Descendants | |
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![]() Promotional poster | |
Genre | |
Written by | |
Directed by | Kenny Ortega |
Starring | |
Composer | David Lawrence |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Executive producer | Judy Taylor |
Cinematography | Thomas Burstyn |
Editor | Don Brochu |
Running time | 112 minutes |
Production companies |
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Original release | |
Network | Disney Channel |
Release | July 31, 2015 |
Related | |
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Descendants is an American musical fantasy [1] television film directed and choreographed by Kenny Ortega. The film stars Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson, Booboo Stewart, and Cameron Boyce as the teenage children of Maleficent, the Evil Queen, Jafar, and Cruella de Vil, respectively. The film follows these teenagers adjusting to life outside their island prison, while on a mission to steal the Fairy Godmother's wand and free their parents from captivity. It debuted on July 31, 2015, as a Disney Channel Original Movie, to positive reviews and 6.6 million viewers.
The film also stars Mitchell Hope, Melanie Paxson, Brenna D'Amico, Sarah Jeffery, Zachary Gibson, Jedidiah Goodacre, Dianne Doan, Dan Payne, Keegan Connor Tracy, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Maz Jobrani, Kathy Najimy, and Kristin Chenoweth.
The first installment in the Descendants franchise, Descendants was spun off into an animated short-form series titled Descendants: Wicked World , and was followed by a sequel, Descendants 2 , which premiered on July 21, 2017, [2] and a third film, Descendants 3 , which premiered August 2, 2019. [3]
Belle and Beast have married and become king and queen. Following the establishment of the United States of Auradon, they have created a prosperous new nation from the surrounding kingdoms, and banished the villains to the Isle of the Lost, an island slum surrounded by a barrier where magic is suspended, trapping all the villains there for good. Now, twenty years later, their son, Ben, who will soon be crowned king, announces that his first proclamation is to give four selected children from the Isle of the Lost a chance to live in Auradon, away from the influence of their villainous parents, despite his father's protests. He chooses Carlos, son of Cruella de Vil; Jay, son of Jafar; Evie, daughter of the Evil Queen; and Mal, daughter of Maleficent. When the news is received, Maleficent instructs the four of them to steal the Fairy Godmother's magic wand to release the barrier so she can take over Auradon.
Traveling to Auradon Preparatory, the four meet Ben and his self-proclaimed girlfriend Audrey, daughter of Princess Aurora. They also meet the Fairy Godmother, the school's headmistress. Evie uses her mother's pocket-sized magic mirror to locate the wand in a nearby museum, and Mal uses her mother's spinning wheel from the museum to put the security guard to sleep, but they fail retrieving the wand due to a barrier blocking the wand and setting off a siren. After learning that the Fairy Godmother will use the wand at Ben's coronation, the four wait it out by attending classes, but start to fit in with the students. Jay is recruited into the school's "tourney" team (a sport similar to field hockey, hurling and lacrosse), while Carlos overcomes his fear of dogs by befriending the school's dog, Dude. Evie, though intelligent, acts vain to impress Chad, Cinderella's son, but ends up doing his homework for him. Dopey's son, Doug, encourages her not to pander to others and be herself.
Mal becomes popular, using Maleficent's spell book to alter Jane and Lonnie's hair, the daughters of the Fairy Godmother and Mulan, respectively. Jane in particular dislikes her looks, especially because her mother will not use her own magic to change them. Learning that Ben's "girlfriend" will be seated close to the wand during the coronation, which is used during the ceremony, Mal bakes a cookie laced with a love potion and gives it to Ben, who falls madly in love with her, much to the shock of his friends, particularly Audrey. On a date with Ben, Mal becomes conflicted with her growing inner goodness and desire to please her mother, unsure of how to react to Ben's feelings towards her. During the school's family day, the villains' children are ostracized after an encounter with Audrey's grandmother, Queen Leah, who hates Mal because Maleficent's curse was the reason she missed Aurora's childhood, prompting an argument that drives Mal to end the beauty spell she used on Jane. Ben tries to reassure them that everything will be okay after the coronation. Doug tries to remain friendly towards Evie, but Chad forces him to distance himself from her.
At Ben's coronation, Mal gives him a brownie containing the love spell's antidote, believing it is unnecessary to keep him under the spell. It turns out, per Ben's admission, that he was already freed of the spell since their date when he went swimming in the Enchanted Lake, believing that Mal only did it because she really liked him. However, much to Mal's surprise, it turns out Ben has had feelings for her all along. During Ben's crowning, a disillusioned Jane grabs the wand from her mother, wanting to improve her beauty, only for her to accidentally destroy the Isle's barrier. Mal takes the wand from Jane, but torn over what to do, is encouraged by Ben to make her own choice rather than follow Maleficent's path. Mal recognizes that she and her friends have found happiness in Auradon and they choose to be good.
