Tokyo Disneyland has recently unveiled an all-new parade, “Disney Harmony in Color.” Featuring a variety of beloved characters, including those familiar and those making their debut in the Park, the parade has been well received by Guests and fans online.
The parade features characters from Zootopia (2016), Coco (2017), and several other Disney films and replaced “Dreaming Up!” which had run for five years. The parade makes its debut just ahead of the Park’s 40th-anniversary celebrations which also include a new fireworks show as well as brand-new themed merchandise, costumes, and food and drink offerings.

However, while the parade has been mostly well-received, it’s started to get some backlash online due to the whitewashing of two characters. Moana and Pocahontas are both included in “Disney Harmony in Color” with each princess showcased on her own float. While this is a major step towards including these princesses, both performers are light-skinned compared to the characters they’re performing.
As cute as this parade is who thought it was a good idea for……this 🤡 pic.twitter.com/CQ5zBixBOL
— maya (@princessMayabug) April 10, 2023
Twitter user @princessMayabug posted the photos to Twitter and followed up her original post by saying that “TDL (and by that i mean the white casting managers) never ceases to show how much they just don’t care about representation whatsoever.” Several of the comments stated their disappointment with casting directors casting people who can be used to portray multiple characters rather than casting people of color who actually look like the characters and representing different types of people. This phenomenon isn’t just at Tokyo Disneyland either, as there have been recent reports of light-skinned actresses playing Tiana as well as Jasmine, Pocahontas, and other characters and Disneyland and Walt Disney World.

Some of the comments did point out that it was possible the performers were actually of the heritage and background of the characters they were performing, just lighter skinned. “Do you know these performers personally? Perhaps Moana is being played by a person of Polynesian descent. And Pocahontas by someone with Powhatan background. Or are you just looking at their skin color?” asked @MagicalNezumi, with other comments relating personal experiences of that being the case.

While it’s possible that the character performers may be actresses of Polynesian and Powhatan descent, it’s understandable that people would be disappointed seeing these characters of color played by light-skinned performers. As Disney takes steps towards creating more characters of color, their casting choices should reflect those choices.
What do you think of “Disney Harmony in Color?” Share your opinion in the comments below!