Misty Copeland Joins Disney's Nutcracker Film

July 14, 2016

Just when we think Misty Copeland has done it all (how many dancers can say they have their own Barbie doll?), she surprises us with another exciting project. The American Ballet Theatre principal is set to star in Disney’s new live-action Nutcracker film as the lead ballerina. She announced her involvement in the project on Instagram earlier this week.

Though this isn’t her first time on the big screen, it’s still relatively new terrain for the superstar dancer. The movie, called The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, is based on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s classic story, “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King” (the ballet we all know and love is also based on that story), and will be directed by Lasse Hallström.

We don’t have many details yet, and it’s unclear how much dancing there will actually be (Vanity Fair reports that Copeland will “appear in the movie’s only dance sequence”), but we’re sure Copeland will bring magic to her role no matter what. After all, who knows The Nutcracker better than a real ballerina?

No word yet on when the film comes out, but until then, Copeland has plenty to keep her busy. Aside from her ABT schedule, she recently appeared in a gorgeous feature in Cosmopolitan, and is releasing her own dancewear line, Égal Dance, this summer.