pain, Jasmine’s desperate for adventure – and gets it in the form of rambunctious peasant Aladdin.
Coolest Moment: Using her feminine wiles, Jasmine distracts evil Jafar with seductive hip-swaying as Aladdin tries to steal back the magic lamp.
If She Was In An Action Flick: She’d be a desert warrioress, swathed in vibrant fabrics and riding the sand dunes astride her trusted tiger steed.
Snow White And The Seven Dwarves (1937)
The Princess: Snow White, officially the “fairest in the land”, and a source of much jealous anxiety for her evil stepmother Queen. Banished to the forest, she befriends seven adorable little men.
Coolest Moment: Snow White reveals herself to be an exceptional singer, crooning a delightful ditty for each of the dwarves. Perhaps coolest of all, she loves them all equally – yes, even Grumpy.
If She Was In An Action Flick: She’d be a tricksy con artist who fools her prey by taking her cue from the possum and lying ‘dead’ in the road. Only when her intended target gets close enough for her to feel their warm breath does she make her move.
Mulan (1998)
The Princess: Fa Mulan is the only daughter of an old warrior. Realising that if her father went to fight the Hun alongside his fellow countrymen he'd end up dead in a day, she steals his horse, dresses as a man and heads out to battle in his place.
Coolest Moment: Mulan lures the Hun out onto the roof of the Emperor's palace, where she fights them single-handedly...
If She Was In An Action Flick: "Man! I feel like a woman!" Mulan would become a member of Charlie's Angels, using her unparalleled skills in disguise and deception to undo criminals from the inside.
Alice In Wonderland (1951)
The Princess: Bored-out-of-her-wits Alice, who's delighted/horrified when she finds herself in the mind-bogglingly curious Wonderland, where anything seems possible.
Coolest Moment: Alice meets the Mad Hatter, who teaches her a thing or two about the level of insanity prevalent in Wonderland.
If She Was In An Action Flick: She'd invite all of her enemies to a secret dinner party where they'd all end up fighting each other.
Not much with the fists, Alice, but she's definitely got the brains.
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Sleeping Beauty (1959)
The Princess: Aurora, daughter to King Stefan and Queen Leah, but cursed by evil sorceress Maleficent to die-by-spindle-prick on her 16th birthday. Instead, Aurora falls into a deep slumber, not in any small part thanks to her three fairy godmothers.
Coolest Moment: Aurora is lured to her doom by Maleficent in a creepy, suspense-filled segment that bathes her in an evil emerald glow.
If She Was In An Action Flick: Aurora would turn that which sought to harm her into a weapon, spiking her victims with spears made out of spinning wheel spindles.
Robin Hood (1973)
The Princess: Maid Marian, a foxy lady if there ever was one. The childhood friend of Robin Hood, she’s a resident of Prince John’s castle.
Coolest Moment: Robin and Maid Marian share a lovely evening together in the forest. What? It’s sweet, alright?
If She Was In An Action Flick: She'd become legendary as a cunning heroine whose stealthy ways outfox even the trickiest crims. Her only weakness is the bins.
Return To Oz (1985)
The Princess: Dorothy, who returns to Oz with her chicken Billina and discovers that it is now a darker place where the Yellow Brick Road has been devastated, and the Emerald City is in ruins.
Coolest Moment: Dorothy swoops through Oz on a flying bed along with her newfound friends, revelling in the breakneck danger.
If She Was In An Action Flick: She’d have a cool animal sidekick and serious sartorial style. Plus guns. Really massive guns.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
The Princess: Jessica Rabbit, a voluptuous ‘toon with a voice like strawberries and cream, and a pair of lips to make even Angelina Jolie jealous.
Coolest Moment: Jessica croons a ditty in a club that has all the men scraping their chins off the floor.
If She Was In An Action Flick: Her siren song would be the undoing of many a man. No need for violence with a voice like that.
The Little Mermaid (1989)
The Princess: Ariel, daughter of Mer-King Triton and a restless soul who just “wants to be where the people are”. Her wish is granted when she's given legs by sea witch Ursula.
Coolest Moment: With the help of her friends, Ariel disrupts Ursula’s plans to marry Prince Eric in an all-out assault on the wedding cruise ship.
If She Was In An Action Flick: She'd be the star of Speed 3: Wave Power , the only one capable of stopping a maniac who want to harness the power of the tides to control every coastline on Earth.
Josh Winning has worn a lot of hats over the years. Contributing Editor at Total Film, writer for SFX, and senior film writer at the Radio Times. Josh has also penned a novel about mysteries and monsters, is the co-host of a movie podcast, and has a library of pretty phenomenal stories from visiting some of the biggest TV and film sets in the world. He would also like you to know that he "lives for cat videos..." Don't we all, Josh. Don't we all.