Sara Parriott and Josann McGibbon came up with the idea for theDescendants franchise after being approached by a former assistant, who had become a development executive at Disney Channel. They were asked to create a story centered on the teenage children of Disney's iconic villains, which led to the development of theDescendants series.[10] Parriott and McGibbon developed the concept forDescendants by proposing that four children of iconic Disney villains attend school in the idealized fairyland of Auradon, rather than in a school solely for villains' children. They selected the featured characters based on their favorite Disney films, focusing on human villains, and decided to include two male and two female teens. This approach also led to creative exploration of how these notorious villains, such as Maleficent and the Evil Queen, might parent their offspring.[11]
Descendants 2 was announced on August 15, 2015, at the D23 Expo.[12] The film premiered on July 21, 2017, and was simulcast on six channels:ABC, Disney Channel,Disney XD,Freeform,Lifetime, andLifetime Movies.[13]
Descendants 3 was announced on February 16, 2018.[14] The film premiered on August 2, 2019 on Disney Channel.[15][16]
In September 2021,Deadline Hollywood reported that two moreDescendants films were being developed by Disney.[17] One of them ending up beingThe Rise of Red.[18][19]
On May 10, 2022, a new sequel, initially announced under the title ofDescendants: The Pocketwatch, was greenlit forDisney+, withJennifer Phang attached to direct.[20] On March 21, 2023, the official title for the film was announced asDescendants: The Rise of Red.[21] The film was released on July 12, 2024 onDisney+, and is set to premiere on August 9, 2024 onDisney Channel.[22][23][24] The film, serving as aspin-off of the previous three films, centers on Red, the teenage daughter of theQueen of Hearts, and Chloe, the daughter ofCinderella andPrince Charming, teaming up and traveling back in time to prevent a catastrophic event.[18][19]
In the United States of Auradon,Belle andBeast rule as king and queen, twenty years after they married, united the settings of manyDisney animated films, and banished all villains to the Isle of the Lost, aslum surrounded by a magic-suppressing barrier. Beast plans to abdicate in favor of his and Belle's son, Ben, who announces a program to invite four children from the Isle of the Lost (dubbed as "Villains' Kids" or "VKs") to live in Auradon, away from the influence of their villainous parents: Carlos, son ofCruella de Vil; Jay, son ofJafar; Evie, daughter ofthe Evil Queen; and their gang's leader Mal, daughter ofMaleficent. Maleficent orders them to steal theFairy Godmother'smagic wand and deactivate the barrier, so Maleficent can conquer Auradon. The four VKs find themselves fitting in and enjoying a normal childhood, and Mal begins a relationship with Ben, supplanting Audrey, daughter ofPrincess Aurora andPrince Phillip. When the barrier is inadvertently dispelled, Maleficent attacks Ben's coronation and transforms into adragon. With Ben encouraging her to make her own choice, Mal decides to be good. She and her friends rebuke Maleficent, turning her into a smalllizard, from which state she can recover if she fills her heart with love. The people of Auradon celebrate.
Mal struggles with her new celebrity life as Ben's girlfriend, secretly using magic to maintain a lifestyle she feels is a façade. Mal decides that she does not belong in Auradon; she returns to the Isle, where gang leadership has fallen to her old rival, pirate captain Uma (Ursula's daughter), and her first and second mates, Harry (Captain Hook's son) and Gil (Gaston's son), respectively. Evie, Jay, and Carlos agree to help Ben find Mal, but Mal rejects Ben, believing it to be best for him and Auradon that she stays on the Isle. Uma captures Ben and demands the Fairy Godmother's wand in exchange for his life. Uma resents not being chosen to live in Auradon; Ben respects her as a leader and invites her to Auradon, but she vows to make her own way there instead. Using a3D-printed decoy wand, Mal's group rescues Ben. At the shipboard royal cotillion, Uma appears as Ben's date and he announces he will destroy the barrier; Mal realizes Uma has cast a spell on Ben. When Mal discovers Ben commissioned a portrait that depicts her as she was before she changed herself with magic, she accepts the act of love and kisses Ben, breaking the spell. Uma and Mal battle, transforming into anoctopus and adragon, respectively. Ben tries to negotiate with Uma, but she leaves, unreconciled. Evie asks to bring more children from the Isle to Auradon and Ben agrees.
Ben proposes to his girlfriend Mal, making her the future queen of Auradon. However, threats from Uma, Mal's father Hades and Ben's ex-girlfriend Audrey has Mal trying to stop evil once and for all. While Mal, Evie, Jay and Carlos are recruiting a new generation of villain kids,Hades is trying to breach through the barrier, then Audrey steals Maleficent's crown and the scepter and becomes an evil version of herself. The VKs return to the Isle of the Lost on a mission to retrieve Hades' ember and later, Uma, Harry and Gil team up with Mal and the others to stop Audrey from destroying Auradon.