Maleficent crashes the coronation ceremony, freezing everyone except Mal, Evie, Jay and Carlos. When they defy her, Maleficent transforms into a dragon. Mal and her friends use a counterspell, turning Maleficent into a lizard, her tiny size based on the amount of love in her heart. Mal returns the Fairy Godmother her wand as she unfreezes everyone and tells her not to be hard on Jane. While the villains watch the celebration from afar, Auradon Prep's students party through the night. Mal's eyes turn green as she addresses the audience, telling them the story is not over yet.
Additionally, Judith Maxie portrays Queen Leah, Audrey's grandmother, Reese Alexander portrays Coach Jenkins, the coach at Auradon Prep, Jonathan Holmes portrays Mr. Deley, the science teacher at Auradon Prep, and Stephanie Bennett portrays Snow White, who works as a television reporter.
On December 12, 2013, Disney Channel announced the production of the film and released the plot outline. Kenny Ortega, a director who has previously worked with Disney Channel on the High School Musical trilogy, was announced to be directing the film. [4] The script was written by Josann McGibbon and Sara Parriott. Filming began in the spring of 2014. [5] Filming took place in Vancouver and in locations such as Hatley Castle and the British Columbia Parliament Buildings in Victoria, Canada. [6] The costumes were designed by Kara Saun.
Descendants made its debut on Family Channel in Canada on July 31, 2015, simultaneously with the United States. It was also the last Disney Channel Original Movie to air in Canada on Family after the launch of a Disney Channel there. [7] The film premiered on August 1, 2015 on Disney Channel in Australia and New Zealand and on September 25, 2015 on Disney Channel in the United Kingdom and Ireland. [8] [9] In the Middle East and Africa, the film premiered on September 18, 2015 on the English feed of Disney Channel. [10] [11] It premiered in Turkey on October 17, 2015 on Disney Channel.[ citation needed ]
Descendants was released on DVD on July 31, 2015. [12] It was the fifth-best-selling home-video release of August. [13] By the end of 2015, the physical release had grossed about $11.5 million. [14]
Descendants received positive reviews from critics. Isabella Biedenharn of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a "B" grade, saying "... plot isn't really the point. The fun is in the roll call... It's no High School Musical , but the songs are catchy, and the junior villains are worth rooting for." [15] Tisha Mae Eaton of Moviepilot.com stated, "It's a movie that definitely had the feel of a Disney classic with a modern twist and I highly recommend it." [16] Alex Reif of LaughingPlace.com gave it a score of 4.5 out of 5 saying, "... I highly recommend this to any Disney fan, if for no other reason than to see what they've done with the characters, the Hocus Pocus references, and Kristin Chenoweth's Maleficent which is closer to the animated character than Angelina Jolie's portrayal." [17] Brian Lowry of Variety called it "... a playful and tuneful TV movie, exhibiting much higher ambitions than, say, the Teen Beach franchise." [18] By contrast, Amy Amatangelo of The Hollywood Reporter gave it a mixed review, calling it "High School Musical meets Once Upon a Time. It smartly ushers little girls who have grown up watching Disney movies into the tween audience and is an idea so ripe for merchandising that the Disney Store is already chock-full of Descendants costumes, dolls and T-shirts." She called the story "flimsy", but singled out the performances of Chenoweth, Najimy, Robinson and Jobrani. [19]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 90% of 10 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.67/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Memorable songs and excellent casting help turn Descendants into a decidedly wicked musical romp." [20] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 63 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. [21]
Before the film made its TV debut, it was viewed more than one million times on the Watch Disney Channel app. [22]
It was viewed by 6.6 million people on its premiere night [23] and 10.5 million viewers in Early DVR Playback. [24] Shortly after the premier air date, ratings showed the film was the fifth most watched original movie in cable history. [25]
In Australia, the film attracted 151,000 viewers, making it the sixth highest-rated broadcast on pay television on its premiere day. [26] The British premiere was watched by 827,000 viewers, making it the most-watched broadcast on Disney Channel of that week and month. [27] [28] The viewers rose to 1.45 million in 28 days, making it the highest viewership ever on the network.[ citation needed ]
Year | Award | Category | Recipients | Result | Ref. |
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2015 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Movie TV Song | Shawn Mendes – "Believe" | Nominated | [29] |
2016 | Writers Guild of America Award | Children's Longform Program | Josann McGibbon and Sara Parriott | Won | [30] |
2016 | Directors Guild of America Award | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Children's Program | Kenny Ortega | Won | [31] |
