After Cinderella (of “Cinderella”) and Jasmine (of “Aladdin”), Ariel – princess of the sea, the pretty little mermaid was chosen for the next live-action movie produced by Walt Disney Animation. “The Little Mermaid” live-action announced main actress – Grammy-nominated, coloured star Halle Bailey (Dzurillay, 2019) – who is in perfect opposition with princess Ariel in terms of biological characteristics.
The original princess (fair-skinned, red-hair, deep-blue eyes) was painted with darker shade (dark-skinned, dark hair and black eyes). Similar with adding “black” into the font “Arial”, the iconic mermaid will look quite different. However, not as simple as a change in text font, it is a considerable and controversial alternative of one of the most iconic princesses ever.
On one hand, Disney has successfully promoted the diversity of race in the movie industry. The incorporation attempts to show their good intention to uphold talented actors/actresses despite their skin colour. This is not the first character that represents this spirit. After Le Fou (a gay character in “Beauty and the Beast live-action), black Genie (starred by Will Smith in “Aladdin” live-action), and now the black mermaid, Disney production shows its willingness to provide chances for coloured actors.
On the other hand, many fans of princess Ariel feel that the casting of Halle Bailey barely has such a meaningful purpose. They claimed that the fear of being “too-white” has become the obsession of Disney and many other movie productions. The effort of promoting race diversity should be respected, yet turning a long-living statue, a symbolic icon of many childhood dreams into a whole new character (biologically) is unacceptable. Ariel’s image (printed on Disney souvenirs, displayed in promotion campaigns, princesses’ formation, and especially in children’s memories) does not have dark skin and black curly hair.
Considering the controversial casting, the movie successfully received massive public attention and discussions without putting too much effort into promoting. In my viewpoint, the audiences’ curiosity has made the movie stand out to some extents. Still, it might be too early to judge the actress played Ariel and to predict the success of this remake.
Pearl.
References
Dzurillay, J. (2019). Who Is Halle Bailey? Meet the Actress Cast in Disney’s Live-Action ‘The Little Mermaid’. Retrieved from https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/who-is-halle-bailey-the-actress-cast-in-disney-the-little-mermaid.html/
Know Your Meme. (2019). The Little Mermaid Remake Controversy – Found this on reddit. Retrieved from https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/1510374-the-little-mermaid-remake-controversy
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