Red, daughter of theQueen of Hearts, and Chloe, daughter ofCinderella, must travel back in time to prevent Red's mother from seizing control of Auradon and becoming a villain. The Queen of Hearts coerces Red into punishing Cinderella as part of her revenge for a prank played on her during her student days at Auradon, then known asMerlin Academy. Red and Chloe's mission focuses on stopping Uliana from pranking Bridget, the younger version of the Queen of Hearts, which would lead her to become an evil queen. Their successful intervention preserves the present, transforming the Queen of Hearts into a loving figure. The film concludes with a cliffhanger, as Uma's voiceover delivers closing lines amidst a scene of general merriment and dancing.[25]
After the release ofThe Rise of Red, the film's executive producerSuzanne Todd confirmed that Disney is "definitely working on and thinking about a follow-up movie," and that due to the end ofThe Rise of Red with a warning about the unforeseen consequences of time travel, in the sequel "there will be future good and evil turns for sure."[26]
In February 2025 the first cast members were announced, with several characters fromThe Rise of Red returning and new ones joining, with the film scheduled for release in summer 2026.[8] In March 2025, more new cast members were announced.[27]
As of August 2024, the originalDescendants trilogy—Descendants,Descendants 2, andDescendants 3 —has accumulated over 781 million hours of viewing in the United States, where each film was also the most-watched television movie of the year among Kids 6-11 and Tweens 9-14 during its premiere year in 2015, 2017, and 2019, respectively.[28]
Descendants was viewed more than one million times on the Watch Disney Channel app before the film made its TV debut.[29] It was viewed by 6.6 million people on its premiere night[30] and 10.5 million viewers in Early DVR Playback.[31] Shortly after the premier air date, ratings showed the film was the fifth most watched original movie in cable history.[32] In Australia, the film attracted 151,000 viewers, making it the sixth highest-rated broadcast on pay television on its premiere day.[33] The British premiere was watched by 827,000 viewers, making it the most-watched broadcast on Disney Channel of that week and month.[34][35]
Descendants has grossed $18,245,955 in domestic home video sales.[36]
Descendants 2 was viewed by 8.92 million viewers across six networks on the night of its premiere, up from itspredecessor in 2015; at least 13 million people watched a minute of the film.[37] OnDisney Channel, the film was watched by 5.33 million viewers, and topped the night on cable television, receiving a 1.20 rating. Although down from the first film, it was the most-viewed telecast on the network since the first film.[38]ABC's broadcast of the film received a 0.6/3rating/share, drawing 2.41 million viewers; 0.47 million viewers watched the film onDisney XD with a 0.12 rating, 0.30 million viewers watched the film onLifetime with a 0.09 rating, 0.26 million viewers watched the film onFreeform with a 0.08 rating, and 0.15 million viewers watched the film onLifetime Movies with a 0.05 rating.[39][40] In delayed viewing, the film rose to a total of 21 million viewers.[41] On Disney Channel, the film placed second in the week of its DVR ratings, jumping 92% to a 2.3 rating, and topped the week in viewer gains, jumping 104% with an additional 5.54 million viewers, the biggest viewer gain on cable television in two years, totaling to 10.90 million viewers on Disney Channel. On Freeform, the film jumped 207% with an additional 0.54 million viewers, totaling to 0.80 million viewers on the network; on Lifetime Movie Network, the film gained 96% with an additional 0.14 million viewers, totaling to 0.29 million viewers on the network.[42]
Descendants 2 has grossed $13,314,855 in domestic home video sales.[43]
Descendants 3 was watched by 4.59 million viewers on its August 2, 2019 premiere,[44] with viewership increasing to 8.43 million viewers after three days of delayed viewing.[45]
Descendants 3 has grossed $6,968,947 in domestic home video sales.[46]
Descendants: The Rise of Red was watched by 6.7 million viewers in its first three days of streaming onDisney+.[47][48] It becameDisney Branded Television's highest original movie premiere on the streaming service.[49][50] The film was the most watched streaming original movie during the week of 12–18 July 2024, with 1.1 billion minutes of watch time.[51][52] It was the third most watched streaming original movie during the week of 19–25 July 2024, with 299.1 million minutes of watch time.[53][54]The Rise of Red was the fourth most watched streaming original movie during the week of 26 July – August 1, 2024, with 141.8 million minutes of watch time and 1.5 million views.[55][56] According to FlixPatrol, which monitors daily updated VOD charts across the globe, the movie reached Disney+'s number one film ranking in the United States on July 27, 2024,[57] and reached number two on August 11, 2024.[58] Analytics companySamba TV, which gathers viewership data from certainSmart TVs and content providers, reported thatThe Rise of Red was the eighth top streaming programs for the week of August 5–11, 2024.[59][60] In August 2024, Disney announced thatThe Rise of Red has reached 20 million views worldwide.[28][61]
