10 Things You May Not Know About Tiana

1. When casting the role of Tiana, directors Ron Clements and John Musker wanted to stay away from established stars, as they wanted Tiana to stand on her own and not bring to mind a mental picture of a real actor. The part went to Anika Noni Rose, who had previously co-starred alongside Beyoncé and Jennifer Hudson in Dreamgirls. (Her costars had also expressed interest in the part.) Rose was caught a bit off guard when she learned that she had won the role of Tiana! She recalls, “I wasn’t planning on being a princess. I thought I’d be like a weeping willow or something!”

2. Rose had a great deal of input into the final design of Tiana. “I … said I wanted it to look like she ate and wasn’t skinny, and she has a full mouth and a little round nose and curly hair and these are all things that made her look distinctly herself.” Rose didn’t want Tiana to resemble “a cookie-cutter princess who had been coloured in brown. When I saw her for the first time and realized how much she looked like me I was really blown away.”

3. Rose also provided live-action reference for supervising animator Mark Henn. Henn would videotape her as she recorded her lines, and he worked many of her characteristics into Tiana…including the fact that she’s left-handed!

4. Anika read though the entire script in a marathon recording session that lasted eight hours! It was in fact her first recording session for Tiana, and she looks back on the session as “exhausting, but wonderful.” She and co-star Bruno Campos (Prince Naveen), ended up recording most of their dialog separately.

5. In the beginning of the movie (before her transformation into a frog), take note of how the coloring of Tiana’s clothing is subdued. After she returns to her human form, Tiana’s wardrobe becomes significantly brighter, reflecting her new attitude of living life to the fullest.

6. At the end of the film, astute Disney fans will note that Tiana’s Palace has a band called “Firefly Five Plus Lou.” This is a reference to the jazz band “Firehouse Five Plus Two” which featured Frank Thomas and Ward Kimball, two of Walt Disney’s famous Nine Old Men.

7. Tiana is the only princess to wear a wedding ring. Wait, what about Anna you say? Well, even though Anna does have a ring in Frozen II, Anna is technically a queen, and isn’t an official member of the Disney Princess line-up. (But she’ll always be Disney royalty to us!)

8. Speaking of romance, Tiana and Naveen kiss each other five times in the film, more than any other pair in a Disney princess movie. Smooch smooch!

9. Again setting aside the case of Anna and Elsa, Tiana is the oldest Disney Princess, along with Cinderella. They are both 19 years old.

10. Tiana, along with many of her other Princess pals, makes a cameo appearance in Ralph Breaks the Internet. Toward the end of the film, when the Princesses see Ralph about to fall to his death, they get together and save him. Ralph is unconscious though, and it’s Tiana who brings Naveen (in his frog form) to awaken Ralph with a classic, fairy tale kiss!