Which “Princess Protection Program” star will emerge as Disney’s new tween queen ?

Jim Hill

16 years ago

So what exactly is the deal with “Hannah Montana” ? Back
in July of last year, Miley Cyrus made numerous Mouse House executives reach
for their Mylanta when – as she was speaking with E! Entertainment – this tween
sensation mentioned that the third season of this Disney Channel smash might be
its last.

Rich Ross, president of Disney Channel Worldwide, was
quick to dispute Miley’s claim. Pointing out that there was actually an option
in Cyrus’ contract that allowed Mickey to order up a fourth season of “Hannah
Montana.” And given the enormous amount of money that the Mouse was making off
of Miley, Mickey was definitely planning on exercising that option.

But then – last month – the Mouse House suddenly indicated
that it might be softening its stance on Season 4. You see, just as they did back
in Season 2, the Disney Channel ordered up additional episodes of “Hannah
Montana”. 6 more to be exact. Which would then bring the total number of episodes
produced for Season 3 up to 30.

Which — if you were to combine the 26 episodes of “Hannah
Montana” that were shot in Season 1 with the 60 shows that were / will be produced
for Season 2 & 3 … Well, that would then bring the total number of “Hannah
Montanas” up to 86. Which then puts this show within spitting distance of 100
episodes. Which is the number that the Disney ABC Television Group feels it needs
in order to get the best possible price for “Hannah Montana” ‘s syndication rights. When
and if they actually make this show available to secondary markets.

Anyway … That’s the scuttlebutt that’s currently making
the rounds at the Mouse House. If Miley agrees to come back to shoot a
foreshortened fourth season of “Hannah Montana” (i.e. just 14 shows. Which will
then allow the Disney ABC Television Group to have 100 episodes of this tween sitcom in the
hopper), Cyrus will then be allowed to concentrate on launching her film
career. Which – if Mickey has his way – will feature a steady stream of sequels
to “Hannah Montana: The Movie.”

But if the Disney Channel is going to lose its tween
queen to the big screen come 2010, who’s then going to step in and claim Cyrus’
crown? There are two strong candidates right now: Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato.

Right now, Selena seems to have the inside track. Her
Disney Channel series – “Wizards of Waverly Place” – regularly places in the
Top 10 for cable television series. And the folks at Disney Consumer Products
obviously think highly of Ms. Gomez. Given that they flew this 16-year-old down
to WDW’s Contemporary Resort last November. Where Selena then took part in a
live question-and-answer session in front of 400 licensees at DCP’s North
America Sales Meeting.

But then again it’s not a wise move to discount Ms.
Lovato. Ever since Demi made her Disney Channel debut in “Camp Rock” back in
June of 2008, Mouse House managers have been impressed with how quickly this
16-year-old has connected with tweens. Her Hollywood Records album, “Don’t Forget,” debuted at #2 on the Billboard charts back in September. And all
summer long, Ms. Lovato and the Jonas Brothers sold out huge venues across the
country as part of their “Burnin’ Up” tour.

So now the big question now is … Is Demi ready for
sitcom stardom? Her new series, “Sonny with a Chance,” premieres on the Disney
Channel on Sunday, February 8^th. And later this year, Ms. Lovato
& the Jonases will head back to the woods to shoot “Camp Rock 2.”

So who’s Mickey going to pick to be Miley’s successor?
Actually, the Mouse seems to be trying a two-heads-are-better-than-one approach.
Given that – this June – Selena and Demi will be co-starring in a Disney
Channel Original Movie, “Princess Protection Program.”

Gomez plays Carter Mason, a typical teenager whose life
is turned upside down when her father, Major Mason of the Princess Protection
Program (i.e. a fictitious organization that – would you believe it? – actually
rescues princesses) brings Princess Rosalinda (played by Ms. Lovato) home to
their house in Louisiana. The only way to save Rosalinda’s country (More
importantly, her mother. Who stayed behind) is for this pampered princess to go
undercover as average American teenager Rosie Gonzales.

Carter’s dad places her in charge of making sure that
Rosalinda … er … Rosie fits in. Which gets kind of difficult when both girls
are nominated for Homecoming Queen at her high school.

Mouse House managers feel that “Princess Protection
Program” (Which – FYI – is the 76^th Disney Channel Original Movie
produced to date) has the makings of a break-out hit. Which is why this new TV
movie will be supported by a full load
of merchandise.

Of course, Selena & Demi will still have quite a
ways to go before they can equal the amount of merch that Miley has moved. Just
last year, the “Hannah Montana” franchise (in combination with “High School
Musical”) racked up $2.7 billion in sales. Which was a $400 million increase
over what these introduced-on-the-Disney-Channel characters earned back in
2007.

So obviously Ms. Cyrus’ act is going to be a tough one
to follow. But even as the Company continues to plan to cash in on Miley
(Disney Hyperion officials anticipate that her book, ‘Miles to Go’ – which will
be released to stores on March 10^th – will outsell last year’s
bestseller for this division at Disney. Which was “Burning Up: On Tour with the Jonas Brothers
”), the folks at Disney Consumer Products know that Hannah
Montana will eventually fall out of favor with tweens.

And even though the Company convened a meeting last February (attended by 80 different people representing every division at Disney) to discuss how to prolong the “Hannah Montana” phenomenon … When it comes to its TV-based brands,
there’s no getting around the fact that are just three stages of life: launch, build and sustain. And right now, in spite of Disney’s best efforts, the “Hannah
Montana” franchise is in sustain mode. Which is why the Mouse is already scanning the
horizon, wondering who they can build into their next Miley.

So what do you folks think? Which member of the “Princess
Protection Program” cast is ultimately going to claim Cyrus’ crown?

Your thoughts?