By Steven Zeitchik

When art from Disney’s animated fable “The Princess and the Frog” surfaced last March (the pic seen here to the left), it created a bit of a stir. The studio had been earning praise for making the title princess a black character, deviating from the studio’s historically white princesses.

The prince, on the other hand, garnered heat for what some deemed a lighter skin tone. The studio was already facing criticism over what some said were stereotypical depictions in the film, including that of the main character — who at one time was to be called by the reputed slave name Maddy (she’s now Tiana) — and a practitioner of voodoo who’s black, among others.

That the black princess would be rescued from black villains (among others) by a possibly white prince struck some as offensive (an extended debate on the subject here, though, interestingly, the original BET post making the case is no longer live).

Cut to a few days before release, and the prince is looking a little different. The ultimate iteration of the character – as seen in this trailer - shows him to be noticeably darker than he was in the original art.