Ariana DeBose "cried like a baby" when she was cast in 'Wish'.
The 32-year-old actress had just enjoyed a star turn in Steven Spielberg's 2021 remake of 'West Side Story' when she was tapped to voice the leading role of Asha in the upcoming musical animation and explained that the project made her so emotional because she had grown up on movies made by Disney.
She told MovieWeb: "They came to me shortly after 'West Side Story' had premiered, and I hadn't really won anything. I was just excited that ''West Side Story' had come out, and it looked like I was going to have the opportunity to make more work.
"Then they called, and Chris Buck [the director] was like, 'We want to make this movie with you.' I was like, amazing, what is it? Because they hadn't really told me, but then they explained what the story was going to be, and I cried like a baby because I was a Disney kid growing up."
Ariana went on to add that her character was inspired by other Disney Princesses but also believes that the role sits "in her own realm" and also has the potential to lead in a whole new generation of characters for the franchise.
She said: "I can tell you definitively that so many of our previous Disney princesses and heroines inspired me while in the booth. I could hear the echoes of Mulan and Cinderella. I would go, 'Alice would have said that' or 'Raya, there you at girl!' I drew inspiration from so many of the characters from the canon. I also think Asha sits in her own realm. I think she ushers us into an entire new chapter of Disney characters. I don't know if they will be princesses or heroines."
