The film was the first time the story of Cinderella was told with a racially diverse cast; the king was white, the queen was black, and their son was Asian. "Our production, unlike all past TV musical extravaganzas, has a rainbow cast," Houston told Variety about the casting decision at the time. "Cinderella is about dreaming and I want my daughter and all children of every colour and nationality to know that their dreams can also come true." Not to mention, Brandy's role as the first black Cinderella onscreen opened up the doors for Keke Palmer, who later went on to become the first black Cinderella on Broadway when she starred in the musical production of the movie in 2014.