Top 10 Behind the Scenes Facts About Cinderella (1997)

These behind the scenes facts about "Cinderella" (1997) will make you want to rewatch it even more. Our countdown includes it had a huge budget, the stepmother didn't have her own song, Whitney Houston was supposed to play Cinderella, and more! What's YOUR favorite "Cinderella" movie? Let us know in the comments!
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MsMojo is a leading producer of reference online video content of Top 10 Lists, Origins, Biographies, Commentary and more on Pop Culture, Celebrity, Movies, Music, TV, Film, Video Games, Politics, News, Comics, Superheroes. Your trusted authority on ranking Pop Culture.
#Cinderella #Disney #Brandy

[@seakelp15]

The best. RIP Natalie Desselle 💙 RIP Whitney Houston ❤️

[@watchforever1724]

Yeah Rest In Peace

[@dr.braxygilkeycruises1460]

Amen! Natalie was my soror. We pledged together at Grambling State University. I miss her dearly.

[@kallen868]

Natalie could steal a scene..."I WANNA CHANCE AT HIM"✌❤

[@kastrie89]

I didn't know Natalie passed away! I loved her!

[@garthdavis4320]

Natalie is dead. No wonder I haven’t heard from her lately. I liked her in BAPS. I still mourn Whitney though.

[@cartoonishclaude]

If we can get a black Cinderella,then there’s nothing wrong with Ariel being black in the live action Little Mermaid remake.

[@shortcakenyc6984]

Exactly. It’s sad how this movie was celebrated because of different races playing traditionally white roles & over 20 years later there are people hating on another film doing the same thing.

[@cartoonishclaude]

There’s nothing wrong with Tinkerbell being black as well.

[@chocothun1]

SAY THAT!!!

[@kimxhii2406]

If we can have a black Cinderella we can have a black Aurora. You cant tell me otherwise

[@TheWickedMerman]

As long as they give her red hair, I'll be happy. I'll especially be happy if they do what this movie did and just throw race out the window and have it be 100% color-blind. I want her sisters to be Asian, Hispanic, white, black, and all that jazz.

[@marec1675]

Definitely one of the best Cinderella movies along with Ever After

[@living_like_lucy]

Ever After is so good! 🥰

[@amidthephantomsrose]

Yessss

[@GGSoneBAPBaby]

Yasss Ever After is my favorite non musical fairytale 😍😍😍

[@anthonymccully4002]

Tasteeee

[@paul8926]

Disney’s Cinderella was way better.

[@selenabritroma]

True diversity without the cringe or a lecture. Very natural. Such a great movie. I wish there was a sequel.

[@Boss-cj6zn]

Except the white dad and black mom creating a Asian child. That was kinda weird and seemed forced

[@selenabritroma]

@@Boss-cj6zn Let's say he was adopted. 😊

[@greeneyesgirl467]

@@Boss-cj6zn seemed forced... 🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄

[@greeneyesgirl467]

@@Boss-cj6zn as a child watching this I didn't think twice. Funny how when we became adults things became "forced" and "lecture like" 🙄🙄🙄🙄

[@conservativedestroyer4056]

@@Boss-cj6zn With comments like these, who cares about Dr. Seuss

[@chelseacanales8763]

Brandy and the late Whitney Houston’s Cinderella version is still a classic.

[@mollybeardall976]

I'm so glad I grew up with this! As a kid, you don't care about race. You care about the story, the characters, the music, and how good it all makes you feel. One of my favorite Cinderella movies :)

[@amidthephantomsrose]

Yes!!!

[@EliseValdez]

I absolutely agree, as a child this was my favorite movie and never noticed the races till adulthood. Love it though and never bothered

[@TwoLeftFeetDancer]

I was 35 when I first saw this. Yes, the first thing I noticed was all the different races and was like "What the he....Wow! This is awesome!" Been my favorite version of Cinderella ever since.

