The little mermaid

The Little Mermaid is an upcoming American musical fantasy film directed by Rob Marshall from a screenplay written by David Magee. It is a live-action adaptation of Disney’s 1989 animated film of the same name, which itself is loosely based on the 1837 fairy tale of the same title by Hans Christian Andersen. The film stars Halle Bailey in the titular role, Jonah Hauer-King, Daveed Diggs, Awkwafina, Jacob Tremblay, Noma Dumezweni, Javier Bardem, and Melissa McCarthy.

Plans for a remake of 1989’s The Little Mermaid were confirmed in May 2016. Marshall joined the film as director in December 2017, and much of the main cast signed on from June to November 2019. Filming took place primarily at Pinewood Studios in England from January to July 2021.

The film was co-produced by Walt Disney Pictures, DeLuca Marshall and Marc Platt Productions. Lin-Manuel Miranda co-wrote new songs for the remake as the lyricist. Alan Menken returned as the composer for both the score and songs. It is scheduled to be released theatrically in the United States on May 26, 2023.

Cast:

• Halle Bailey as Ariel, a mermaid princess and King Triton’s youngest daughter who is fascinated with the human world. Bailey was announced to have been cast on July 3, 2019.
• Jonah Hauer-King as Eric, a human prince whom Ariel falls in love with after saving him from drowning.
• Noma Dumezweni as Queen Selina, a new character for the film.
• Javier Bardem as King Triton, Ariel’s overprotective father and the King of Atlantica, who is prejudiced against humans.
• Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, a treacherous sea witch whom Ariel makes a deal with to become a human, which is secretly part of Ursula’s plan to conquer Atlantica.
• Art Malik as Grimsby, Eric’s loyal butler and confidant, who sees to it that Eric finds the right girl to marry.
• Lorena Andrea as Perla, a daughter of Triton and Ariel’s sister.
• Simone Ashley as Indira, a daughter of Triton and Ariel’s sister.
• Kajsa Mohammar as Karina, a daughter of Triton and Ariel’s sister.
• Nathalie Sorrell as Caspia, a daughter of Triton and Ariel’s sister.
• Karolina Conchet as Mala, a daughter of Triton and Ariel’s sister.
• Sienna King as Tameka, a daughter of Triton and Ariel’s ssister

Production:

In May 2016, Walt Disney Pictures began developing a live-action adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale “The Little Mermaid”. Three months later, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Marc Platt signed on to produce the film, which was confirmed to be a remake of the Disney’s 1989 animated film of the same name. On December 6, 2017, it was reported that Rob Marshall was being courted by the Walt Disney Company to direct the film, while Jane Goldman will serve as screenwriter.On December 5, 2018, Marshall revealed that he, along with John DeLuca and Marc Platt were hired to begin developing the project for film adaptation, and said that “John and [Marshall] have begun our work trying to explore it and figure it out”, as he felt that "it's a very complicated movie to take from animation to live-action. Live-action’s a whole other world so you have to be very careful about how that’s done, but so we’re starting the exploration phase”. Later in December, Marshall was officially hired as director for the film. During an interview on December 21, 2018, Marshall revealed that the film is in very early stages of development, stating that the studio is trying to explore ways to translate the original film’s story into live-action.On July 3, 2019, David Magee, who previously wrote the screenplay for Marshall’s Mary Poppins Returns, was revealed to have written the script with Goldman.Magee would receive sole credit for the screenplay. On February 10, 2020, Miranda revealed that rehearsals for the film had already begun.

Release:
The film is scheduled to be released theatrically on May 26, 2023, in the United States by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

Controversy:

After the announcement of Halle Bailey as the role of Ariel in July 2019, and after the first teaser was released in September 2022, the film gained both positive and negative responses from the public for casting a Black actress as Ariel, who was originally White in the 1989 animated film. Arguments for the negative response have included that a Black mermaid does not adhere to historical accuracy, that the adaptation should be as close to the original as possible, and that mermaids allegedly can not be Black as they are underwater creatures.Many media outlets as well as Lin-Manuel Miranda, the film’s producer and lyricist, criticized the negative response and described it as being racist. Stuart Heritage of The Guardian argued, “The boring spat over the Disney trailer makes idiots of us all – whether Ariel is Black or White, it is clearly a film that should rightfully be ignored then forgotten forever”, suggesting instead that there should be a “grotesque scaly mutant as the lead”. During an interview on August 12, 2019, Bailey said that “[she doesn’t] pay attention to the negativity”, while Auliʻi Cravalho, who played Ariel in a musical presentation as a part of The Wonderful World of Disney, expressed excitement at watching Bailey’s portrayal of the character. Jodi Benson, the voice actress for Ariel in the 1989 film, praised Bailey, stating, “I think that the spirit of a character is what really matters”. Brandy Norwood, the first woman of color to play Cinderella in the 1997 Disney television film of the same, and Anika Noni Rose, the voice of Tiana (Disney’s first official African-American Princess), also both praised the casting of Bailey as Ariel.Rachel Zegler, who played Maria in Steven Spielberg’s 2021 film version of West Side Story and will play the titular role in Disney’s 2024 live-action remake of Snow White, also voiced her support for Bailey.In February 2023, after another first look of the film was released online, which was negatively received by the public, Bailey revealed that she was trying during the film’s promotional campaign to ignore the criticisms shown by racist trolls on social media and instead focus on the positives of the anticipation for the film’s release. In a cover story for The Face, Bailey further added “I know people are like: ‘It’s not about race.’ But now that I’m her…People don’t understand that when you’re Black there’s this whole other community…It’s so important for us to see ourselves.”

A poll conducted from July 8–10, 2022, from Hollywood Reporter/Morning Consult found that just under half of Americans supported the idea of minorities playing the roles of characters who had been cast as White. When asked “Thinking about live-action movie remakes of classic cartoons, do you support or oppose actors who are racial and ethnic minorities playing characters who have been White in past films?”, 48% answered “strongly” or “somewhat” support, 21% said “strongly” or “somewhat” oppose, while 31% either did not know or had no opinion.The same poll also found a majority in support of remakes that are “as close to their original as possible, including sticking to the race and ethnicity of each character.”

Out line:

A young mermaid makes a deal with a sea witch to trade her beautiful voice for human legs so she can discover the world above water and impress a prince.

Hind

Following a tease in September at its D23 Expo, Disney unveiled its most detailed look yet at the R&B singer and “Spy” star as live-action versions of its iconic princess Ariel and the villainous sea witch Ursula, respectively. The new film, due in theaters May 26, is a remake of Disney’s animated classic and, based on the new trailer, recreates (and hopefully updates) the plot of the 1989 film.

It opens with the harrowing storm that throws the swashbuckling Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King) overboard, putting into motion Ariel’s infatuation with the land-dwelling prince, much to the chagrin of her father King Triton (Javier Bardem). This, while Bailey’s version of “Part of Your World” crescendos.

“You cannot live in that world unless you become a human yourself,” Ursula tells the lovelorn mermaid.

“Is that even possible?” Ariel responds.

“It’s what I live for,” Ursula promises, as the two strike a deal swapping the mermaid’s voice for human legs.

The trailer also re-creates Atlantica, the mer-people’s colorful underwater world, Ariel’s iconic hair flip and the romantic-but-problematic “Kiss the Girl” boat scene.

Also among the star-studded “Mermaid” cast are Daveed Diggs as Sebastian, Jacob Tremblay as Flounder and Awkwafina as Scuttle.

The new movie musical is directed by Rob Marshall and features four new original songs written by Alan Menken, who won two Oscars for the music of the original film, and “Hamilton” scribe Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Moana,” “Encanto” and “Mary Poppins Returns”).

Appearing on the Oscars red carpet before Sunday’s ceremony, Bailey dropped hints about the trailer reveal by saying she was “here for a reason” during an interview with Laverne Cox on E!. She also told the host about the Disney princess-inspired gown she donned for the occasion: an edgy, seafoam Dolce & Gabbana confection that immediately had people thinking “Under the Sea.”

“I was really excited to wear this beautiful, poofy dress to go into the fairy-tale world and give them princess for one day. So I’m loving it,” the 22-year-old said.

While presenting at the ceremony Sunday, Bailey and McCarthy said that making the film was “a complete joy” and “a dream come true.”