Words Harry Faint

Five-hundred years ago, Kumandra was a beautiful world where humans and dragons lived together in harmony. Now, it’s in near ruin with its people divided and only one dragon left alive after the others sacrificed themselves to save the world from a tremendous evil. An evil force that has now returned. Humanity’s only hope for survival lies with the last dragon, but first it must be found.

Raya And The Last Dragon introduces the latest Disney princess, but Raya by no means fits the traditional mould and is much more interested in great swords than glass slippers. With great strength, sharp reflexes, and a true warrior’s spirit, she’s much more of a Mulan or Merida than a Snow White or Cinderella. Raya has trained all of her life to become guardian of the Dragon Gem and now, with the fate of her world at stake once more, it’s down to her - and her adorable armadillo sidekick Tuk Tuk - to venture across the land to find the legendary water dragon Sisu.

From the creative minds of Crazy Rich Asians screenwriter Adele Lim and famed Vietnamese-American playwright Qui Nguyen - and featuring the voices of Kelly Marie Tran and Awkwafina - Disney’s latest original animation is an action-packed and visually-stunning slice of Southeast Asia that draws from many different cultures of the region to bring a whole new world of fantasy to the big screen.

Breaking The Princess Mould

Over the past ten years, Disney has shaken up its pristine princess image by bringing some forward-thinking representations into the fold. Here are some standouts.

Frozen

Disney ditched the damsel in distress cliché for their heartwarming animation as it was Anna who did the rescuing. Plus, it was Anna and Elsa’s sisterly love that saved the day, not true love’s kiss.

Moana

Moana set sail on her heroic adventure to restore the Heart of Tefiti and save her island without a Prince Charming in sight.

Vanellope Von Schweetz

Wreck-It Ralph’s bestie is the foul-mouthed candy-covered racer in the video game Sugar Rush. No one was as surprised as her to find out she’s technically the princess of the kingdom.