Disney once explored the idea of making a sequel to Tangled — and now, the film’s co-director has discussed why it never happened.
Released in 2010 to a positive response, Tangled remains one of Disney’s few recent hits not to receive a full sequel (while Wreck-It Ralph, Frozen, Zootopia and Moana all have) — though a live-action remake is now in production. Speaking to The Direct, co-director Nathan Greno has now revealed that Disney struggled to find a strong enough sequel story, despite holding talks with the film’s team to try and spark ideas.
“We actually did an off-site at Disney, and we got the original team together, and we really all talked about it for hours,” Greno said, “and we kind of walked away saying, ‘We couldn’t find a story worth telling.’”
The original Tangled has a pretty definitive conclusion: Rapunzel is freed from her tower, her magical hair is gone, the evil Mother Gothel is dead, and her beloved Eugene is saved. It’s a satisfying ending, but one which doesn’t leave much room for a continuation.
“It’s a tricky place,” Greno concluded. “I’ll put it this way: once Pinocchio becomes a real boy, what else is there to say? Once the Beast becomes a human, what else is there to say?”
Of course, while a full Tangled sequel never happened, Disney continued to find ways to keep the movie’s characters on-screen. A follow-up short film, Tangled Ever After, debuted in 2012, showcasing Rapunzel and Eugene’s eventual wedding. Then there was the Rapunzel: Before Ever After TV movie and subsequent Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure series, released between 2017 and 2020, which featured her further adventures via lower-budget 2D animation.
And now, of course, Tangled is being remade in live-action, with Teagan Croft and Milo Manheim portraying Rapunzel and Flynn, and Agatha All Along’s Kathryn Hahn as Mother Gothel. Time will tell whether this adaptation prompts a sequel itself, as other Disney live-action projects have.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
Disney once explored the idea of making a sequel to Tangled — and now, the film’s co-director has discussed why it never happened.
Released in 2010 to a positive response, Tangled remains one of Disney’s few recent hits not to receive a full sequel (while Wreck-It Ralph, Frozen, Zootopia and Moana all have) — though a live-action remake is now in production. Speaking to The Direct, co-director Nathan Greno has now revealed that Disney struggled to find a strong enough sequel story, despite holding talks with the film’s team to try and spark ideas.
“We actually did an off-site at Disney, and we got the original team together, and we really all talked about it for hours,” Greno said, “and we kind of walked away saying, ‘We couldn’t find a story worth telling.’”
The original Tangled has a pretty definitive conclusion: Rapunzel is freed from her tower, her magical hair is gone, the evil Mother Gothel is dead, and her beloved Eugene is saved. It’s a satisfying ending, but one which doesn’t leave much room for a continuation.
“It’s a tricky place,” Greno concluded. “I’ll put it this way: once Pinocchio becomes a real boy, what else is there to say? Once the Beast becomes a human, what else is there to say?”
Of course, while a full Tangled sequel never happened, Disney continued to find ways to keep the movie’s characters on-screen. A follow-up short film, Tangled Ever After, debuted in 2012, showcasing Rapunzel and Eugene’s eventual wedding. Then there was the Rapunzel: Before Ever After TV movie and subsequent Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure series, released between 2017 and 2020, which featured her further adventures via lower-budget 2D animation.
And now, of course, Tangled is being remade in live-action, with Teagan Croft and Milo Manheim portraying Rapunzel and Flynn, and Agatha All Along’s Kathryn Hahn as Mother Gothel. Time will tell whether this adaptation prompts a sequel itself, as other Disney live-action projects have.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social