[@jessicaosei721]

I loved this movie so much. I had a crush on the prince as a kid. I loved singing all the songs. I’ve been binge watching it since it was released on Disney+

[@angiee1603]

I was about 14 when I saw this movie. We had the video and watched it many times. I did wonder about the races of the royal family. We thought it was funny thinking about how it was possible for white and black parents to have an Asian kid, but we loved the movie nonetheless. Like I said we watched it many times. Thinking back on it, you could say the diversity of the cast represents a somewhat utopian society where race really doesn't matter. You could say a white king married a black queen and they adopted an Asian prince and none of those actions raised any eyebrows.

[@CarlywithaY90]

Paolo was the LAST to audition?? Talk about saving the best for last 💓

[@kallen868]

💯%

[@Vampwars]

My favorite animated Disney Prince will always be Prince Adam (The Beast) but when it comes to the real ones, even with the current live action remakes & the future ones, Paolo is forever the only one for me 💙🤍💜

[@LegionIvory]

That man is truly a real-life Prince Charming.

[@amyadams9970]

What always made me giggle about about this movie was a black woman and a white man had an Asian child. This movie was before its time.

[@missright9159]

I love how this movie was truly colorblind. And no one seemed to make a big fuss about it. My 7 year-old self thought nothing of it.

[@jerrelljones9991]

True I focused on how good the movie was and how great the performance was by the actors as a kid I didn't even notice or care

[@isabelalzateestrada]

I was only confused trying to remember who was related to who, but I'm glad they casted based on ability instead of looks

[@jalenikezeue4114]

actually Mr Montalban Is Filipino - American

[@rsw0103]

Whitney Houston's music always giving me goosebumps.

[@kamilahscorner6602]

Same here😊

[@HufflinPuffs]

Now we need Disney to cough up that soundtrack

[@thebrokegothgirl]

Right!

[@andreasmeelie1889]

They never did?! What are they thinking?!😱

[@HufflinPuffs]

@@andreasmeelie1889 They really didn’t do much for it, promotion or soundtrack wise. Whitney said it’s the one thing she regretted about Cinderella is the soundtrack.

[@TheCoco151]

it was brandy record label at the time disney and whitney want the soundtrack. But brandy label was afraid that people think she was doing broadway and not R&B anymore.

[@Beqeeangel]

SPOTIFY DOESNT HAVE IT!! I have to listen to the original Broadway release and it’s not as good as the Whitney Houston version :/

[@rachelfishbein1478]

Anytime I babysat when I was in high school I would show this movie to the kids I was watching, and anytime they wanted to watch any Cinderella movie after that it was this one. This move meant so much to my childhood.

[@jaygo3558]

Loved this movie as a kid and still do. I didn’t notice skin color growing up and never questioned why a black mother and white father produced an Asian son. Then as I got older people pointed it out. I wish we could all see people from the same lense as I did as a child.

[@ashleydowney1222]

I never noticed it as a kid. I didn't even really notice it until a few weeks ago.

[@slinkchigger7548]

"I wish everyone would have a childlike perspective of the world". It's true, some people never grow up.

[@koxonutboy]

I simply loved this movie when I was younger. I watched it so many times...

[@kittymaepackard4875]

Favorite Cinderella, so lucky to have grown up with this. I’ll never forget watching it for the first time the night it premiered.

[@ashleydowney1222]

I remember watching it with my foster mom, my foster sister when it premiered. They became my mom and sister 6 months later.

[@kallen868]

I used to teach musical theater... It was a thrill to introduce this to students.

[@celanalimoongal3368]

The fact that Whitney Houston suggested Brandy play Cinderella makes me think she ironically became her fairy godmother irl.

[@cakes3958]

Y’all slept on Brandy for far too long. This legend deserves her flowers

[@minakoaino7043]

Slept? What?

[@andrewrocha9766]

Indeed they did and do! Lol

[@tyliekinc.]

