Pocahontas, a beloved character brought to life by Walt Disney Pictures in their 1995 film, holds a special place as the seventh member of the illustrious Disney Princess franchise. What makes Pocahontas unique among her royal counterparts is her connection to a real historical figure.
Intriguingly, Pocahontas draws her inspiration from the life of the actual historical figure, Pocahontas (1596-1617). This historical connection makes her the first and only Disney Princess to have roots in reality. As the daughter of a paramount chief of the Powhatan paramountcy in Native American Tsenacommacah, she proudly claims her position as the first American Disney Princess.
The voice behind Pocahontas in the 1995 film, its 1998 sequel, and all related media belongs to Native American actress Irene Bedard. Notably, Bedard also served as one of the physical models for this iconic character. When it comes to Pocahontas’ singing voice, the honor goes to the talented Broadway singer Judy Kuhn.
Development: Conception and Writing
The journey of bringing Pocahontas to the silver screen began with a visionary named Mike Gabriel. After his directorial debut with “The Rescuers Down Under” in 1990, he stumbled upon an image of Pocahontas in a history book. This chance encounter ignited his desire to pitch a film about her to Disney executives.
Mike Gabriel, recognizing his limitations in drawing female characters, ingeniously presented a Xeroxed image of Tiger Lily from “Peter Pan” (1953) with some animal additions during the pitch meeting. He encapsulated the essence of the film with a succinct sentence: “An Indian princess falls in love with an English settler, then is torn between her father’s wish to destroy the settlers and her need to help them.”
In the spirit of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” the film’s directors, Mike Gabriel and Eric Goldberg, aimed to craft a tale where two individuals from vastly different backgrounds found love.
Tom Sito, the story supervisor who also played the role of an unofficial historical consultant, delved deep into research on the early colonial era and the intriguing story of John Smith and Pocahontas. Historians raised concerns about historical inaccuracies, but the filmmakers chose to focus on Pocahontas’s meeting with John Smith rather than delve into the complexities and violence of her marriage to John Rolfe.
While the real Pocahontas was just eleven or twelve years old when she met John Smith, the film portrays her as around eighteen or nineteen years of age. This decision was made to maintain a suitable and respectful tone in the movie.
Disney took great care to consult Native American actors and organizations in a sincere effort to portray Indigenous culture accurately on screen. This step was taken to avoid any negative reception similar to that received by “Aladdin” (1992), although Disney denied any direct link. Notably, Native American activist Russell Means, who portrayed Pocahontas’ father Powhatan in the film, played a significant role in shaping the script. He suggested that Pocahontas express feeling “honored” by a gift Powhatan gives her in a scene, reflecting the way Native Americans spoke. Disney took this suggestion to heart.
Interestingly, Michael Eisner advocated for Pocahontas to have a mother in the story, as the absence of mothers in Disney films had drawn criticism. The writers countered this suggestion by highlighting Powhatan’s polygamous practices, where he formed alliances among neighboring tribes by impregnating local women and giving away the children. This portrayal was believed to be more aligned with the historical context of Pocahontas’ life.
