Is Disney Making a Mexican Sleeping Beauty?

Many rumors have emerged from the Mouse House of late. Some have vanished as quickly as they sprouted, sometimes despite a great deal of press coverage. Therefore, it's best to take these announcements with a grain of salt, especially if they don't come from an official source. The latest rumor comes from an alleged "Disney insider," DanielRPK, with no other confirmation of its existence, which could mean it's nothing more than a push to create buzz. However, rumors are still fun to speculate about, so let's discuss the possibility of a Mexican "Sleeping Beauty" retelling called Aurora.

The initial reaction to this rumor was mixed, as many are confused about why Disney would do a live-action remake of a fairy tale they already covered with Maleficent, which is considered one of the introductory remakes to their current era of films. Fans frequently make compilation graphics of Disney's live-action princesses, including Elle Fanning as this generation's Aurora. With their bigger push for diversity in their more recent remakes, it comes as no surprise that they would want to portray their blonde-haired beauty as a different ethnicity, which is why this rumor comes off as believable, even if the sources are questionable.

Aztec culture has a great deal of whimsical folklore and legends, many of which were portrayed in Elena of Avalor. The biggest question about this decision, if true, is why "Sleeping Beauty?" Of all the iterations of this classic fairy tale, none are set in Mexican culture. The alleged title of the film implies it will be inspired by the same 1959 animated movie that Maleficent was adapted from, so this will not be based on an alternate version. That might be a good thing because Disney probably wouldn't want to touch "Sun, Moon, and Talia" with a ten-foot pole. Still, there's no reason they can't use a fairy tale they haven't adapted yet, aside from name recognition of their beloved characters that they have been banking on for decades.

If nothing else, Daniel Richtman certainly knows how to get people talking, an important quality in an entertainment reporter. Race-bending and live-action remakes are always a hot-button issue amongst film aficionados. This rumor may turn out to be nothing, or it may be Disney's newest blockbuster in five years. Who knows? Personally, I'd love to see more original fairy tales on the screen, like the one I covered in my latest novel. The name Aurora may be a working title, but it was also a code name Disney used in the early stages of Maleficent when they outsourced work on the film to other companies, which creates additional suspicion regarding the current rumor.

While the prospect of a Mexican "Sleeping Beauty" retelling called Aurora is intriguing, it's essential to approach it with a healthy dose of skepticism, given the lack of official confirmation and the questionable source. If true, it would be interesting to see how Disney handles the cultural adaptation and storytelling of this classic tale, but for now, it's mostly a fun topic for speculation and discussion. Would you be up for a Mexican adaptation of "Sleeping Beauty," or would you prefer a Disney-style retelling of a lesser-known story from this culture? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!