She was & never is slept on. My mom was a teenager in the 90’s she said Brandy was the shit in the 90’s Brandy had a Barbie, albums, tv show, first black Cinderella, Cover girl on magazines

[@cakes3958]

@@tyliekinc. I grew up in the 90s too. I’m talking about now. Brandy does not get the recognition she deserves and hasn’t done for 20 damn years.

[@hehehehehe27]

So you're telling me Whoopi Goldberg helped bring us one of the best versions of Cinderella? Well I completely believe it! Go Queen!

[@kallen868]

Whitney produced.

[@erinpijlie5078]

Just noticed that Tiana's silhouette looks like Brandy's in this version of Cinderella. Coincidence?

[@elizabethgonzalez414]

Absolute favorite Cinderella 😭 still have the VHS. I just can’t get rid of it.

[@ashleydowney1222]

I still have it as well.

[@Beqeeangel]

I saw it once as a kid and it stuck with me. When I was in middle school my awesome older sister hunted it down and got me the DVD :)

[@kallen868]

I still have mine as well!

[@erinsmith4954]

I still have mine as well.❤

[@skyharris9129]

I'm so glad this movie is getting the recognition it deserves, it's such a beautiful movie💗

[@dawnjensen6560]

I’m glad Whitney kept pushing for this. I’m also glad she stepped back from Cinderella. Her voice is amazing and the songs the Fairy Godmother sings were more suited to her talent. Love the diversity in this cast. He said it himself Love+Love=Love.

[@art.of.verser]

This was beyond groundbreaking at the time, but it eventually became LEGENDARY...aside from a multiracial cast. Brandy personified Cinderella for many young girls in 1997 and possibly generations to come. 💗 I still remember this version being my fave!!!

[@mytunalunch]

Whoopi can sing... Sister Act!

[@saraf5455]

I've always thought of this as my favorite version of Cinderella, even when I hadn't seen it for 12-15 years. After rewatching it recently, I can confirm it is still my favorite version of Cinderella. So lucky that I got to grow up with this version and so happy that I finally got to watch it again!

[@PhoenixFeather09]

This was my favorite Cinderella as a kid. I remember saying to my parents she's my favorite and they asked why. I said, she isn't cartoon like all princesses! she is a real princess!!!

[@wesleyjenkins4267]

She was the first Cinderella I saw as a toddler and funny thing is when I looked at the original Walt Disney version I thought it was a cheap knockoff.

[@rosebookfan7677]

As much I’d like to see Whitney as Cinderella, she was more phenomenal as the fairy godmother!!!👏🏼👏🏿👏🏾👏🏻👏🏽👏🏿👏🏼👏🏾👏🏿👏🏽

[@kallen868]

She knew that!!!

[@angelgregory9445]

To be hand picked by your idol to be the lead in a movie that said idol really wanted made has to best thing that can ever happen to anyone.

[@tyd2877]

This version was literally the best ever made. Period.

[@ericfasold805]

i can't help but feel that Bernadette Peters could've been in Titanic as well.

[@KyaunneeRichardson]

I've seen many versions of this story from musicals to movies to operas and plays. This is my favorite version of the classic fairy-tale. The main reason is because of the casting... where an African-American girl sitting at her television set in 1997 to see someone like her on the screen, allowed her to dream and believe that anything is possible. I believed that my biggest and wildest dreams were possible. With that in my mind and heart, I knew I could do anything. It's possible!

[@AirQuotes]

This film is amazing and doesn't get enough credit

[@hip2besquare1972]

Absolutely love this version of Cinderella, it makes me feel good to see so many of my favorite actors, actresses, and singing artists in one great production and movie. Such a amalgam of talent!!!

[@rosieschweebie]

I was 30 when this came out, but I was just as excited as my little girl was to see it!! Love this version!!

[@indashadewithguccipaid510]

I was 7 my my mom was In her 30s she loves singing the parts

[@toastEDmrshmello09]

I was 7 my mom was in her 30’s too!

