Anne Hathaway’s Cult Fantasy Favorite Is Getting the TV Remake Treatment at Disney+
Anne Hathaway is heading back to fairytale mode: Disney+ is developing an Ella Enchanted TV series based on the 2004 cult favorite, with Hathaway on board as executive producer.
If you thought the era of reviving early 2000s films was winding down, think again—because Ella Enchanted is making a comeback, and Anne Hathaway’s rolling up her sleeves for it. Yes, that Anne Hathaway. Disney+ is in the early stages of developing a television series based on the cult favourite, with Hathaway on board as executive producer. There’s no word yet if she’ll actually pop up onscreen, but she’s certainly involved behind the scenes. Let’s have a poke around at what’s actually happening.
So, How’s This New Ella Going to Work?
The new take is coming from Miramax Television and Paramount Television Studios—bit of a team-up there—and the script is in the hands of Ilana Wolpert. Showrunner duties (as well as exec-producing) fall to Beth Schwartz, who’s got previous with DC’s Arrowverse. Hathaway is exec-producing alongside Johnathan Rice and Adam Shulman (her real-life other half) through Somewhere Pictures, plus iGen Studios is in the mix as well. In essence, it’s Anne wielding some proper power off camera.
It should be said, this thing is still very much in ‘early development’, which means most of what’s public is a version of “We’re working on it, just don’t ask when you can watch it.”
What’s Staying from the Book & Film? And What’s Changing?
If you haven’t buried the plot of Ella Enchanted deep in your brain—it’s about Ella of Frell, who’s literally cursed with obedience. She has to do whatever she’s told, which is a nightmare scenario if you ask me. In the story, following her mother’s death, Ella gets packed off to boarding school (the classic fantasy move) and starts poking into the secret of her curse. There’s a prince, obviously, and—according to Disney’s own blurb—a 'totally inconvenient crush', plus she apparently builds her own makeshift family along the way.
The plan this time is to stick much closer to Gail Carson Levine’s original 1997 novel, especially the boarding school angle. If you recall (or endured) the 2004 film with Hathaway, it was all fairy-tale send-ups, pop culture gags, and the kind of musical numbers that made you question whether you’d had too much sugar. Levine herself once pointedly said the film was its 'own thing'—a polite way of saying 'not what I wrote.' So, the series: same main idea, less singing, more coming-of-age drama, and hopefully fewer elves doing disco numbers. In my book, that’s not a terrible change.
Who Else Is Involved?
- Ilana Wolpert (writer)
- Beth Schwartz (showrunner, executive producer)
- Anne Hathaway (executive producer)
- Johnathan Rice & Adam Shulman (executive producers, Somewhere Pictures)
- iGen Studios
- Miramax TV & Paramount TV Studios (the money and logistics folks)
The cast hasn’t been mentioned yet, so don’t start fantasy booking the next Hugh Dancy. On that note, Dancy, Cary Elwes, and Vivica A. Fox were with Hathaway in the original film, but there’s zero word if any of them will pop back in even for a cameo.
Anne Hathaway, Disney, and the Upfronts
For Hathaway, this is a bit of a return to familiar turf—she’s got longstanding ties with Disney, especially in the Princess Diaries era. At Disney’s latest upfront show-and-tell, she trotted out a bit of nostalgia, saying:
'Like so many of you, I was introduced to Disney as a child, learning how to dream and tell stories. Playing Mia in Princess Diaries became this magical portal that opened up my whole life.'
So yes, she’s playing up the Disney magic. Not that you can blame her, really.
A Bit of TV Industry Jostling
This project is another notch in the belt for Miramax and Paramount, who seem keen to squeeze a few more stories out of the Miramax film vault. They’re already at it with a Cop Land TV show, so expect more of these adaptations if the numbers look good.
The Cult Legacy
The thing is, Ella Enchanted wasn’t a hit when it first came out—box office receipts were a bit limp. But as so often happens, it found a new life on DVD, picking up an oddball cult following who probably watched the film more times than was strictly healthy. This new series seems aimed firmly at them—and, honestly, the next batch of fantasy-loving teens lurking on Disney+.
Where this will land between YA fantasy, modern nostalgia, and proper weirdness… that’s anyone’s guess for now. But with Hathaway producing, and the series heading back to its bookish roots, it might be worth keeping an eye on—if only for curiosity’s sake.