As fans of “Frozen” already know from the promos for “Frozen 2,” sisters Elsa (voiced by Idina Menzel) and Anna (Kristen Bell) are going on another big adventure in the upcoming sequel. What you might not know — unless you were looking closely — is they get to do it in pants.
While this may not seem like anything out of the ordinary to you at first, allow us to remind you that pants are actually not a standard part of most Disney princesses’ wardrobes. In fact, pretty much the only ladies who have worn two-legged attire over skirts are Jasmine in the 1992 film “Aladdin” and Mulan in her 1998 cartoon.
So why do Anna and Elsa get pants in their sequel, when they both were strictly attired in dresses and skirts in the first movie?
“The princesses are all things; they’re all times; they’re all outfits,” co-director and chief creative officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios, Jennifer Lee, told the Los Angeles Times during the “Frozen 2” premiere in Hollywood on Thursday. “Everyone sort of represents when the film was made and what the film’s trying to show. These two women I’m proud of, they are carrying the weight of the kingdom on their shoulders … so they’re going to wear what’s right for that, and I love that you can wear anything.”
Lee added: “This time, they didn’t have to flee their kingdom in the wrong dress very fast. They had a chance to choose, and, of course, you’re going to wear pants when you hear the words ‘enchanted forest.’”
Evan Rachel Wood, who plays Anna and Elsa’s late mother, Queen Iduna, in flashbacks in “Frozen 2” told the Times that the producers have “done a really amazing job of still keeping the Disney feeling that we love, but just with a more modern feel.”
“The girls are still beautiful and still women, but they’re just able to do a lot more now that they’re in pants,” the “Westworld” star said.
“Frozen 2” hits theaters Nov. 22.