Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Peter Pan & WendyDisney’s live-action Peter Pan & Wendy makes major updates to Tiger Lily, including her speaking in a different language from the other characters for most of the film. J.M. Barrie’s original Peter and Wendy play and novel have long been criticized for their portrayal of Native Americans. Disney’s 1953 Peter Pan film faced the same criticism, particularly for the song “What Made the Red Man Red?” When faced with making a live-action adaptation, Disney knew they needed to do something different with Tiger Lily.
Peter Pan & Wendy‘s director David Lowery and co-writer Toby Halbrooks ensured their Tiger Lily would not be a racist stereotype or a damsel in distress. She plays a major role in helping Peter, Wendy, and the Lost Boys. When it comes to how she speaks and dresses, she is perhaps the most accurate portrayal of Native Americans in a Peter Pan adaptation. Tiger Lily does have a few English lines, but she mostly speaks in a different language, with her lines translated through subtitles.
Tiger Lily Speaks Cree In Peter Pan & Wendy
In Peter Pan & Wendy, Tiger Lily is speaking the Cree language. Alyssa Wapanatâhk, who plays Tiger Lily, is a member of the Bigstone Cree First Nation in Canada. She worked with the filmmakers to craft the character of Tiger Lily and incorporate her own Cree heritage.
The Cree language is actually a dialect chain, meaning there are a few different but closely related versions of the language. Wapanatâhk doesn’t speak Cree fluently, but Dr. Kevin Lewis of the Ministikwan Lake Cree Nation consulted on the film and was on set to coach her. She also reached out to her grandmother and adopted grandfather for help, resulting in a realistic portrayal. (via Native News Online)
What Tiger Lily Speaking Cree Means In Peter Pan & Wendy
Tiger Lily speaking Cree shows how the Peter Pan & Wendy filmmakers took previous criticism of Peter Pan to heart and put in the work to better represent the indigenous people of North America. Before she even appears on screen, Tiger Lily is heard speaking in her language. This immediately sets her apart from previous incarnations of Tiger Lily, and also shows she is comfortable using her own language around the Lost Boys and strangers like Wendy.
The use of Cree language also expands on the lore of Neverland. Though this version of Tiger Lily is inspired by Cree culture, she’s actually supposed to be native to Neverland, not part of a real-life Cree tribe that was transported to the magical land. Tiger Lily’s tribe only appears briefly, but they make the setting of Peter Pan & Wendy more vibrant and interesting.
