The Princess Diaries fandom may not seem like the most likely place for fan theories, but it actually is. Nearly two decades have passed since the films were new, so viewers have had plenty of time to concoct in-depth ideas on plot lines, characters, and behind-the-scenes gossip.
The set has been described by cast members as a loving and fun place to work, and the movies are still highly regarded years later. It's time to dig deep and see what Princess Diaries fans have come up with over the years.
The Princess Diaries Is Basically Pretty Woman
A 2015 Bustle article by Rachel Simon was titled, "How 'Princess Diaries' Is Basically Pretty Woman." Both the 2001 family film and the 1990 romance were directed by the late Garry Marshall. On the red carpet in 2001, an interviewer told Marshall that the movie seemed like a Pretty Woman for kids, and Marshall agreed that "teenagers should have a Pretty Woman, too." The Bustle article includes a breakdown of pretty much every similarity between the two films.
Notably, the movies share several of the same actors (Héctor Elizondo, Larry Miller, Kathleen Marshall, Patrick Richwood, and Allan Kent) and a couple of similar scenes. The dinner party scenes have been compared for years as Allan Kent plays the waiter each time (Marvin Braverman is a server in both movies, too). And while their beginnings may differ, both leading ladies get makeovers in favor of a classy, elegant look, with the help of Larry Miller.
Anne Hathaway's Clumsiness Helped Shape The Film
The fact that Princess Mia's bleacher fall was not planned is widely known, but in theory, there are far more clumsy touches from Anne Hathaway in the movie than that. The teenage actress brought some of her own personality to the role.
There is an anonymous IMDb tip regarding another memorable scene: "When Mia accidentally sets the man's arm on fire [at the state dinner], the flames were supposed to go out when he puts his arm in the ice bucket, but they didn't. Anne Hathaway panicked and threw the glass of water on it, which was not scripted."
Other Actresses Did Not Want To Be Typecast
Fans have really done their homework on this one. Not every name can be confirmed, but a total of twenty-two actresses are believed to have rejected the role of Mia Thermopolis. This might sound insane, but it actually makes a great deal of sense. Anne Hathaway was a relatively new Hollywood actress when she booked the role of Princess Mia, and she struggled with being typecast for years after that.
Those twenty-two names -- including but not limited to Juliette Lewis, Jessica Biel, Reese Witherspoon, Christina Applegate, and Alyssa Milano -- may have knowingly avoided being "Disney-fied."
The Makeover Doesn't Matter
Some fans look back on The Princess Diaries and voice frustration that Mia is not perceived as beautiful until she has a makeover. Even though Mia's makeover is a delightful scene, it wasn't meant to be the centerpiece. After all, Michael loved Mia before she ever became a princess or changed her look. In a 2001 press junket, director Garry Marshall weighed in on the makeover topic.
He said, "It doesn’t matter how your hair is or [how] your lipstick is; you have to make choices in life; you have to choose to do things; you gotta follow a certain dream or path; and it doesn’t matter what other people think or how you look." Marshall specified that this advice applied to all genders, and Anne Hathaway felt similarly, saying of Mia, "Her strength of character is what really matters."
Paolo Isn't The Snitch
A 2019 Reddit theory on "the snitch" is truly unique. The thought is that Paolo never revealed Mia's princess secret to the press, even though he confesses that he did. The Reddit community toyed with the idea that Michael Moscovitz is the true culprit.
They theorized that Michael could have done it to try to make the kids be nicer to Mia (which didn't happen), or because he was jealous. Those motives aren't really in Michael's character, but this theory sure would be an interesting twist.
Whitney Houston Produced The Films To Inspire Young Women
Some fans don't know that Whitney Houston took part in producing the two Princess Diaries films. Houston's company was called BrownHouse Productions, and the professional is credited with other popular films of the era. She executive produced the first two Cheetah Girls movies (with Debra Martin Chase) starring Raven-Symoné, along with the 1997 Brandy Cinderella, which Houston also starred in as the Fairy Godmother.
Her inspiring work with Disney shows that Whitney Houston cared about art that was meaningful both to young women in lead roles and to viewers on the other side of the screen.
Raven Could Have Had Another Meg Cabot Project
There were murmurings on the Internet throughout the 2000s about another Meg Cabot book becoming a film: All-American Girl. Cabot shared the news on her blog and gave a tentative August 2005 release date. Even Entertainment Weekly knew about the movie when they covered Raven's success at Disney in 2003. Raven-Symoné was to play the lead role of Samantha in the film.
Then all of the sudden, talk of the project halted. Raven was overly busy at Disney with That's So Raven, her music, and a role in The Princess Diaries 2 as Princess Asana. Perhaps Raven's work on the sequel got in the way of the other Cabot book project. That doesn't explain everything, though, as the topic cropped up again in 2008. With a blog post, Meg Cabot shut down rumors that Miley Cyrus would be taking the lead on a Disney-made All American Girl. Cabot stated that she still owned the rights to the story. Maybe the new movie could be made someday, after all.
Disney Was Afraid To Include Philippe's Real Story
There is a certain standard of age-appropriateness required of a Disney film. This could have come into play with the storyline for Mia's dad, Philippe. Some reports (including accounts from author Meg Cabot) state that Disney needed to cut out the father to make more room for Queen Clarisse.
Another possible theory on IMDb states, "In the book, Mia's father is not dead. Rather, he has testicular cancer. In order to avoid what Disney thought was a too adult topic, he was just written as dead in the movie." The father in the movie was not a big part of Mia's life after he and her mother got divorced, but she still feels his loss.
The Princess Diaries 2 Doesn't Match The Princess Diaries
Some say that a sequel can never be as good as the first film. That's not necessarily true, but fans think it is in the case of The Princess Diaries. There are some fantastic takes on this matter, like that of Reed Gaudens in a 2020 Fansided piece. The writer calls the sequel a "downgrade," humorously explaining how the first Princess Diaries has more of a feminist message: "As the opening song goes, she’s Supergirl, and she’s here to save the world! Inherently empowering."
Meanwhile, the premise of the second film is built on Mia needing to have a husband ready to go in thirty days. Even though she eventually breaks that mold, she still spends most of the story husband-shopping.
The Princess Diaries 2 Is The Movie It Was Meant To Be
Not all fans are in agreement on where Royal Engagement stands. It's not Meg Cabot's story since it's really Shonda Rhimes's screenplay. The Grey's Anatomy creator was getting started under producer Debra Martin Chase, who worked alongside Whitney Houston. With the Disney collaboration on the first Princess Diaries film, Martin Chase was "the first Black female producer to have a deal at a major studio." Her signature touches shine through in The Princess Diaries movies; they are each special in their own ways.
The second also gave the gift of Chris Pine as Nicholas Devereaux and showed a confident woman forging her own path. While it's not exactly a faithful adaptation, Royal Engagement is perfect the way it is.