[@rosieschweebie]

@@toastEDmrshmello09 Yes! My daughter turn 7 that year too.☺️

[@ShawnChang6453]

I was 15 years old when this was shown on TV. I love the experience and the creativity....and the moment I saw Whitney Houston, man, I'm sold!

[@rsw0103]

I used to love watching this movie when ABC showed Disney movies.

[@amandaprice4190]

Brandy role has helped execs and others make the argument against others today for actresses such as Halle to play Ariel by being able to reference it as being done before and loved and a classic when done tastefully and respectfully

[@moonprismgirlie]

I first watched this on accident. I wanted my parents to rent cartoon cinderella for me but they grabbed the wrong one. I was disappointed but gave it a shot and I am so glad I watched it. It is a favorite. So good.

[@amidthephantomsrose]

Ive loved this film since I was 5, when it first aired on the wonderful world of disney!!! My favorite Cinderella next to ever after. Whoopi is right, this was Hamilton before Hamilton. And the crazy thing is, here I am at 29, introducing this to my almost 2 year old daughter. This movie is timeless and truly has a legacy.

[@Showtunediva]

This is my favorite Version of the Cinderella movie. I had forgotten that Victor Garner was in Titanic. His favorite roles of mine are his role in Cinderella & Daddy Warbucks in Annie.

[@vofcups2836]

Love that version of Annie!

[@toyadiinae9800]

My 3rd favorite is on Alias.

[@mercedesrene9021]

as a young white child, i’m very glad my parents had me growing up with this cinderella. brandy and whitney were wonderful and this will forever be my favorite cinderella.

[@AliAngelpie]

I was delighted to know they had a black Cinderella, so Tiana technically isn't the first black Disney princess, the first ANIMATED black princess, but still. The diversity is great.

[@Tizdizwiz]

This movie meant SO much to me as a kid. I was a 9-10 year old kid who being a child of colour (I am spanish/south american) where everything in 90's australian media was very white centric but also disney was HUGE during this (outside of some rare circumstances). But seeing a dark skinned cinderella who was a princess was incredible. I finally felt included for once.

[@minakoaino7043]

I love all Cinderella movies, I grew up watching all of them.

[@PerfectlyImperfect93]

Not afraid to admit that I was completely in love with Brandy as a little girl. 😍💕

[@katarinakrnjevic8183]

One of best Cinderella adaptation , everything was great from the songs to costumes and dancing sequences .All actors were good in both acting and singing , and almost all deserved to have even bigger carriers.

[@angiee1603]

I watched this movie so many times when I was a kid. Hearing these clips reminds me how much I liked the music.

[@dancerbabe02]

The way my cousins and I would watch this movie EVERY. SINGLE. DAY!!! I still sing IMPOSSSIBLE THINGS ARE HAPPENING EVERYYYYDAAAAYYY ☺️. Such good memories

[@PatriciaLLogan]

Brandy was in a TV show called Thea before she started singing, so Cinderella was not her first acting role.

[@halimabahani8391]

Yes

[@ashleysmith8402]

She was playing moesha while doing this movie.

[@carterhurd5263]

I love this version of Cinderella, it's so amazing Since MsMojo talked about Brandy, any chance we can get MsMojo to do a Top 10 Brandy Songs

[@darthstarkiller1912]

Loved this film since I was 5. Rodgers and Hammerstein are such an iconic music duo.

[@pamelahammonds8418]

Critics like to hear themselves talk and love what they write. I'm 60 and loved the version with Leslie-Anne but this version is my favorite.

[@chocothun1]

This was too good for this sinful world, and I am so glad we got it. Watching it at 28, it holds the same magic that it did at 5...I just understand it deeper and it continues to speak to me over and over again *sets queue on Disney+*

[@amidthephantomsrose]

Same. Those of us who experienced this film as a 90s kid were truly blessed. At 29 I still am in love with this film and it still is so timeless. The magic and the music lives on. It truly has a legacy. I think I have an even deeper appreciation for this film than I did when I was 5. I'm now introducing it to my 2 year old daughter.