In 2020,Robot Chicken parodiedDescendants by havingX-23, the clone ofWolverine, appear at the school attended by the children of Disney villains.[62][63] As of May 2022, nearly 7 million dolls and 9 millionDescendants books, including fourNew York Times Best Sellers, have been sold.[64] TheDescendantsHalloween costumes were the #1 and #2 best-selling costumes in 2015 and 2016 and have remained among Disney's top 5 licensed costumes for seven consecutive years, from 2015 to 2021.[65] In July 2024, the hashtag "#Descendants" has garnered more than 95 million views in the United States and over 9 billion views globally.[66][67] As of August 2024,Descendants' official Disney accounts have accumulated over 10 million followers across various social media platforms.[61]
"It's Goin' Down" (performed by Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson, Cameron Boyce, Booboo Stewart, China Anne McClain, Mitchell Hope, Thomas Doherty and Dylan Playfair)
Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson, Booboo Stewart, Cameron Boyce, China Anne McClain, Mitchell Hope, Thomas Doherty, Dylan Playfair, Sarah Jeffery, Jadah Marie, Brenna D'Amico and Zachary Gibson
BeforeDescendants' premiere air date, Disney Channel announced alive action mini series leading up to the event. It serves as a prequel story for the firstDescendants movie.[166] Every day leading up to the release of the film, a new episode ofDescendants: School of Secrets would be released revealing more secrets about the students at Auradon Prep. Each episode of the series is under 5 minutes long, with 23 episodes in total.[167]
Right after the film finished airing on Disney Channel, it was announced that an animated short spinoff entitledDescendants: Wicked World would be released on September 18, 2015.[168] Furthermore, formerPhineas and Ferb storyboard artistAliki Theofilopoulos Grafft announced on Twitter that she was directing the series, with Jenni Cook as producer, and that the original cast would be reprising their roles.[169] The animated short-form series has reached over 30 million viewers in the U.S. and generated over 100 million consumer engagements across the Disney Channel app, VOD, and YouTube.[170]
On November 6, 2020, an animated short prequel of theDescendants: The Royal Wedding television special was released on Disney Channel'sYouTube channel. The series follows Mal and Evie as they prepare for the royal wedding withDove Cameron andSofia Carson reprising their roles.[171]
A short film,Under The Sea: A Descendants Short Story was released on September 28, 2018.[173] The story revolves around Mal (Dove Cameron), who discovers a glowing orb in a forest. She then meets Dizzy (Anna Cathcart), who is wearing a necklace that is possessed by Uma (China Anne McClain).[174]
Audrey's Royal Return: A Descendants Short Story (2019)
A second short film,Audrey's Royal Return: A Descendants Short Story, was released on July 5, 2019. It centers on Audrey (Sarah Jeffery), who stops by her salon for a makeover in preparation for her comeback at Auradon after her absence the previous year, summarising the events of the first two films from her point of view while also explaining her absence in the second film.[175]
Wicked Woods: A Descendants Halloween Story (2019)
Astop motion animation short film,Wicked Woods: A Descendants Halloween Story, was released on October 4, 2019. The story revolves around Mal (Dove Cameron) who tells her friends on Halloween night, about the legend of theHeadless Horseman, one of Auradon's first villains, who is said to be lost in the woods of the city and has haunted them for hundreds of years. The shorts was animated using dolls from theDescendants 3 Hasbro toy line with Dove Cameron,Sofia Carson,Booboo Stewart,Cameron Boyce,Sarah Jeffery andChina Anne McClain reprising their roles.[176][177]
A stop motion animation short film, Wickedly Sweet: A Descendants Short Story, was released on October 25, 2024 on Disney Channel'sYouTube page and October 26, 2024 on Disney Channel.[178] It centers around Red, Chloe, and Bridget getting their hands on the Sorcerer's Cookbook, but Uliana shows up and together, the four sing, dance, and cook some "wickedly sweet" treats. They sing new renditions of "Ways to Be Wicked" fromDescendants 2 and "Life Is Sweeter" fromDescendants: The Rise of Red. The short was animated using dolls from theDescendants: The Rise of Red Mattel toy line withKylie Cantrall,Malia Baker, Ruby Rose Turner, andDara Reneé reprising their roles.[179]
A short film,Shuffle of Love: A Descendants Short Story, was released on February 13, 2025 onDisney+ andDisney Channel. The short features Ruby Rose Turner,Kylie Cantrall andMalia Baker reprising their roles fromThe Rise of Red. In the short, Bridget dreams that her song "Shuffle of Love" is a hit and everyone is dancing to it.[180][181][182]
Descendants Remix Dance Party is a television special released on March 20, 2020 on Disney Channel, featuringCheyenne Jackson returning in the role of Hades fromDescendants 3, who hosts a dance party with reimagined musical hits from theDescendants films, performed bySofia Wylie,Dara Reneé, andKylie Cantrall.[183][184]
Descendants: The Royal Wedding is an animated special that premiered on Disney Channel on August 13, 2021.[185] This is the firstDescendants project to be announced after Boyce's death, and as such, it was reported that the absence of Carlos would be addressed.[186] Carlos is briefly mentioned, though it is unspecified what happened to his character.[187] In the special, the wedding between Mal and Ben is going to begin to take place (after getting engaged inDescendants 3). However, with the arrival of Hades the place of the ceremony ends up burning. Mal and her friends go in search of Hades, to find out what exactly happened for everything to end in flames.[188] The story ends with a scene that gives way to the story ofDescendants: The Rise of Red.
