Brandy is returning to the role of beloved heroine Cinderella in the Disney+ original movie The Pocketwatch, which will be a continuation of the Descendants franchise. Brandy first played the iconic character in the 1997 TV film adaptation that also starred Whitney Houston. The film recently celebrated its 25th anniversary.
Rita Ora is also joining the cast as the legendary Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland. Brandy and Rita are part of an incredible ensemble that also includes China Anne McClain, Kylie Cantrall, Dara Reneé, Malia Baker, Ruby Rose Turner, Morgan Dudley, Joshua Colley, and Melanie Paxson
According to the cast breakdown, Brandy’s Cinderella is the “classic Disney character, who is elegant, warm, good-hearted and diplomatic.” In The Pocketwatch, Cinderella has a daughter with Prince Charming named Chloe, played by Malia. The 16-year-old is “book smart and athletic, but her privilege makes her somewhat naive about the real world.”
Morgan will play Ella/Young Cinderella in The Pocketwatch. Ella is blunt, pragmatic, and has a bit of a chip on her shoulder about being forced to work for her wicked stepmother.” Kylie stars as Red, the rebellious 16-year-old daughter of the Queen of Hearts. Red “knows she’ll never get the Queen’s approval, so she finds ways to provoke her mother and stir up trouble.”
China and Melanie are reprising their roles from the previous Descendants movies. China famously plays Uma, the daughter of Ursula. Melanie starred in all 3 Descendants movies as Fairy Godmother.
The Pocketwatch will return to the lands of Auradon and the Isle of the Lost, while also taking fans through the rabbit hole to the hostile unincorporated territory of Wonderland. The official synopsis reads: “The expansive new story finds polar opposites Red and Chloe crossing paths at a momentous celebration in Auradon when unexpected chaos breaks out. In order to prevent an impending coup, they must join forces to travel back in time, via a magical pocket watch created by the Mad Hatter’s son, to stop an event that would lead to grave consequences.”
Descendants became a phenomenon for Disney Channel when the first film premiered in 2015. The original cast revolved around the kids of Maleficent, Evil Queen, Cruella de Vil, and Jafar, but the two sequels introduced more kids of famous Disney heroes and villains.