Here's Our First Look at Misty Copeland in Disney's "Nutcracker" Movie

When we first heard about Disney’s live-action film The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, we honestly weren’t sure what to expect. Would it bear any resemblance to the ballet story we know alllllllll too well? Would it be light and fun, or dark and dramatic? Most importantly, would it involve dancing?

Well, the first trailer for Disney’s Nutcracker has arrived, and it appears that the answers to those questions are 1) barely, 2) the latter, and 3) YES—more specifically, dancing by the one and only Misty Copeland. 🙌 🙌 🙌

Copeland isn’t playing the Sugar Plum Fairy; Keira Knightley has that honor (and no, Knightley’s not in pointe shoes). Instead, the film’s IMDB page IDs Copeland as simply “The Ballerina,” and it looks like she stars in some kind of fantastical show-within-a-show put on for Clara.

We’ve discovered a few more fun dance tidbits about the film: Apparently the Mouse King’s movement is provided by jookin king Lil Buck (!), and ballet bad boy Sergei Polunin is also listed, without a character name, on the IMDB page. (We’re guessing he’s Copeland’s cavalier.)

The bad news? The movie won’t hit theaters until November 2, 2018. Oh, Disney—why do you tease us so?