2016 | Golden Reel Awards | Sound Editing In Television - Musical: Long Form | Amber Funk | Nominated | [32] |
2016 | 68th Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Music Composition For A Limited Series, Movie Or Special (Original Dramatic Score) | David Lawrence | Nominated | [33] |
During the 2015 D23 Expo, Disney announced that a sequel to Descendants had been ordered. [34] The news was made official on the Disney Channel Facebook page on October 15, 2015. [2] Deadline reported that Parriott and McGibbon would reprise their duties as screenwriters and executive producers and that all of the cast from the first film was expected to return. [35] On June 10, 2016, it was announced that China Anne McClain would join the sequel as Ursula's daughter, Uma. [36]
On February 16, 2018, Disney Channel announced a third film in the series, Descendants 3 , which premiered on August 2, 2019. [3]
Before the film's premiere air date, Disney Channel announced a live action mini series leading up to the event. Every day leading up to the release of the film, a new episode of Descendants: School of Secrets would be released revealing more secrets about the students at Auradon Prep. Each episode of the series is under 5 minutes long, with 23 episodes in total. [37]
Right after the film finished airing on Disney Channel, it was announced that an animated short spinoff titled Descendants: Wicked World would be released on September 18, 2015. [38] Furthermore, former Phineas and Ferb storyboard artist Aliki Theofilopoulos Grafft announced on Twitter that she was directing the series, with Jenni Cook as producer, and that the original cast would be reprising their roles. [39]
Disney Channel announced a television special titled Descendants: The Royal Wedding which premiered on August 13, 2021. [40]
Descendants is a soundtrack album by the cast of Descendants, released on July 31, 2015 by Walt Disney Records. [41] The soundtrack peaked at number 1 in United States at Billboard 200, number one on the US Top Digital Albums and topped the US Top Soundtracks. [42]
Maleficent is a fictional character who first appears in Walt Disney Productions' animated film, Sleeping Beauty (1959). Maleficent is the self-proclaimed "Mistress of All Evil" based on the evil fairy godmother character in Charles Perrault's fairy tale Sleeping Beauty, as well as the villainess who appears in the Brothers Grimm's retelling of the story, Little Briar Rose. Maleficent was originally animated by Marc Davis.
Cruella de Vil is a fictional character in British author Dodie Smith's 1956 novel The Hundred and One Dalmatians. A pampered and glamorous London heiress and fashion designer, she appears in Walt Disney Productions' animated feature film One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961), voiced by Betty Lou Gerson; in Disney's 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure (2003), voiced by Susanne Blakeslee; in Disney's live-action 101 Dalmatians (1996) and 102 Dalmatians (2000), portrayed by Glenn Close; as well as Cruella (2021), portrayed by Emma Stone; and in many other Disney sequels and spin-offs.
Sleeping Beauty is a 1959 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by Buena Vista Distribution. Based on Charles Perrault's 1697 fairy tale, the production was supervised by Clyde Geronimi, and was directed by Wolfgang Reitherman, Eric Larson, and Les Clark. Featuring the voices of Mary Costa, Bill Shirley, Eleanor Audley, Verna Felton, Barbara Luddy, Barbara Jo Allen, Taylor Holmes, and Bill Thompson, the film follows Princess Aurora, who was cursed by the evil fairy Maleficent to die from a prick from the spindle of a spinning wheel. She is saved by three good fairies, who alter Aurora's curse so that she falls into a deep sleep and will be awakened by true love's kiss.
Lady Tremaine is a fictional character who appears in Walt Disney Productions' animated film Cinderella (1950) and its direct-to-video sequels Cinderella II: Dreams Come True (2002) and Cinderella III: A Twist in Time (2007). In the original film, Lady Tremaine is voiced by American actress Eleanor Audley, who would later voice Maleficent, the evil fairy, in Sleeping Beauty (1959) and Madame Leota in The Haunted Mansion. For the sequels and subsequent film and television appearances, Audley was succeeded by American actress Susanne Blakeslee who also currently voices Maleficent, Cruella de Vil from 101 Dalmatians, and the Evil Queen from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. She is given the title of Lady in the original film.
The Fairy Godmother is a fictional character from DreamWorks Animation's Shrek franchise, voiced by actress Jennifer Saunders. Introduced as the main antagonist of Shrek 2, the Fairy Godmother is the mother of Prince Charming, who Princess Fiona was originally intended to wed prior to meeting Shrek. Believing that ogres should not live happily ever after, she plots against newlyweds Shrek and Fiona's relationship, using her magic and potions in an attempt to trick Fiona into falling in love with her son. Fairy Godmother is loosely based on the stock fairy godmother character in fairy tales, specifically "Cinderella" and "Sleeping Beauty", serving as a parody of the common trope.
