Disney+’s Descendants: The Rise of Red Can’t Quite Capture the Magic of the Original Trilogy

As a child of the 2000s, there is nothing that I love more than a good, old-fashioned Disney Channel Original Movie. Originally reserved for Halloween-time installments, the entries into the sprawling canon of made-for-TV romps eventually branched out into everything from St. Patrick’s Day-themed comedies to a seemingly endless barrage of movie musicals. Classics like High School Musical and Lemonade Mouth defined Disney Channel Originals for a generation, but as the kids that grew up with those films were slowly but surely phasing out of their love of the Disney Channel, the network would usher in its new supreme: the Descendants franchise.

The original film, which premiered nearly a decade ago on Disney Channel, followed Mal (Dove Cameron), Evie (Sofia Carson), Carlos (Cameron Boyce), and Jay (Booboo Stewart) as they were whisked off to Auradon Prep from their home on the prison island called the Isle of the Lost. They were tasked by their villainous parents—Maleficent, Evil Queen, Cruella De Vil, and Jafar, respectively—to steal Fairy Godmother’s (Melanie Paxson) magic wand so they could bring down the barrier that kept them trapped on that island, hoping to bring chaos and evil to Beast and Belle’s doorstep in Auradon, a united kingdom of any and all Disney royalty under the leadership of their son, the newly appointed King Ben (Mitchell Hope). What follows is a three-film run that examines the heartache of growing up in bad (read: abusive) situations, the power of friendship and connection, and the magnitude of love and empathy—all elevated by director Kenny Ortega’s keen eye for choreography and a litany of catchy songs. More than even the HSMs or the Hannah Montanas of previous Disney Channel attempts at franchising, Descendants struck a major chord with audiences old and young; now, the series is seeking to expand with its latest entry: Disney+’s Descendants: The Rise of Red.

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Acting as the second Disney Channel Original-turned-Disney+ Original (after 2022’s Zombies 3 made the jump from the network to the streamer), The Rise of Red is ambitious and familiar, attempting to bring this world into a new era for a new age of viewers. But, while the effort is certainly there, it still can’t quite reach the highs of its predecessors, instead offering a fourth installment that is lackluster in both its musical moments and overarching story.

The Rise of Red follows Princess Red (Kylee Cantrall), daughter of the ruthless Queen of Hearts (Rita Ora), as she laments her life stuck inside the gated walls of Wonderland. Closed off from the rest of Auradon, she longs for freedom and an escape from her truly wicked mother. Thankfully for her, Uma (China Anne McClain) has been made the principal of Auradon Prep, stepping in on the recommendation of Mal and Ben (who, themselves, are off with Jay and Evie on some kind of alliance tour) after Fairy Godmother accepts a role as president of Auradon University, and her first order of business is to invite Red to become a student at Auradon Prep—in honor and memory of Carlos, who would’ve wanted the doors to be welcome to all Villain Kids, Wonderland included. But when the Queen of Hearts stages a coup at the orientation, it’s up to Red and her reluctant ally Chloe (Malia Baker), the daughter of Cinderella (a returning Brandy), to travel back in time to undo the root of the Queen of Hearts’ evil, lest the entire kingdom be lost forever.

Let’s start with the good. The central cast, but especially Cantrall and Baker, are having the most fun, and it truly jumps off the screen. When Red and Chloe are butting heads or having heart-to-hearts, the movie clicks into place, finally capitalizing on the foundations this franchise stands on: friendship and hope. It carries the same important messages as previous entries, highlighting the importance of sympathy for those around you, while instilling kindness as the greatest magic of them all. As for the villains, Dara Reneé absolutely understands the assignment as Uliana, Ursula’s younger sister at Merlin Academy, capturing the same essence as her niece Uma; she stands out in the crowd of teenaged Disney villains that populate the time travel portion of the film. And I would be remiss not to mention Brandy’s triumphant return as Cinderella, who truly glows every time she’s on screen. She carries some of the most emotional beats of the film as she goes back and forth with Ora, and it’s just a delight to see her back on our screens once again as this iconic character.

Additionally, the costumes in this fourth outing are familiar in all the best ways, allowing for creative and fun interpretations of characters both old and new. It’ll always be fun to watch a bunch of people dance and sing in decadent dresses or colorful leather and whip around in extremely saturated wigs, and this film more than delivers on that front, thankfully.

