The Little Mermaid Film Details
The Little Mermaid is a 2023 American musical fantasy film directed by Rob Marshall from a screenplay written by David Magee. Co-produced by Walt Disney Pictures, Lucamar Productions, and Marc Platt Productions, it is a live-action adaptation of Disney’s 1989 animated film of the same name, itself loosely based on the 1837 fairy tale of the same title by Hans Christian Andersen. The film stars Halle Bailey in the titular role, alongside Jonah Hauer-King, Daveed Diggs, Awkwafina, Jacob Tremblay, Noma Dumezweni, Art Malik, Javier Bardem and Melissa McCarthy. The Little Mermaid follows a mermaid princess Ariel who is fascinated with the human world and makes a deal with a treacherous sea witch Ursula to trade her voice for human legs in order to impress Prince Eric, who she saved from a shipwreck, before time runs out.
Plans for a remake of 1989’s The Little Mermaid were confirmed in May 2016. In December 2017, Disney announced Marshall was being courted to direct the film. Bailey, Tremblay, Awkwafina, and the rest of the cast signed on between July to November 2019. Production was expected to begin in London between late March and early April 2020 but was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Filming ultimately took place primarily at Pinewood Studios in England and on the island of Sardinia, Italy, from January to July 2021. Composer Alan Menken, who worked on the original film’s soundtrack, returned to compose the score and write new songs alongside Lin-Manuel Miranda, who serves as a producer with Platt, John DeLuca and Marshall. The film is dedicated to the late Howard Ashman, who co-produced and co-wrote the songs from the original film.
The Little Mermaid premiered at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on May 8, 2023, and was released in the United States on May 26. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the performances of the cast and the musical sequences but criticized the visual effects and character designs. The film has grossed over $414 million worldwide against a total production budget of $250 million.
STORY
PRODUCTION
Development
In May 2016, Walt Disney Pictures began developing a live-action adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale “The Little Mermaid”. Three months later, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Marc Platt signed on to produce the film, which was confirmed to be a remake of the Disney’s 1989 animated film of the same name. On December 6, 2017, it was reported that Rob Marshall was being courted by the Walt Disney Company to direct the film, while Jane Goldman would serve as screenwriter. On December 5, 2018, Marshall revealed that he, along with John DeLuca and Marc Platt were hired to begin developing the project for film adaptation, and said that “John and [Marshall] have begun our work trying to explore it and figure it out”, as he felt that “it’s a very complicated movie to take from animation to live-action. Live-action’s a whole other world so you have to be very careful about how that’s done, but so we’re starting the exploration phase”. Later in December, Marshall was officially hired as director for the film. During an interview on December 21, 2018, Marshall revealed that the film is in very early stages of development, stating that the studio is trying to explore ways to translate the original film’s story into live-action. On July 3, 2019, David Magee, who previously wrote the screenplay for Marshall’s Mary Poppins Returns, was revealed to have written the script with Goldman. Magee would receive sole credit for the screenplay. On February 10, 2020, Miranda revealed that rehearsals for the film had already begun.
CAST
- Halle Bailey as Ariel, a curious and headstrong mermaid princess and King Triton’s youngest daughter who is fascinated with the human world. Bailey was announced to have been cast on July 3, 2019. In the early stages of the film’s development, Lindsay Lohan expressed interest in playing the role. Zendaya was reported to have been offered the part in August 2018, but she herself eventually stated that this was “just a rumor”. Bailey was the first to audition for the role[11] after Rob Marshall saw her perform Donny Hathaway’s 1972 single “Where Is the Love” at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards. According to Marshall, hundreds of other girls also tried out for the part, but she “set the bar so high that nobody surpassed it.”
- Jonah Hauer-King as Eric, an adventurous and free-spirited human prince whom Ariel falls in love with after saving him from drowning. Hauer-King was announced to have been cast on November 12, 2019. Hundreds of candidates auditioned for the role, including actors Asher Angel, Gavin Leatherwood, Christian Navarro, Jack Whitehall, and Cameron Cuffe, with the latter, along with Hauer-King, doing a screen test alongside Bailey. Harry Styles was in early negotiations to play the part, but ultimately turned it down in favor of doing a concert tour. Marshall later elaborated that Styles also refused because he wanted to do darker, non-musical roles. Hauer-King described his character as “restless and inquisitive about where he is in the world, like Ariel… He’s quite isolated and sensitive.”
- Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, a treacherous and conniving sea witch and King Triton’s estranged sister, with whom Ariel makes a deal to become a human, which is secretly part of Ursula’s plan to conquer Atlantica. McCarthy was announced to have been cast on June 28, 2019. She described her character as “so funny. There’s wit, there’s manipulation. She’s a great broad and at the same time, I have to think about what armor does she put in? And I don’t think her mental health is great.” Lizzo also auditioned for the role.
- Jessica Alexander as Vanessa, Ursula’s human alter ego, which she uses to sabotage her deal with Ariel. Alexander was announced to have been cast on March 1, 2021. She described her character as “a seductress, a temptress, the definition of a femme fatale and a sexy female villain.” Kacey Musgraves was also considered for the role.
- Javier Bardem as King Triton, Ariel’s strict and overprotective father and the ruler of Atlantica who is prejudiced against humans due to the death of his wife at hands of one of them. Bardem was announced to have been cast on July 17, 2019. He described his character as “a little bit less grumpy than the original because we were intending to bring more conflict to his behavior, like his fear and insecurity as a father. Being scared of letting his last daughter leave home ends up translating into being angry or too controlling.”
- Noma Dumezweni as Queen Selina, Eric’s adoptive mother and the ruler of a Caribbean island kingdom. She is a new character for the film. Dumezweni was announced to have been cast on January 5, 2021. She described her character as a “loving queen and a mother queen and a parent and a land lover learning about herself through letting go of her children.”
- Art Malik as Sir Grimsby, the prime minister of Selina’s kingdom and Eric’s loyal confidant who acts as a father figure to him.
- Daveed Diggs as the voice of Sebastian, a loyal crab and King Triton’s majordomo who watches over Ariel. Diggs was announced to have been cast on October 8, 2019.
- Jacob Tremblay as the voice of Flounder, an anxious yet noble sergeant major who is Ariel’s best friend. Tremblay was announced to have been cast on July 1, 2019.
- Awkwafina as the voice of Scuttle, a dimwitted northern gannet and a friend of Ariel’s to whom she provides inaccurate descriptions of any human/surface world object Ariel finds. The character is portrayed as a female diving bird instead of a male seagull as in the original in order to feature the character in underwater scenes. Awkwafina was announced to have been cast on July 1, 2019.
RELEASE
May 26, 2023
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