BARRIO – Afro-Latina actress, Ariana DeBose, will star as Asha in Wish. Asha is a “17-year-old heroine who’s driven, incredibly smart and an optimist, a sharp-witted leader in the making who sees darkness that others do not. She’s navigating a Kingdom of Wishes, where wishes can literally come true. Asha makes an impassioned plea to the stars, wishing for guidance and help, and ends up bringing an actual star — a cosmic force that’s a literal ball of energy and communicates through pantomime — down from the sky,” according to a synopsis on Deadline.

Asha is slated to be Disney’s first Afro-Latina princess.

DeBose spoke to Deadline about how her character reminds her of herself. “She’s got many parts to her,” she said. “She’s so smart, she’s got a great sense of humor, she’s trying to take care of the people she loves most in the world. And she’s a leader and doesn’t realize it, she’s just living and doing and learning along the way. She doesn’t ways get it right, which is the definition of being human.”

“But I think audiences can be excited about original songs, an original story, its all the Disney magic you know and love but it looks like us,” she added, referring to the minority representation. “And that’s exciting. I’m really excited that little girls can identify with this character.”

Disney’s Wish will premiere in November 2023 and it can’t come soon enough.