Director Rob Marshall said Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” has “no agenda” when it comes to casting Ariel. Entertainment Weekly. The “Chicago” and “Into the Woods” director said his team auditioned “in every race” for the role and that singer Halle Bailey was by far the perfect choice. While Bailey’s casting was widely supported and celebrated (see super viral photos of black girls watching the movie’s trailer), a small portion of racist fans expressed anger against Disney over the casting of a black actor as Ariel.
“We were just looking for the best actor for the role, period. We’ve seen everyone and every race,” Marshall said. [The goal was to find someone who can be] Incredibly strong, passionate, beautiful, intelligent, intelligent [and with] A great deal of fire and joy. ”
Billy had all of these qualities, plus the kind of voice that Ariel demands. As Marshall explained, “That voice is something so special and ethereal and so beautiful that it captures Eric’s heart, and he looks for her throughout the movie.”
The movie trailer only shows part of Bailey belting out “Part of Your World,” but her angelic vocals were enough to get fans excited for what should be a star-making movie role. Marshall said he never expected there would be such intense focus on Billy’s casting.
Marshall said, “I wasn’t expecting it because, in a way, I felt like we’d outgrown that kind of thing too far.” “But then you realize, in a way that we haven’t. It was very moving for me to see how important this type of actor is to the world.”
The hashtag #NotMyAriel popped up on Twitter after Bailey’s casting was first announced, with support from toxic fans on social media. said the actor diverse That her family helped her get over the backlash. Billy’s grandparents shared their memories with her of the racism and discrimination they experienced in their lives.
“It was such an inspiring and beautiful thing to hear your words of encouragement, and tell me, ‘You don’t understand what this is doing for us, for our community, for all the little black girls and brown girls who are going to see themselves in me,’” Bailey said.
Bailey also overcame the backlash by reflecting on how this representation would affect her as a young girl. “What that would have done to me,” she said, “how that would have changed my confidence, my belief in myself, everything.” “Things that seem so small to everyone else are so big to us.”
Disney is scheduled to open “The Little Mermaid” in theaters on May 26, 2023.
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