Whew! Disney sure put out a lot of trailers and whatnot during their D23 convention last weekend. One of the trailers we were treated to was a teaser for the upcoming live-action remake of The Little Mermaid.
During D23, director Rob Marshall, along with Ariel herself, Halle Bailey, took to the main stage to share this teaser as well as play the “Part of Your World” sequence for those in attendance. The teaser is very much a teaser, giving us only glimpses of Bailey as Ariel as well as a brief snippet of her singing the new rendition of the original animated film’s “Part of Your World” song. Bailey’s mermaid tail also looks on point with its shimmering scales and iridescent colors. (If I become a mermaid, I hope I have a tail half as awesome.)
In addition to renditions of Alan Menken and Howard Ashman’s score from the original film, the live-action The Little Mermaid will also feature four new songs penned by Menken and Lin-Manuel Miranda. The live-action version also differs from the animated film in that Ariel is Black, reflecting the long history of Black mermaids found in many cultures that author Natasha Bowen wrote about last year.
In addition to Bailey, The Little Mermaid stars Melissa McCarthy as Ursula and Javier Bardem as Triton.
The live-action remake of The Little Mermaid swims into theaters on May 26, 2023.
