Disney has spent years trying to convince audiences that its beloved animated classics can work just as well in live action. Sometimes that gamble has paid off. Other times, fans have been left wondering why Disney bothered touching a movie that already worked perfectly.

That complicated history gives Tangled (2028) a difficult job. It isn't enough to recreate Rapunzel's tower, give her impossibly long blonde hair, and send Flynn Rider off into the kingdom of Corona. Disney needs to capture the personality that made Tangled (2010) so easy to love in the first place.

Surprisingly, the early signs suggest Disney may finally understand that.

A Small Glimpse That Says Quite a Bit

Fandango recently shared a video offering another look at Teagan Croft in costume as Rapunzel. The actress dances around a parking lot wearing a floor-length purple dress and Rapunzel's unmistakably long blonde hair — completed, delightfully, with a pair of white Crocs.

Nobody should expect the Crocs to make it into the finished film, of course. But what matters here is that Croft looks comfortable, playful, and a little goofy while dressed as Rapunzel — and those qualities sit right at the heart of the character.

Rapunzel isn't simply a traditional princess waiting to escape a tower. The animated version bounces between excitement, awkwardness, curiosity, fear, determination, and complete silliness. The video doesn't prove the movie will succeed, but it does suggest Disney didn't cast someone who merely looks the part.

Disney Has Already Shown More Than a Costume

This isn't the first glimpse audiences have had of the production. Filming has been underway in Spain, and set photos and videos have already captured Croft as Rapunzel alongside Milo Manheim as Flynn Rider. Those unofficial looks revealed costumes, Rapunzel's enormous braid, and some of the environments Disney is building for the film.

Disney then offered a more polished preview at D23 in August. Footage showcased Rapunzel's famous blonde hair before revealing Croft in the role, while Kathryn Hahn appeared as Mother Gothel. Hahn has also praised the chemistry between Croft and Manheim.

Put those pieces together with Croft's playful parking-lot video, and Tangled (2028) is beginning to feel less like another remake being pushed through Disney's production machine — and more like a project made by people who genuinely understand what they're handling.

Director Michael Gracey remains attached, with Jennifer Kaytin Robinson writing the screenplay. Croft leads alongside Manheim and Hahn, and Disney has scheduled the film for March 31, 2028.

The Hardest Part Can't Be Recreated With CGI

Disney can build a tower. It can make glowing hair. It can recreate Corona and fill the screen with lanterns. What it can't afford to lose is the heart of Tangled (2010).

That's where Croft's casting continues to look increasingly promising. Fans have seen her in official footage, candid behind-the-scenes moments, and photos captured during filming. Rather than presenting a radically redesigned Rapunzel, Disney appears to be embracing what people already love about her.

Even Croft dancing around in costume matters, because Rapunzel should feel energetic and slightly chaotic. She should be able to deliver an emotional scene and then become wonderfully ridiculous. Disney doesn't need to reinvent that — it needs to respect it. So far, the production appears to be taking that responsibility seriously.

Fans Aren't Asking Disney to Abandon Everything Familiar

There's also a larger conversation happening around Disney's remake strategy. Many fans want new stories — original characters, different worlds, and movies that could become the next Tangled (2010) rather than another attempt to recreate something audiences already know. But remakes and live-action adaptations aren't going anywhere.

If Disney insists on making them, the minimum expectation is simple: make them good. A remake should preserve what audiences loved while giving actors room to make the roles feel human, rather than copying animated performances scene for scene.

That's why these early glimpses feel encouraging. Croft looks like Rapunzel, but more importantly, she is beginning to feel like Rapunzel. Manheim's Flynn Rider has remained visually close to his animated counterpart, while Hahn brings a theatrical presence to Mother Gothel. None of that guarantees a great movie — Tangled (2028) still has plenty to prove — but Disney appears to be starting in the right place.

Disney May Have Finally Found the Right Formula

The live-action remake curse won't disappear because of one purple dress, an enormous blonde wig, or a goofy parking-lot dance. Yet those details are exactly what make Tangled (2028) feel different right now.

Everything we've seen so far points to a production that aims to preserve the animated film's humor, energy, romance, and recognizable characters while translating them into live action. Fans can still question whether Tangled (2010) ever needed a remake. But if Disney is going to remake it anyway, this is what fans should want to see: a cast that looks right, a lead who seems to understand her character, and a production that is genuinely interested in doing justice to a movie people already love.

For once, Disney's latest live-action remake isn't giving fans another reason to worry. It's giving them a reason to be curious.