Look Back at All the Actresses Who Voiced Disney Princesses

Meet the actresses behind the animated faces of your favorite Disney princesses

Meet the actresses behind some of your favorite Disney princesses.

Cinderella, Belle and Jasmine are some of the most recognizable animated characters of all time, but

The first Disney princess was voiced by Adriana Caselotti in 1937, in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Since then, many other actresses have taken on the "tiara," with some of the most recent Disney princesses being Auli'i Cravalho as Moana and Kelly Marie Tran as Raya.

Now, Oscar-winner Ariana DeBose is taking on a new kind of Disney heroine in Wish. Though her character isn't an official Disney princess, she is as inspiring and determined as the generations of Disney heroines before her.

“This girl doesn’t give up and her wish is not for herself, it is for her community and I think that is such a beautiful thing," she said during the film's U.K. premiere. She added that her character is a "departure from many of the historical Disney princesses and heroines" because she's not trying to find her prince or accomplish her own ambitions: "It’s not necessarily about the ambition to start a business, but it is about the ambition to make the world a better place and that’s cool.”

Take a look at all the past Disney princesses side by side with the actresses who voiced them.

Related: Every Actress Who Played a Disney Princess in Live-Action Adaptations

Adriana Caselotti as Snow White

Adriana Caselotti voiced the role of Snow White in 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Then 18 years old, she was paid $970 for her work on the film, the equivalent of about $19,000 today, per The New York Times. She was also not credited for the role, as Disney wanted to maintain the illusion of the film's characters being real.

In 1972, she honored her Disney roots when she appeared on The Julie Andrews Hour to sing songs from the film alongside Andrews. In 1994, she was named a Disney Legend at 78 years old, making her the first female voice-over artist to achieve the honor.

Caselotti died on Jan. 18, 1997, at age 80 in Los Angeles after being diagnosed with cancer.

Ilene Woods as Cinderella

At 18 years old, Ilene Woods was enlisted by songwriters Jerry Livingston and Mack David to record a few demos they had written for Walt Disney’s upcoming animated feature. She obliged, and a few days later, she booked the princess role in 1950's Cinderella, beating out over 300 other women who auditioned for the role, per the Los Angeles Times.

Though she retired from show business in 1972, she remembered her role as Cinderella fondly. When asked in a 2006 interview for Starlog magazine what the best thing was about having been Cinderella, she replied: “Oh, I love the idea that after I’m gone, children will still be hearing my voice,” per the Los Angeles Times.

In 2003, she was named a Disney Legend for her role in the film. Woods was 81 when she died from complications of Alzheimer's disease on July 1, 2010, in Los Angeles.

Mary Costa as Aurora

At age 22, Mary Costa booked the role of Princess Aurora in 1959's Sleeping Beauty. The film quickly put her on the map as a singer, paving the way for her opera career. “I really had no experience, but by the time the movie was released, I was singing in the opera. It was a very fast, exciting time for me," she said of the role, per D23.

In 1999, she joined the ranks of many others as a Disney Legend. At age 93, she is the last surviving voice actress of the three Disney Princesses created in Walt Disney's lifetime.

Jodi Benson as Ariel

After working with Disney lyricist Howard Ashman in the 1986 Broadway show Smile, Jodi Benson booked the role of Ariel in 1989's The Little Mermaid. In a 2019 interview with POPSUGAR, Benson recalled that some of her fondest memories from the film were working alongside Ashman, who died in March 1991 after being diagnosed with HIV/AIDS.

"Working with Howard Ashman on the song 'Part of Your World,' is always my fondest memory because I sing the song almost every weekend, so I get to relive those memories in the studio with him," she told the outlet. "He was just so brilliant and so helpful to me in the studio that I like thinking about that."

Benson has continued to work with Disney in the years since, including reprising her role as Ariel in various The Little Mermaid spinoffs and voicing Barbie in the Toy Story films. Additionally, she made a small cameo in the live-action adaptation of the film starring Halle Bailey.

For her many contributions to Disney, she was named a Disney Legend in 2011.

Paige O’Hara as Belle

After beginning her acting career on Broadway, Paige O’Hara made her motion picture debut in 1991, voicing Belle in Beauty and the Beast.

Speaking with POPSUGAR in 2016, O'Hara recalled that the film's success was an "amazing ride."

"We didn't really understand how great the film was going to be in the beginning. What was so special about this was the collaborative effort," she said. "Everyone was on the same page. Everyone had the same vision, and that vision started with Howard Ashman."

Like Benson, she reprised her role her role as Belle in various Beauty and the Beast followups and has appeared at various Disney events through the years, including a screening for the film's 25th anniversary. Additionally, she made a small cameo as a librarian in the TV special Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration starring H.E.R. and Josh Groban.

For her work as Belle, O'Hara was honored as a Disney Legend in 2011.

Linda Larkin as Jasmine

Linda Larkin voiced the role of Jasmine in 1992's Aladdin alongside Fuller House actor Scott Weinger as Aladdin and Robin Williams as Genie.

During an interview with Forbes in 2019, Larkin fondly recalled working with Weinger and Williams in the studio. "The joy that Scott and I had to being in the room with Robin Williams comes through in the film because as characters, Genie and Aladdin and Jasmine have such a beautiful chemistry together and we really experienced that in real life the day we recorded," she told the outlet.

Like many other Disney princess voice actresses, she has reprised her role in various projects, including Aladdin spinoffs and Ralph Breaks the Internet, which included several notable Disney princesses.

In 2011, she was named a Disney Legend for her role as the princess of Agrabah.

