Disney Jr. is giving its still-popular Sofia the First (pictured) franchise a content lift with a sequel series called Sofia the First: Royal Magic in production at Disney Television Animation for a 2026 premiere on Disney Jr. and Disney+.
Aimed at preschoolers, the new show sees young princess Sofia attending a magical school, where she learns to master her burgeoning powers and makes new friends. Each episode will feature two 11-minute stories, with an original song in between.
Sofia the First premiered in 2012 and ran for four seasons. Its creator, Craig Gerber, is also the mastermind and executive producer behind this new series, which was teased back in 2022 as part of Gerber’s overall deal with Disney Branded TV.
One of Disney’s most successful preschool franchises, Sofia is its first aged-down princess and has attracted a lot of eyeballs to Disney Jr. The original show’s premiere pulled in 8.17 million viewers in 2012, making it the most-viewed cable TV preschool telecast of all time.
Cumulatively to date, Sofia content has generated 3.3 billion views on linear and streaming combined. And it’s responsible for 755 million views on Disney Jr.’s YouTube channel alone, according to a spokesperson. The brand has also remained popular on social media platforms, racking up more than 40 million total views across Disney Jr.’s Facebook, Instagram and TikTok this year.
Disney has been able to parlay this success into a broad consumer products over the years, with partners including Mattel (toys), Jakks (costumes), Just Play (dolls) and books from Disney Publishing.