It’s hard to believe that The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement arrived way back in August 2004. While the past 20 years have flown by for those of us who lived them, fans of the real-life fairy-tale franchise have never given up hope for a third Princess Diaries movie. The Hollywood Reporter revealed in October 2024 that the project will film, but as of 2026, filming has not begun.Traction on a trilogy-making sequel has stalled—but has not stopped completely. Anne Hathaway, who played plucked-from-obscurity princess Mia Thermopolis, previously confirmed a script exists, and while she claimed to be on board for the film alongside co-star Julie Andrews as Queen Clarisse, there hadn’t been too many updates since. Disney also previously greenlit a new installment in November 2022, but Hathaway revealed in 2026 that she’s still writing the script and that the project lost its confirmation—though The Princess Diaries author Meg Cabot suggests otherwise.As The Princess Diaries taught us, miracles happen once in a while if you believe. Ahead, here’s everything we know about the status of The Princess Diaries 3.Jump to:Disney signed on for a Princess Diaries 3 back in 2022.Joy Ride’s Adele Lim was announced as the film’s director.Hathaway confirmed her participation in October 2024.A potential plot was teased in August 2025.As of April 2026, Hathaway confirmed The Princess Diaries 3 is indeed still in the works.Cabot revealed that a castle has already been rented for the project.Lim teased a new direction for the sequel in May 2026.In July 2026, Hathaway said the team had a “story breakthrough.”Disney signed on for a Princess Diaries 3 back in 2022.Disney initially signed on to develop a third installment in late 2022, per The Hollywood Reporter. TV writer Aadrita Mukerji (Reacher, Supergirl) was announced as writer, with Debra Martin Chase, who produced the first two films, set to produce the new installment alongside Melissa Stack (The Other Woman).Joy Ride’s Adele Lim was announced as the film’s director.The Hollywood Reporter shared on Oct. 4, 2024 that Lim had been hired to helm the project. Hathaway would be expected to return, the outlet added, and Disney hoped to film the movie in 2025. That timeline ultimately shifted, and the film remains in development as of May 2026.Lim shared a statement to the outlet about her appointment: “As a diehard fan of the original Princess Diaries, I’m beyond excited to be a part of bringing the third iteration of this beloved franchise to life. We look forward to celebrating its core tenants of female power, joy and mentorship with audiences worldwide.”Hathaway confirmed her participation in October 2024.Also on Oct. 4, 2024, Hathaway shared a screenshot of the film announcement and then some clips of herself from the film.View full post on Instagram“Miracles happen,” she captioned the video. “Back to Genovia with @adeleblim @disney @somewherepictures. The fairy tale continues.”A potential plot was teased in August 2025.On Aug. 21, 2025, Lim posted an open casting call for the role of Olivia, seeming to confirm that the newest installment would follow the events of Cabot’s 2015 book, The Princess Diaries, Volume XI: Royal Wedding.View full post on InstagramThe call claimed to be looking for a 15-year-old girl to play Olivia Robinson: “Smart, sarcastic, armored, and observant, Olivia Robinson wants to be left alone. After her mother passed away, she withdrew into herself, masking her sadness with caustic wit. But under her prickly exterior, Olivia’s natural warmth, compassion, and courage to stand up to power is exactly what makes her a natural born leader. The only thing standing in the way is herself.”In the book, Olivia is the half-sister of Mia Thermopolis from a secret relationship of her dad, Phillipe. Mia finds Olivia after her mother has passed away and fights for custody after discovering she is being mistreated by extended family members.As of April 2026, Hathaway confirmed The Princess Diaries 3 is indeed still in the works.In an April 2026 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Hathaway confirmed that she is “one hundred percent,” “constantly working” on The Princess Diaries 3. “[Devil Wears Prada 2] cropped up unexpectedly and took over the space,” she noted, adding that “it became impossible to focus on both at the same time.”While the third film in the franchise “is not greenlit or confirmed yet,” Hathaway explained that “the intention is to make Princess Diaries hopefully next.” She knows that “everybody wants it,” so she and her team are “chipping away at the script.”“If I learned anything from [Devil Wears Prada 2], it’s that expectations are very, very high, and if you’re going to do it, you have to knock it out of the park,” the actress added.Cabot revealed that a castle has already been rented for the project.The author confirmed that she has read a script for the movie, and a location for the film has already been picked out—everyone just needs to be available to film the project.“I read the script,” she said during her April 2026 appearance at BookCon. “There is a part for everybody. Everybody has to show up and it’s going to be amazing. I don’t know when they’re going to film it because Annie Hathaway, as you’ve probably seen, is making a million movies right now, but one of these days, she’s going to go to the castle that we have actually rented and is sitting there waiting.”View full post on XLim teased a new direction for the sequel in May 2026.During a May 2026 interview with E!, The Princess Diaries 3 director hinted at what fans can expect from Mia Thermopolis’s next chapter as Queen of Genovia.“What was so special about this project is that all the fans of the original movie, myself included, are now mothers,” Lim said. “When I looked at the series and talked about it with Anne, there are so many wish-fulfillment movies for princesses.”“There are no wish-fulfillment movies for queens, and that’s what we want to see,” she continued. “The girls who grew up believing in princesses, we want to grow up believing that there is a world in which you can be a queen and be fabulous and kicking ass and also find a way to mentor the young women coming up after us.”Lim added that she feels The Princess Diaries 3 is “a movie we all need in our lives right now.” She also confirmed that while the team is still actively working on the script, production timing remains uncertain: “We can’t lock down a timeline, but we are working very hard on the script right now.”In July 2026, Hathaway said the team had a “story breakthrough.”Hathaway offered another update in July 2026, revealing that the creative team recently found a new direction for the story after revisiting the script. “I can say I think we had a story breakthrough. I think we are moving in the right direction,” she said during an appearance on SiriusXM’s Radio Andy. “The script that we were working on—we kind of had to start over with this new direction, which is not the update I think anybody wants, but we all feel really good that this is gonna be the one.”Additional reporting by Savannah Walsh, Alyssa Bailey, and Starr Bowenbank.