Was There a Brave 2 Movie?
No, unfortunately there is no sequel film to Disney/Pixar‘s hit 2012 animated feature Brave. As a passionate gaming and animation fan, I’ve done some digging into why one of my favorite modern Disney Princess films never got a second installment. Despite strong critical acclaim and box office earnings, another Brave title has yet to materialize.
Why No Brave Sequel?
Brave was a huge success for Disney and Pixar upon its summer 2012 release. It earned widespread praise from critics:
| Site | Score |
|---|---|
| Rotten Tomatoes | 78% |
| Metacritic | 69/100 |
The film also took home prestigious honors like the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2013.
Financially, Brave performed very well at the global box office:
| Category | Total |
|---|---|
| Worldwide Gross | $540.4 million |
| Production Budget | $185 million |
Given the positive reception and profits, why didn’t Disney greenlight a sequel? Reportedly, Brave director Mark Andrews had ideas for a follow-up involving Merida’s aunt coming to DunBroch. Co-director Brenda Chapman also was interested in continuing Merida’s story. But ultimately, the higher-ups at Pixar decided a direct sequel wasn’t necessary.
As a fan, this was disappointing, as Brave’s rich fantasy setting and memorable characters seem ripe for more adventures. But Pixar felt Merida’s coming-of-age arc was complete, while producers looked ahead to original film ideas. So any Brave 2 scripts were filed away as the animation studio moved on to new projects after 2012.
Personally, I still hold out hope that we could one day revisit Princess Merida, her family and the magical Scottish highlands! The potential is there, should Pixar ever revive early sequel plans.
Merida’s Disney Princess Legacy
Though lacking a sequel, Merida remains popular years later as an official Disney Princess. After starring in Brave, she was inducted in 2013 as the 11th Princess in the royal Disney line-up.
In Brave, we followed headstrong Scottish teen Merida as she sought to change her prescribed fate and carve her own path. Her defiant, archery-loving spirit was a refreshing twist on traditional princess tropes.
Since then, Merida has stayed culturally relevant through Disney video games, books, theme park rides and tons of Brave merchandise. From a character standpoint, she‘s succeeded despite having only one major film appearance.
In fact, among the 13 Disney Princesses, Merida currently ranks near the top for popularity:
| Rank | Princess | Film Release Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cinderella | 1950 |
| 2 | Merida | 2012 |
| 3 | Ariel | 1989 |
| 4 | Aurora | 1959 |
Merida places only behind classics like Cinderella and The Little Mermaid’s Ariel in terms of fan love. That’s an impressive showing from Disney’s newest Princess heroine hailing from just one feature film. It speaks to the long-term appeal of Brave.
So while the bow may have drawn back for the last time on a Brave sequel, Merida continues inspiring fans young and old around the world. We’ll see if Pixar ever revisits this fan-favorite heroine with fresh stories beyond the original film.