But while the chemistry between the cast and the look of this film all bode well, the messy pacing and unfortunately lackluster songs prevent this entry from reaching its fullest potential. For a film about its main characters jumping back in time to save the kingdom, they don’t actually get to that point until about 40 minutes in, which just feels entirely too long. There’s plenty of important information gleaned in that time, sure, but the way the story moves between Uma’s ascent to principal to info-dumps on Wonderland to the update with the Charming family is stilted by awkward cuts and stiff interactions. As mentioned earlier, when Cantrall and Baker finally get to jump back in time and play off one another, the film works better, but even their natural banter and dynamic can’t fix the pacing issues that plague the entire film, even beyond that first act. Though, it could just feel top-heavy due to how rushed the third act becomes, as the threads tie loosely together in quick succession before the credits suddenly start to roll.

But even without the plotting problems, the story itself feels a little too safe for how cool the concept itself could have been. Time travel stories are staples for a reason, but all the fun parts about time travel itself—the possibilities of consequential ripples, the fact that these two girls were face-to-face with the teenage versions of their moms and yet they don’t remember them, and so on—are left out of this film, instead being promised for a next installment.

Even without the wasted potential of its premise and the unfortunate pacing littering this film, the songs—which were such a centerpiece of the first three entries—are simply forgettable this time around. More often than not, there will be a glimmer of a catchy song, but an awkward rap break or half-spoken dialogue insert will interrupt the flow, lessening the desire for repeat listening. After the first watch, I didn’t leave with a single song stuck in my head, which is truly a shame coming from the franchise that brought us “Chillin’ Like a Villain” and “One Kiss.”

One of my favorite details from the original Descendants is that the parents’ songs are purposefully in a style more reminiscent of the Disney era these characters originate in or are simply more musical theater-esque than the pop songs the kids belt out—“Evil Like Me” leans further towards classic musical theater in Kristin Chenoweth’s signature vocal, while “Do What You Gotta Do” is distinctly Dad Rock done by Cheyenne Jackson—but that is entirely lost in this film, where too many songs sounds like a generic pop-with-trap-beat track, across both the parents and their children. And even when the genre switches do happen, they feel less motivated than in previous iterations, simply shifting on a whim rather than based on the characters performing or the circumstances they find themselves within.

The other notable difference between this entry and the previous trilogy is who sits in the director’s chair. As mentioned, High School Musical and Hocus Pocus director Kenny Ortega helmed the first three films, and his choreography (alongside choreographing partner Jamal Sims) and directing style are so distinct that this film’s dance sequences truly pale in comparison. While choreographer Ashley Wallen is accomplished in his own right, the sequences just don’t come close to matching those done by Sims and Ortega, with the movements feeling somewhat dated to TikTok trends of days past. And even beyond his choreography, Ortega has an eye for theater, directing and choreographing the musical sequences to serve the action of the scene as well as the musicality of it, something director Jennifer Phang struggles capture in this fourth installment. Unfortunately, this film’s musical moments are bogged down by a confusing lack of structure and care. “Fight of Our Lives” is a catchy tune, but the direction of the scene had me wondering if it was a diegetic song or not, something this film does play with, but to mediocre results.

All in all, this sequel isn’t all bad. It’s genuinely moving at times (a sequence early in the film did bring me to tears) and captures some of the spirit of the original installments, but it just never quite reaches its fullest potential. The Rise of Red does a good job of establishing itself outside of the original franchise through the ways it reshapes its “no VK left behind” angle (even if the plot of this film starts as essentially “What if Maleficent had come with Mal in the first place?”), but in those efforts to be distinct, it ends up being unrecognizable in places instead. I’m sure this film will delight and excite kids who are eager for more of their favorite world, but as an adult fan of this franchise, I do wish this film had just been better. There was so much potential here (and there still is in any future installments they have planned, so I will be seated), but The Rise of Red fails to capitalize on it, throwing down a two-pair when it could have been a Royal Flush.

Descendants: The Rise of Red premieres Friday, July 12th on Disney+.

Anna Govert is the TV Editor of Paste Magazine. For any and all thoughts about TV, film, and her unshakable love of complicated female villains, you can follow her @annagovert.

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