During the D23 Expo, Disney announced that actress and singer Halle Bailey of R&B duo Chloe x Halle will portray Ariel in the live-action film. The little Mermaid. It was another addition to Disney’s long list of original movie remakes.
Related: Here’s How The Little Mermaid Will Settle Things Amid Criticism From Disney Live-Action
Many have called out the studio for its soulless remakes and symbolic diversity, this movie being no different. But some criticized the studio for casting a black person for the role, resulting in many mean and racist tweets.
Fans suggest an alternative mermaid
According to a new tweet that has fans divided, That of the Little Mermaid The TV series already had a brown character, Gabriella, that it could use to make an original story. The tweet went on to slam Disney for not working with original characters and stories and resorting to race swapping.
Instead of doing The Little Mermaid, why didn’t they just do The Frog Prince? They offered a reasonable narrative in a good way. Wasn’t Tiana good enough for a live action version or what?
— Venkman’s daughter (@VenkmanG) September 14, 2022
Read more: The Little Mermaid: People were so insulted by a black actor playing Ariel that they used AI to make Halle Bailey white
That’s what I said all the time. Yet people keep calling me a racist for knowing it when they don’t know it.
—Chronlocke (@Chronlocke) September 14, 2022
Plus, some even pointed out that Disney had a movie full of colorful characters they could adapt, i.e. The princess and the Frog. But this film was criticized for the symbolic appeasement that it did not represent the black community and the protagonists were frogs for most of the film.
Isn’t there a way to please the fans?
Given the controversial nature of the tweet, many came to Disney’s defense while many continued to ridicule the studio. Many believe the tweet is a lost cause because Disney doesn’t care. an original story because it would require creativity and passion.
Why didn’t they just put Ariel aside for her? Create a whole new story?
— Abstractjwl (@abstractjwl) September 14, 2022
Read also : ‘I just sobbed watching this’: Halle Bailey cries after new video shows The Little Mermaid teaser inspiring young black girls to become Disney princesses
Gabriella will probably show up and ALWAYS have the same complexion
“Yeah no with her we didn’t want to be progressive and change this character”
— Jay Darklighter (@JayDarklighter) September 14, 2022
Hush…. Then they could not report virtue 😂
— Ryan (@KuzcoInsomniac) September 14, 2022
Check: ‘Thank you for creating such a breathtaking film’
They had to come up with an original story. We all know they can’t do that anymore.
— Truth Bomb (@Truthbo00022452) September 14, 2022
Some also pointed out that it would prevent Disney from “virtuous signal” their audience, further mocking the studio by concluding that this is not the case really care about diversity and representation, but only more money.
The little Mermaid set to release on May 26, 2023