[@GajeelRedfoxRocks]

This is the Cinderella I grew up watching!

[@laceystonerock6609]

This is my favorite version of Cinderella, and I think it always will be. As much as Whitney wanted to be Cinderella, she makes the perfect godmother. Cinderella has a meek and demure personality, and Whitney was the strong, powerful woman with a strong, powerful voice that turned the fairy godmother from a fairly forgettable role, into the pillar of Cinderella's confidence. Who wouldn't feel like they could take on a royal ball after a real pep talk in song form from the great Whitney Houston???

[@lisajames295]

I loved this version growing up!!! I must have watched it 100 times. Lol 😂

[@TheSilverphoenix88]

An ASIAN (handsome) male lead: this film was ahead of its time in many ways

[@yelzified]

this is and always will be my favorite version of Cinderella! Brandy was the best!

[@watchforever1724]

Yep

[@Jheavenly95]

I wonder if they'll do a cinema version of this. I hope not because this is priceless

[@darkstorm08]

I'm sorry.... I love almost every version.... But this one takes the cake... And I LOVE me some drew but this one is literal magic

[@bjhoneylove]

OMG! Thank you so much for doing this video.

[@michalhanna4374]

I NEED this soundtrack to be released! Sadly that might not happen!

[@Gilraen15]

Absolutely love this version of Cinderella. Brandy and Whitney Houston were incredible in it. Also, I love the song for the Stepmother, it actually adds some depth to her character without having to add more detail to the storyline. The Whole cast was amazing and brilliant!

[@ashleydowney1222]

I was 5 when this movie came out. I was in foster care and I was going to be adopted six months later. My adoptive family was white. Watching this movie for the first time make me realize that I could be any Disney princess regardless of my skin color. I still love this movie. I watched the first day it was released on Disney Plus.

[@dr.braxygilkeycruises1460]

🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗

[@theladyfromplanetx2847]

Brandy was not the first black Cinderella, she's technically the fifth. The first black Cinderella was Cleo Lane, followed by Charlayne Woodward, Jennifer Beals and Della Miles.

[@AlyssaSteiner]

I remember watching this with my parents when it premiered. Think I might have to get out my DVD of it and give it a watch because its been a long time!

[@dragonlynx9969]

My favorite Cinderella movie is Ever After but this one is still in my top 5.😁

[@salinasn3]

I love the diversity in the movie. It’s a childhood movie to me. Whitney is queen 👑

[@kdtimepodcast]

love this movie! Rest in Power Natalie Desselle & Whitney Houston!!

[@sarahn.h355]

I noticed the multiracial cast when I was little and I loved it then as much I love it now. And I loved brandy and her singing and she’s so pretty and this is the Cinderella film with best fairy godmother ever. (And no one can convince me otherwise) I had a crush on the prince and whoopi had me laughing all the time. I always remembered the king as “the guy from the big boat movie “ when I was younger lol.

[@briannahlabelle2458]

I loved this version growing up!!!

[@emilymcdonald5526]

This is my all time favorite movie ever.

[@maam9401]

Damn my prince charming still fine 9:45

[@cocoasmooth8382]

Yes! He has aged like wine 🍷🥰

[@GitteSeitzberg]

I love this movie! I get the goosebumps when they start to sing. So happy that it's on Disney+. I haven't watch it in a long time, but I'm pretty sure that Disney has brushed it up made it full HD for Disney+. Can't wait to see all the details

[@jpurple1149]

brandy was also known for her successful tv show 'moesha' at the time.

[@chardejones7116]

One of my favorite movies ever. It makes me smile every time.

[@rosebookfan7677]

I have loved & rewatched this movie since I was a kid!!!👸🏾🤩

[@shineycarlin5606]

I loved this movie as a little girl!!! Still to this day!!!

[@liveicelive]

I absolutely love, love, LOVE this movie!

[@thegreatmysterylady3221]

I love this movie!!!! Ever After a Cinderella story and this version of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella are my favorite versions of Cinderella. Beautifully well done ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@MsMojo]

So good!

