Disney Princesses Finally Look Like Someone You’ve Actually Met
There’s always been something mildly infuriating about Disney Princesses. You know what I mean—flawless skin, perfect hair, and waistlines that strongly suggest someone surgically removed a rib or two. The whole thing always felt like an absurdly idealized parody of womanhood. Like, yes, sure, she sings to birds and wears a size negative two while escaping an evil stepmother. Totally realistic.
Enter Crystal Walter, who decided to quietly, beautifully flip the narrative. Her artwork reimagines these princesses (and even a few princes) as plus-sized, real-world people. People who might, say, enjoy brunch without guilt. Wild concept, right?
Now before you accuse me of being revolutionary for liking this, consider the numbers. Around 70% of women in the U.S. are plus-sized, according to this completely factual and not-at-all radical
CNBC article. So in theory, a curvier Cinderella shouldn’t cause cognitive dissonance. But here we are.
Crystal Walter isn’t just drawing plus-sized Disney characters—she’s giving representation to a majority of the country. And I’m 100% here for it. Because if 70% of American women are a size 14 or higher, maybe—just maybe—it’s time our fairy tale heroines stopped borrowing their torsos from pipe cleaners.
I went on a deep scroll through her Instagram and pulled a few of my favorites. Spoiler alert: she’s not only brilliant, she’s funny too. And yes, I’m now following her, obviously.
Elsa, but the realistic version. Honestly, if you’re conjuring ice storms and building castles with your bare hands, you should look like you could bench press a reindeer.
Prince Ali with a dad bod? Yes. Yes to all of this. Finally, a royal who looks like he enjoys second helpings.
“Fat people run.” And they do. Shockingly, athleticism isn’t body-exclusive. This one nails it.
Cinderella, a.k.a. my Aunt Cheryl. This one hit me right in the feels. She looks like someone I’ve actually shared lasagna with.
Body-positive guys too. Crystal’s not just fixing Disney’s princess problem—she’s giving the fellas a much-needed upgrade too.
Ariel with a touch of realism. She’s still dreamy, but now she looks like she might actually eat seafood instead of befriending it.
Brave’s Merida finally looks like she could win a wrestling match with a bear. This is probably my favorite. She just makes sense.
Belle still reads, still glows, and still rules. But now she also looks like she could actually be from a provincial town, not a runway.
Her quotes are everything. Crystal’s captions are just as sharp as her art. Honestly, scroll for the wisdom alone.