Two Disney Actors Have Thoughts About ‘The Little Mermaid’
In case you missed it, Disney has recreated The Little Mermaid as a live-action movie, set to be released on May 26th!
The movie has faced backlash, with some thinking a Little Mermaid remake is unnecessary, some angry with the casting of Halle Bailey as Ariel, and some unhappy with the changing of lyrics in “Kiss the Girl” to reportedly introduce an element of consent.
Two Disney actors recently shared their thoughts about The Little Mermaid in different ways, so let’s discuss.
Mena Massoud
Mena Massoud, who starred in the titular role in Disney’s live-action Aladdin film, has complained in the past about not being offered any auditions in Hollywood post-Aladdin, and he recently tweeted a controversial statement about The Little Mermaid.
As reported in People, Massoud predicted that The Little Mermaid would not earn $1 billion, as Aladdin did, but that it would still get a sequel. He wrote, “Our film was unique in that audiences went to watch it multiple times. It’s the only way we reached the billion dollar mark with our opening. My guess is TLM doesn’t cross the billion mark but will undoubtedly get a sequel.”
Recently, experts estimated a $110 million 4-day opening weekend for The Little Mermaid, which would be similar to the $116 million earned from Aladdin‘s 4-day opening weekend.
Many Twitter users replied to Massoud with confusion, asking him what he expected to gain from that tweet. Massoud deleted his Twitter account in response to the backlash.
Although an Aladdin sequel was in the works as of 2020, nothing has really been announced since then, and Massoud recently said that it was “very unlikely at this point” that the sequel would actually come to fruition.
Jonah Hauer-King
Jonah Hauer-King stars as Prince Eric in The Little Mermaid, and in a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he spoke out about the racist backlash faced by Halle Bailey’s casting as Ariel. He stated that he does “not really understand what to make of it.”
Hauer-King continued, “Rob [Marshall] and the producers and Disney didn’t approach this film and this casting with any kind of agenda, they just wanted to cast the person who was best for the role. Ultimately, you want someone who has the best voice and the best spirit and the most charisma, charm and humor and best acting talent, and that’s Halle.”
And of the changes in the “Kiss the Girl” lyrics, Hauer-King said, “My understanding is that there were some feelings around consent and asking to kiss someone, which makes total sense to me.”
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