Forget everything you think you know about Cinderella. Netflix’s upcoming animated feature Steps is flipping the fairy tale entirely — and what was unveiled at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival has us genuinely buzzing.
Table of Contents
Steps — Everything at a Glance
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Title | Steps |
| Directors | Alyce Tzue & John Ripa |
| Runtime | ~92 minutes |
| Production | Netflix Animation Studios (first exclusive) |
| Visual Style | 18th-century French Rococo — in edible form |
| Release | Late 2026, Netflix Global |
| Theatrical Release | ❌ Streaming only |
What’s the Story of Steps ?
Steps is short for stepsisters — and that’s exactly the angle this film takes. Rather than centre Cinderella, the story follows Lilith, an Asian immigrant stepsister living in the shadow of “perfect” Cinderella in a Western fairy tale kingdom called Alouette. When Lilith steals the Fairy Godmother’s wand, the Cinderella story breaks entirely — forcing the two very different stepsisters to team up and save the kingdom. Nobody is fully good or fully evil here. That’s the whole point.
The Voice Cast Is Stacked
| Character | Voice Actor | Vibe |
|---|---|---|
| Lilith | Ali Wong | Gothy punk rebel; charismatic truth-teller |
| Cinderella | Amanda Seyfried | Warm, deeply human, hides pain behind perfection |
| Margo | Stephanie Hsu | The heart & moral compass; gets cursed as a frog |
| Priscilla (villain) | Nikki Glaser | Y2K Marie Antoinette meets Paris Hilton energy |
| Fairy Godmother | Bette Midler | Horoscope girl meets forest witch — clearly a Scorpio |
The Animation Will Blow Your Mind
The kingdom of Alouette is modelled after 18th-century pre-revolutionary French Rococo — a notoriously difficult style to animate — and the team made it even more distinctive by building much of the world out of digital food. Clocks made of taffy, pots out of flan, trays out of chocolate. The animators call it “tactile textures and elegant clutter,” and it gives the film a cosy, collectible-dollhouse feel unlike anything in recent animation.
Costumes also physically change with magic — Cinderella’s fairy-tale gown literally has petals that float and resist physics. When the magic breaks, the fabric becomes visibly thin and worn. It’s a masterclass in visual storytelling.
Is It a Musical?
Sort of. It started as one and evolved — it’s now music-driven with original songs and needle drops rather than full musical numbers. More details on the soundtrack are coming soon.
One more thing worth celebrating: the entire creative team proudly confirmed that Steps is 100% human-made, with no AI involvement whatsoever.
Stay tuned for all the latest Netflix movie news at TechnoSports Entertainment.
FAQs
Q: When is Netflix’s Steps releasing and will it have a theatrical release?
Steps is releasing globally on Netflix in late 2026 and will be streaming-only — the filmmakers confirmed it will skip cinemas entirely.
Q: Who is the main character in Netflix’s Steps animated movie?
The lead is Lilith, voiced by Ali Wong — a gothy, sharp-witted Asian immigrant stepsister who accidentally breaks the Cinderella story by stealing the Fairy Godmother’s wand.
