Why the Ralph Breaks the Internet Disney Princess Scene Matters

Where did the Comfy Princesses come from? Go behind-the-scenes in an exclusive Pamela Ribon Interview & see Why the Ralph Breaks the Internet Disney Princess Scene Matters & Easter Eggs Revealed. This post is sponsored by Disney. All magical opinions are my own. May contain commissioned links.

Why the Ralph Breaks the Internet Disney Princess Scene Matters & Easter Eggs

“I’m sure it’ll never get made.“

Panic attack, laying on the floor and worried about getting fired – these are just a few of the moments behind one of the most anticipated scenes in Disney’s newest animated movie, Ralph Breaks the Internet. Let me introduce you to the genius behind this epic movie moment.

Thank co-writer Pamela Ribon for that Ralph Breaks the Internet Disney Princess scene that has had the internet buzzing ever since the intro at D23. ALL of the princesses together in 3D? Yes, please! In this exclusive interview, we go behind-the-scenes and find out how the “comfy princesses” came to be, what Easter Eggs were revealed to us (spoiler alert!), and the bigger picture – why this scene MATTERS beyond the sequel.

Who is Pamela Ribon? A Super Interesting Back Story

I could have written an entire post on just this lady’s back story…because it’s “GOALS.” Pamela Ribon started writing for Disney in 2013 on a movie you may have heard of, Moana. During that time she also worked on Disneynature’s Bears with Rich Moore and Jim Reardon, scripting John C. Reilly’s narration. And in the great Disney circle of life, that connection ultimately led her to co-write Ralph Breaks the Internet alongside Phil Johnston.

But Pamela’s walk to fame actually occurred long before her start at Disney. Before writing Disney movie scripts, she actually was a book writer and a blogger at pamie.com (back, all the way back, in 1998). Pamela Ribon is also under the Oxford English Dictionary under the slang term “muffin top,” being one of the first to coin the slang in her 2006 novel “Why Girls Are Weird.”

So in essence, Pamela Ribon went viral before viral was a thing. She’s a cultural legend, intelligent, and a really fun person to be around. Oh and she’s also about my age – future BFF, I’m calling it now.

How the Ralph Breaks the Internet Disney Princess Scene Came to Be

One of my favorite things is finding out the magic behind the magic. And oh did Pamela Ribon let us in with the full scoop on the Ralph Breaks the Internet Disney Princess scene.

It started with Moana. When Pamela was writing for Moana, there’s was a lot of discussion about building the character and if Moana was going to be labeled a “Disney Princess.” Who is a Disney Princess? What makes a Disney Princess different from other princesses? That rabbit hole led to defining who a Disney Princess is.

But Vanellope is technically a “princess” too. She’s also holds the title of President. And does it all while she rocks a hoodie. “That’s my kind of princess,” Pamela Robin explains, “the one that wears a hoodie, and just in her comfy clothes. That’s how I get things done.”

Going viral, princess style. At this point in the story building process, Vanellope was supposed to be the one going viral. So Pamela threw out the idea of Vanellope meeting the Disney Princesses. “Surely that would go viral.” The thought of meeting the Disney princesses, poking fun at Disney’s own self, and breaking the internet was really enticing. So Pamela was tasked with taking a stab at a first draft.

“I’m sure it’ll never get made.” Bouncing ideas off of her hardcore “Disney fan” friend, Pamela wrote out the first scene when Vanellope glitches into the princess room. Which princesses were poisoned? Which ones were captured or enslaved? Worried that her Disney Princess jokes may have gone too far, all while thinking “I could be fired for this,” Pamela submitted her draft. She showed us a copy of the 3 pages she submitted as her first draft – and ironically it was SO close to what ends up on screen.

Tell nobody. “Can we get away with this?” Let’s try it, but tell nobody. During the first screening with the directors, Pamela Ribon actually voiced all of the princesses for the scene. And immediately, it was loved and Disney history was made.

3D Princesses, this is really hard. Some of these princesses have never been seen in 3D before. Visual development was hard as Disney tried to balance the look of the princesses we know and love with the unique “internet-y” feel of Ralph Breaks the Internet.

About them comfy clothes. “We had so many T-shirt meetings.” Pamela Robin admits that creating the Comfy Princess looks was a lot of fun, hours of just sarcasm and puns.

Code Word: Princess Palooza

With all of the excitement, the team wanted to introduce the princesses at D23. Aka, super close deadline. And so, “Princess Palooza” was born.

Disney research. The team went to Disneyland to study princess movement, especially in a 3D space. This led to some really interesting results that I would have never thought of like Cinderella having ears – what do they look like? How do ears affect her hair and movement?

Bringing back the legends. All of the voice actors for the Disney Princesses are back! Luckily, the voices of everyone from Ariel to Moana are still around and were able to voice their own characters again. They also gave some really good insight to their characters, having lived and breathed them for many many years. “Oh, I would never use a contraction.” *as Pamela Ribon removes all apostrophes.

Back to the drawing board. Mark Henn (Disney animator LEGEND) was brought into to reanimate some of the Ralph Breaks the Internet princess scene test sequences in 2D. It was amazing to see Ariel’s reaction to her new comfy shirt through his sketches!

The voice of Snow White may sound familiar. Did I say all of the Disney Princesses? Well, sans one. With the voice of Snow White no long around and Pamela Ribon very comfortably voice acting as her for some time, she got cast as the voice of Snow White. SO COOL!

Ralph Breaks the Internet Easter Eggs & Behind-the-Scenes Cuts

Did Pamela Ribon just reveal that we will see more princesses? What lines got cut and what Ralph Breaks the Internet Easter Eggs can we expect?

Spoiler alert, Pamela Ribon did reveal that “There’s some more princesses” in Ralph Breaks the Internet in our interview.
Pamela Ribon is also the voice of Belly Fat Pop Up #1 with the line “Get rid of belly fat with this one weird trick.”
There’s a Mark Henn hand drawn 2D animation Easter Egg during the Oh My Disney scene.
Look for the same princess movement sequences as seen in the original movies, now reimagined in 3D.
Pamela admits that there are shirt designs she misses, like Rapunzel’s “Long Hair Don’t Care” that got cut.
One of her favorite cut scenes is of the exhausted Cinderella mice after they make all of the comfy princess clothes.
She also still reminisces with Phil on lines that they miss like: “Is your best friend a tea pot?”
Pamela Ribon also voices “Bev” in Ralph Breaks VR.

So What’s the Point?

What’s the bigger picture for this Ralph Breaks the Internet Disney princess scene? More than Disney puns and Disney Princess mocking, there’s a deeper message here. This scene is about that vulnerability behind those comfy clothes – the ability to be who your truly are and be supported by those who have been there. It’s also a scene of inclusiveness, acceptance and representation too. Did I laugh through the scene? Absolutely. But did those childhood princesses touch my heart yet again? Absolutely. Empowering our kids to speak up, include others and love people as they are – that’s the power of princesses.

Princess Selfie!

I told you that Pamela Ribon is awesome. In fine Disney Princess fashion, we tried to recreate the Disney Princess selfie (or 6) with the voice of Snow White herself. Gold, y’all. “You’re welcome.”

Ralph Breaks the Internet, in theaters November 21, 2018. And you’re not going to want to miss all of the buzz on the Ralph Breaks the Internet Disney Princess scene (or scenes). Just saying. Check out my full Ralph Breaks the Internet Movie Review | Safe for Kids? (especially that breakdown of the PG rating – no spoilers!) before grabbing the kids.