A controversial Disney princess movie is surging on streaming charts, finding new success in spite of negative reactions. The classic Disney movie princess may exemplify purity and innocence, but in some people’s eyes, these characters and what they represent are anything but wholesome and fair.

Some Disney princess controversies are relatively tame. Moana might be a little lacking in character growth, but this is more of a complaint about lazy writing than anything with larger cultural significance. Jasmine might be tough to love, in some people’s eyes, but that’s arguably their problem.

Then there are the bigger controversies touching on huge societal issues. Snow White is taken to task for being an old-fashioned, pᴀssive female role model (not a surprise as the film was released in 1937), while Ariel from The Little Mermaid is ripped for setting a bad example by giving up her life for a man she barely knows.

It isn’t just alleged Sєxism that has caused Disney princess controversy. Charges of racism have been raised too, thanks to the studio’s penchant for telling stories about historical figures from unfamiliar cultures, whose harrowing biographies are whitewashed into pleasing, harmless fables.

The Controversial Pocahontas Is Surging On Streaming 30 Years After Release

Disney’s much-criticized Pocahontas made $346 million upon release in 1995, and 30 years later it’s a hit again, as it’s surging up streaming charts. Reviewers were unimpressed by the movie when it came out, and it currently sits at 58% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Audiences continue to embrace Pocahontas despite its controversial elements and lack of critical acclaim, and it’s currently enjoying a small resurgence, climbing up to #9 on Disney+’s top ten movies chart for August 30, 2025.

Our Take On Pocahontas Being A Streaming Hit 30 Years Later

The real story of Pocahontas is nothing like the version presented in Disney’s 1995 animated movie. In the film, the character Pocahontas is an empowered female who falls in love with English adventurer John Smith (voiced by Mel Gibson, no stranger to controversy himself) and fights alongside him to bring peace between her tribe and the white colonizers.

The actual story is much more complicated, much less romantic, and much, much sadder. Having been kidnapped and forced to become Christian, the real Pocahontas was married to a rich planter and had his child, and finally accompanied him to England, where she died at the age of 20 or 21 of an unknown illness.

A story about an indigenous woman being taken away from her people, stripped of her idenтιтy, and felled by illness in a strange land far from home might make for a very compelling movie, but that was not the movie Disney wanted to make with Pocahontas.

Many charges have been levied over the years against Pocahontas. It’s been called both Sєxist and racist, and been slammed for overall historical inaccuracy. Given that it’s intended as a fable of female empowerment, the film does have its defenders, and it has been praised for helping set a new, less traditionalist Disney princess template.

Pocahontas indeed has plenty going for it, if one is willing to overlook its flaws, including some very impressive animation. It still has the ability to entertain, as evidenced by its Disney+ resurgence 30 years after release. Not everyone cares about the movie’s numerous shortcomings.