I Genuinely Can’t Watch “Descendants: The Rise Of Red” The Same Way Again After Reading These Facts

The Disney Descendants universe recently entered a new chapter with the premiere of Descendants: The Rise of Red, starring Kylie Cantrall as Red, the Queen of Hearts' daughter, and Maila Baker as Chloe Charming, Cinderella's daughter.

Here are 17 behind-the-scenes facts about Descendants: The Rise of Red:

1.Brandy and Paolo Montalban played Cinderella and Prince Charming, new versions of the roles they previously played in the 1997 Wonderful World of Disney movie Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella.

Brandy and Paolo Montalban in scenes from their roles as Cinderella and Prince Charming, showcasing their royal attire and a dance

2.China Anne McClain played a key role in deciding how the new film would honor late Descendants star Cameron Boyce.

Uma tells Fairy Godmther, "It's what Carlos woulda wanted. So don't do it for me. Do it in honor of him." A portrait of Carlos is on the wall

3.Dove Cameron, who starred in the original trilogy as Mal, helped Rita Ora prepare to play the Queen of Hearts.

Rita Ora as Queen of Hearts in a regal outfit and crown, and Dove Cameron as Mal with colorful hair in a modern outfit

4.Keeping each character within their color palettes and ensuring all the different shades complemented each other was a huge collaboration across departments. The costuming, props, sets, location, and background departments were "all given a bible of color with specific color ranges for each character."

Ella, Bridget, Chloe, and Red standing together, wearing stylized outfits with striking hair styles in bold colors. Bridget is holding cupcakes.

5.Mattel also contributed to the costume design, helping make decisions based on what would look best on Descendants dolls.

Chloe wearing a sparkly jacket, shirt with two stripes, choker, and belt, and a doll version of Chloe wearing a similar outfit

6.Malia Baker declined the opportunity to audition for the role of Chloe twice because she didn't think she was a strong enough musical theater performer.

Chloe holds a broom, singing in a cluttered room

7.For Rita Ora, working with Brandy was a full-circle moment because the first concert she attended was a Brandy show.

the Queen of Hearts and Cinderella staring at each other from across the path, Red and Chloe watching from behind

8.While filming the scenes where the Queen of Hearts is cruel to Cinderella, Rita Ora apologized to Brandy after every take.

the Queen of Hearts commands Cinderella to kneel, but Cinderella says she'll never kneel to a tyrant. so, the queen asks her daughter off-camera what they do about someone who's denied a royal order

9.Red and Chloe start off as enemies, but Kylie Cantrall and Malia Baker found it "hard" to act like they hated each other.

Chloe introduces herself to Red, who jokingly invites her to Wonderland to meet the Jabberwocky, a monster that eats annoying girls

On Good Morning America, Kylie said, "We couldn't be, like, further from that."

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10.Zellie, a young version of Rapunzel played by Sam Morelos, was cut because they "just literally ran out of real estate."

Sam as Zellie, looks surprised with hands covering her mouth. She has wavy hair and wears a puffy-sleeved dress on a stone building backdrop

11.Ahead of filming, the cast spent about a month in boot camp for dancing, harness work, sword fighting, and any other special training their roles required.

Chloe in a sword duel with Red over the pocketwatch in an archway setting.

12.To prepare for the role of Uliana, Ursula's younger sister, Dara Reneé "definitely studied every Ursula that existed" and "studied China Anne McClain as Uma religiously."

Dara as Uliana, with long, mutlicolored hair and tentacles, holding a cupcake

13.Morgan Dudley took home a few butterflies from Ella's shoes as a keepsake.

Ella operates an old, weathered wheel mechanism, wearing a stylish, detailed outfit with a gold belt, tennis shoes with colorful butterflies on them

14.Ruby Rose Turner took Bridget's pearl heart ring home on the last day.

A close-up of Bridget wearing a ring and patterned pajamas, shuffling a deck of playing cards

15.Kylie Cantrall dreamed of being a VK, aka "Villain Kid," since she watched the Descendants premiere in fourth grade.

Kylie as Red with long hair with space buns, leather jacket, and bold lipstick

16.Joshua Colley, who plays young Captain Hook, dressed as Hook for Halloween when he was seven.

Joshua as young Hook, dancing in a pirate outfit with lace shirt, dark jacket, studded belt, and chain necklace

17.And finally, Morgan Dudley also felt like she manifested the role of Ella through her childhood dreams.

Morgan as Ella, with curly hair with bangs and wearing a patchwork denim top