[@andreasmith1836]

This movie always makes me teary eyed!

[@GGSoneBAPBaby]

Rodgers and Hammerstein 1997 Cinderella and Ever After 😍😍 both hands down are the best Cinderella adaptations out there.

[@moonprincesst.s.h.4ever115]

Hands down, this is my favorite version of Cinderella OF ALL TIME! I can quote EVERY WORD! 🎶

[@cjnickolson]

This is my favorite version of Cinderella! Been watching it since I was little!

[@dominicalarissa7269]

Thank you for this video❤

[@Nanenna]

The MoMusu production of R&H's Cinderella is one of my faves (weird step-sister song placement not withstanding) but I will always always ALWAYS have a soft spot in my heart for this version. I watched it air live for the first time when it came out when I was a kid and it was just so magical! Though I still joked about how in the 90s everyone kept trying to make Whoopie Goldberg sing. XD

[@EliseValdez]

This is my favorite movie, so happy it is finally getting its recognition!

[@alyssasopinion7617]

YES my favorite Cinderella what would I do without disney plus or ms mojo

[@tvluvr7792]

Something else that could be added to #5 - Some Lyrics Were Changed to Represent Brandy's Skin Color - In the original 1957 version with Julie Andrews and in the 1965 version with Leslie Ann Warren, there's a lyric in "In My Own Little Corner" which was changed in the 1997 version. The original lyrics are "I'm a slave from Calcutta, I'm a queen in Peru". In Whitney Houston's Cinderella, the lyrics were changed to "I'm a thief in Calcutta, I'm a queen in Peru". The fact that Brandy was black... and singing lyrics where she was fantasizing about being a slave just wouldn't fly... so they changed the word "slave" to "thief". The word might have been changed in 1997 anyhow even if Cinderella was being played by a white actress, however, the fact that Brandy was black made changing that one word all the more compelling.

[@WeCanShowYoutheWorld]

I still remember watching this for the first time on the Wonderful World of Disney - I was obsessed with the soundtrack for this from the Julia Andrews version so I was thrilled to have a more modern version. -- K

[@justineves3588]

very very great list I like it a lot great job mis mojo one of my very favorite list ever Cinderella 1997 is one of the very best Cinderella movies ever with a great cast

[@sifilore9462]

This was my favorite as a kid and I still listen to the songs sometimes on my phone 📱. There should b not more but A LOT more color blind films so it’ll send messages to people to no longer c skin color, only the person and hearts.

[@ashleydowney1222]

I wish they did more color blind films

[@MusicalRomancegrl]

This was my favorite Cinderella growing up. When it finally came on Disney+ I felt like a little kid again, twirling around in her living room while the fairy godmother gave her opening speech

[@tylerarmstrong6853]

I wish Disney would have released a soundtrack to this. The music is magical asf ❤

[@brittf1847]

As a young child watching this as my first Cinderella movie I never questioned the races - I just thought, “wow that fairy godmother has an amazing voice”...many years later I found out why!

[@CraftyMarieArts]

This is my favorite version because I just love the diversity! They need to do more movies like this and I remember watching this at age 8 and I loved it ever since! 👸🏾💖😎🥰😘

[@SamanthaSweets]

I am so excited that they are we making this it’s so sad that some of the cast or not with us anymore but I can’t wait to see the other actors back at it again

[@toyd6878]

Oh my God... I loved this movie so much. I still know all the songs even after seeing the movie a hand full of times.

[@jessicasalminen6060]

This is my fav. version of Cinderella ❣

[@edgydreamy681]

I still have the VHS and this is one of the best...

[@firekovu]

This movie shows how colorblind my child self was. As a kid, I legit thought that Black Mom + White Dad = Asian son But all jokes aside, I love how race was never an issue in the movie (aside from the lyrical changes in the Stepsisters' Laments) and the natural harmony it showed was amazing

[@candiceoutlaw5573]

Omg the best movie ever!!!