With the success of Maleficent, Disney is plunging full steam ahead with live-action updates of several animated classics. Up next on that list is Cinderella, featuring Lily James as the titular heroine, and an impressive supporting cast which includes Cate Blanchett and Helena Bonham Carter. The film hits theaters next month, but we’ve got the new trailer right now.
Check out the new Cinderella trailer below, which premiered on Disney’s YouTube channel.
Everything here looks absolutely gorgeous, from the costumes to the production design. Director Kenneth Branagh is no stranger to splendor, and if nothing else, Cinderella should be a visual feast. And hey – that’s Robb Stark himself, Richard Madden, as the handsome prince!
Cinderella opens on March 13.
The story of “Cinderella” follows the fortunes of young Ella (Lily James) whose merchant father remarries following the death of her mother. Eager to support her loving father, Ella welcomes her new stepmother (Cate Blanchett) and her daughters Anastasia (Holliday Grainger) and Drisella (Sophie McShera) into the family home. But, when Ella’s father unexpectedly passes away, she finds herself at the mercy of a jealous and cruel new family. Finally relegated to nothing more than a servant girl covered in ashes, and spitefully renamed Cinderella, Ella could easily begin to lose hope.
Yet, despite the cruelty inflicted upon her, Ella is determined to honor her mother’s dying words and to “have courage and be kind.” She will not give in to despair nor despise those who mistreat her. And then there is the dashing stranger she meets in the woods. Unaware that he is really a prince, not merely an apprentice at the Palace, Ella finally feels she has met a kindred soul. It appears her fortunes may be about to change when the Palace sends out an open invitation for all maidens to attend a ball, raising Ella’s hopes of once again encountering the charming Kit (Richard Madden). Alas, her stepmother forbids her to attend and callously rips apart her dress. But, as in all good fairy tales, help is at hand, and a kindly beggar woman (Helena Bonham-Carter) steps forward and – armed with a pumpkin and a few mice – changes Cinderella’s life forever.
cinderella disney kenneth branagh richard madden