Irene Bedard as Pocahontas

Following her role in Lakota Woman: Siege at Wounded Knee, which earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination, Irene Bedard was cast as the titular Disney princess in 1995's Pocahontas. Though Bedard provided the speaking voice of the character, Judy Kuhn sang all of Pocahontas' musical numbers.

Bedard went on to reprise her role as Pocahontas in the film's direct-to-video follow-up, Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World in 1998, and made a small voice cameo in 2018's Ralph Breaks the Internet.

Ming-Na Wen as Mulan

Following her breakthrough role in 1993's The Joy Luck Club, Ming-Na Wen was cast as Mulan in the 1998 film of the same name, a role she reprised for various spinoffs. She also made a small cameo appearance in the live-action remake of Mulan in 2020.

In addition to her role as Mulan, she is well-known for starring in a different Disney project. From 2013 to 2020, she played Melinda May / The Cavalry in the ABC series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

In 2019, she was honored as a Disney Legend for her contributions as Mulan.

Anika Noni Rose as Tiana

After playing Lorrell Robinson in the Academy Award-winning film Dreamgirls in 2006, Anika Noni Rose voiced Tiana in 2009's The Princess and the Frog, making history as the first Black Disney princess.

"It is an amazing legacy to have been the first," Rose told PEOPLE of the historic role. "I feel like because of how much people still love Tiana, people's minds were opened towards other things."

Rose was named a Disney Legend in 2011 and she is set to reprise her role as Tiana for the upcoming The Princess and the Frog ride that will replace Splash Mountain at Disney World.

Mandy Moore as Rapunzel

Following her successful career as a pop singer in the late '90s and early 2000s, Mandy Moore was chosen to voice Rapunzel in 2010's Tangled alongside Zachary Levi as her onscreen love interest, Flynn Rider.

Speaking with E! News about the role, Moore said playing Rapunzel was "one of the best jobs I've ever had." She added, "It kind of doesn't get any cooler. That was maybe my greatest dream as a child and the fact that it somehow came to fruition still boggles my mind."

Moore later reprised her role as Rapunzel in various projects, including the short film Tangled Ever After and Ralph Breaks the Internet.

Kelly Macdonald as Merida

Scottish actress Kelly Macdonald voiced the role of Princess Merida in the Disney Pixar animated film Brave, which was released in 2012.

Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter about her role, Macdonald said she loved her character's “energy and her feistiness” in the film. “I also liked that she gets it wrong. She makes her own mistakes and then she doesn’t need a prince charming to come and makes things better,” she told the publication. “She makes her own trouble, and then she gets herself out of that trouble, and I think that’s a very good message.”

In 2018, she reprised her role as Merida alongside various other Disney princesses in Ralph Breaks the Internet.

Auli'i Cravalho as Moana

Auli'i Cravalho was just 14 years old when she was cast as the titular character in 2016's Moana, marking her acting debut. "It wonderfully changed my life and started my career," Cravalho later recalled of the role on Instagram.

Like many other Disney actresses, she has reprised her role as Moana in various projects, however, she will not be playing the character in the live-action adaptation.

She explained her reasoning on social media, saying that she believes "it is absolutely vital the casting accurately represents the characters and stories we want to tell.” However, she will be an executive producer for the project.

"I cannot wait to help find the next actress to portray Moana’s courageous spirit, undeniable wit and emotional strength," she added. "I’m truly honored to pass this baton to the next young woman of Pacific Island descent, to honor our incredible Pacific peoples cultures and communities that help inspire her story. And I look forward to all the beautiful Pacific representations to come."

Kelly Marie Tran as Raya

Kelly Marie Tran is the most recent addition to the line of Disney princesses after playing Raya in 2021's Raya and the Last Dragon.

Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Tran said that she was especially excited to play a new kind of Disney princess in the film. "She is someone who is technically a princess but I think that what's really cool about this project, about this character, specifically is that everyone's trying to flip the narrative on what it means to be a princess," Tran told the publication.

"Raya is totally a warrior. When she was a kid, she was excited to get her sword. And she grows up to be a really badass, gritty warrior and can really take care of herself," she added.

Kristen Bell as Anna

Though Anna isn't technically a Disney princess, we couldn't leave the Arendelle sisters off this list! After gaining critical acclaim for her roles in Veronica Mars, Forgetting Sarah Marshall and more, Kristen Bell gained further recognition for voicing Princess Anna in 2013's Frozen.

Speaking with PEOPLE Now in 2019, Bell said what she loved most about doing the movie was being "part of something that shook all the norms," adding the film didn't revolve around the happily ever after of "waiting for a kiss from your prince."

Bell has reprised her role as the lovable Anna in various follow-ups, including 2019's Frozen II, and is set to voice the character again in the upcoming third and fourth installments in the franchise.

Idina Menzel as Elsa

Though she's not technically a Disney princess, Idina Menzel's Frozen character, Elsa, has made waves with young audiences. Following her Broadway successes in Rent and Wicked, Menzel gained further recognition as the ice princess in the 2013 film.

During an interview with The Guardian, Menzel reflected on her iconic role, revealing how Frozen changed her life. "The film’s messaging resonated with young audiences," she added. "Through my character Elsa, I was thrown into being a role model for empowerment and self-esteem. I wanted to embrace that responsibility, while still having my own lessons to learn in my life. That has been something I love but also wrestle with."

Like Bell, Menzel has reprised her role as Elsa in various projects and is set to voice the character again in the upcoming Frozen sequels.

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