Maleficent is a 2014 American fantasy film starring Angelina Jolie as Maleficent in a live-action retelling of her villainous role in Walt Disney's 1959 animated film Sleeping Beauty, itself an adaptation of Charles Perrault's 1697 fairy tale. The film is directed by Robert Stromberg from a screenplay by Linda Woolverton. It also stars Sharlto Copley, Elle Fanning, Sam Riley, Imelda Staunton, Juno Temple, and Lesley Manville in supporting roles.
The Evil Queen, also known as the Wicked Queen, Queen Grimhilde, or just the Queen, is a fictional character who appears in Walt Disney Productions' first animated feature film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and remains a villain character in their extended Snow White franchise. She is based on the Evil Queen character from the 1812 German fairy tale "Snow White".
Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather are the three good fairies in Walt Disney's 1959 film Sleeping Beauty. They are characterized as Princess Aurora's fairy godmothers and guardians, who appear at baby Aurora's christening to present their gifts to her. The three were voiced by Verna Felton, Barbara Jo Allen, and Barbara Luddy, respectively.
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil is a 2019 American fantasy film directed by Joachim Rønning from a screenplay by Linda Woolverton, Micah Fitzerman-Blue, and Noah Harpster. Produced by Walt Disney Pictures and Roth/Kirschenbaum Films, it is a sequel to Maleficent (2014), itself a live-action retelling of Walt Disney's 1959 animated film Sleeping Beauty, and the second installment in the Maleficent film series. The film stars Angelina Jolie as the title character, with Elle Fanning, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Sam Riley, Harris Dickinson, Ed Skrein, Imelda Staunton, Juno Temple, Lesley Manville, and Michelle Pfeiffer in supporting roles. Set five years after Maleficent, the film sees the eponymous character face the neighboring kingdom's manipulated perception of herself as a villain, in addition to a subplot of the rise of an endangered, powerful fairy race of the Dark Fey.
Descendants: Wicked World is an animated short-form series based on the Disney Channel Original Movie Descendants. It premiered on September 18, 2015 on Disney Channel, taking place in-between the events of the first film and Descendants 2. The series is the first Disney Channel Original Series based on a Disney Channel Original Movie. It picks up after the first film and introduces new characters from the Isle of the Lost and Auradon. Descendants: Wicked World ended on March 3, 2017. It received generally positive reviews from critics.
"Rotten to the Core" is a song from Disney Channel's 2015 television film Descendants, whose music and lyrics were composed by Joacim Persson, Shelly Peiken and Johann Alkenas. The song was performed in its original show-tune version in the film by the main cast – Dove Cameron, Cameron Boyce, Booboo Stewart and Sofia Carson – in their vocal roles as Mal, Carlos, Jay and Evie. The song peaked at number 38 in the Billboard Hot 100. A second version, performed by actress and singer Sofia Carson, was released as a single on December 18, 2015. For the release of the third movie, the song was remixed.
Descendants 2 is an American musical fantasy television film. It premiered as a Disney Channel Original Movie on July 21, 2017, and was simulcast on Disney-owned networks ABC, Disney XD, Freeform, Lifetime, and Lifetime Movies. It is the second installment in the Descendants franchise and the sequel to the 2015 film Descendants. The film stars Dove Cameron, Cameron Boyce, Sofia Carson, Booboo Stewart, Mitchell Hope, and China Anne McClain. A third film, Descendants 3, premiered on August 2, 2019.
Descendants 3 is an American musical fantasy television film, being the third installment in the Descendants series, following Descendants and Descendants 2, and the last one in the film trilogy focused on Mal and her friends. It is written by Sara Parriott and Josann McGibbon, and is directed by Kenny Ortega. The film premiered on Disney Channel on August 2, 2019, and in other territories worldwide starting on October 12, 2019. The film was followed by an animated television special, Descendants: The Royal Wedding, released in 2021.
Sleeping Beauty is a Disney media franchise that began in 1959 with the theatrical release of the animated film Sleeping Beauty, based on the homonymous fairy tale.
Descendants is an American media franchise centered on a series of Disney Channel musical fantasy films created by Josann McGibbon and Sara Parriott, under the direction of Kenny Ortega for the first three films and Jennifer Phang for the fourth.
Descendants: The Rise of Red is a 2024 American musical teen fantasy comedy film directed by Jennifer Phang from a screenplay by Dan Frey and Ru Sommer. Produced by Disney Channel, the film is the fourth in the Descendants franchise, being a spin-off of the previous three films and a follow-up from Descendants: The Royal Wedding. The film was released on July 12, 2024 on Disney+, and made its debut on Disney Channel on August 9, 2024.