On February 6, 2020,Music Theatre International released the rights to a junior production of the film series.[190] The plot mostly follows that of the first film but uses elements from the sequel and music from all three films andDescendants: Wicked World. It features a book and additional lyrics are written Nick Blaemire, additional music by Madeline Smith, and new orchestrations byMatthew Tishler.[191][192]
At the Disney Entertainment Showcase on August 9, 2024, held during theD23 Expo, Disney Branded Television, Disney Concerts, Disney Music Group, and AEG have announced theDescendants/Zombies: Worlds Collide Tour, set for summer 2025.[193][194] This tour will bring together stars from both theDescendants andZombies franchises, with confirmed appearances by theDescendants: The Rise of Red andZombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires starsKylie Cantrall,Malia Baker,Dara Reneé,Ruby Rose Turner,Freya Skye andMalachi Barton, with more to be announced later. The tour will be an immersive and interactive live concert experience celebrating the high-energy music from both franchises and will be held in arenas across the United States with ticket sales to begin in November 2024.[195]
A novel calledThe Isle of the Lost byMelissa de la Cruz, serving as a prequel to the firstDescendants film, has the villains' descendants banding together to retrieve the Dragon's Eye. The book was released on May 5, 2015. The book has spent over 14 weeks as a Children's Middle GradeNew York Times Best Seller.[196]
AnotherDescendants novel titledReturn to the Isle of the Lost was released on May 24, 2016,[197] serving as a sequel to the events of thefirst film, as well as to the first season of the television seriesDescendants: Wicked World. While Ben is running Auradon while his parents are on a cruise, Mal, Jay, Carlos, and Evie receive threatening messages to return to the Isle of the Lost at the time when it ends up in worse shape ever since Maleficent's defeat and the fact that Cruella de Vil, the Evil Queen and Jafar have gone missing.
A novel calledRise of the Isle of the Lost was released on May 23, 2017,[198] serving as a prequel to the events ofDescendants 2. The novel details Uma's rise to power and her earlier history with Mal. The main plot details Uma planning to get the migrating trident of King Triton in order to help bring down the barrier surrounding the Isle of the Lost.
School of Secrets is a series of novels that serve as a continuation of the firstDescendants film, as well as theDescendants: Wicked World series. The first book,CJ's Treasure Chase, was released on August 30, 2016 and centers on Captain Hook's daughter, CJ Hook.[201][202] The second book,Freddie's Shadow Cards, was released on November 1, 2016,[201] and centers on Freddie, the daughter of Dr. Facilier. The third book,Ally's Mad Mystery, was released on February 28, 2017 and focuses on Ally, the daughter of Alice in Wonderland. The fourth novel,Lonnie's Warrior Sword, was released on August 25, 2017, and will focus on Lonnie, the daughter of Mulan and Li Shang, while the fifth book,Carlos's Scavenger Hunt, was released on November 14, 2017.
A junior novelization of the filmDescendants, adapted by Rico Green, was published on July 14, 2015,[203] a junior novelization of the filmDescendants 2 was published in 2017, and a junior novel ofDescendants 3 was published on July 30, 2019.[204]
Other books have been released, includingMal's Diary,[205]Mal's Spell Book 1 and 2,[206]Evie's Fashion Book,[207]Uma's Wicked Book,[208]Audrey's Diary,[209]The Villain Kids’ Guide for New VKs,[210]The Magic of Friendship,[211] a poster book, aDescendants 3 sticker and activity book,[212] and aGuide to Auradon Prep. All of which were published underDisney Publishing Worldwide.
In July 2015,Disney Karaoke: Descendants was released on mobile, allowing to sing along toDescendants' songs and record music videos.[213] In November 2015, a mobile game based on the firstDescendants film was released, where players can create their avatar and on an adventure through Auradon Prep.[214]
