18 Responses People Had To The New Black Ariel
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The upcoming live-action remake of Disney’s ‘The Little Mermaid’ has just announced who will star in the leading role – 19-year-old singer Halle Bailey will be Ariel.
After an extensive cast search for the movie remake, director Rob Marshall said that it was “abundantly clear that Halle possesses that rare combination of spirit, heart, youth, innocence, and substance – plus a glorious singing voice – all intrinsic qualities necessary to play this iconic Disney character.”
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Bailey, who said on Twitter that it was a “dream come true,” forms part of the R&B duo Chloe x Halle, who first started by doing covers of pop songs on YouTube. Their debut EP, Sugar Symphony, was released in 2016 and contained the hits ‘Drop’ and ‘Fall.’
The pair also made cameo appearances in Beyoncé’s Lemonade visual album and were her opening act for the European leg of The Formation World Tour. ‘The Little Mermaid’ will be Bailey’s feature-film debut.
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According to Variety, the live-action Disney remake will “incorporate original movie songs from the 1989 animated hit, as well as new tunes from original composer Alan Menken and “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda.” Miranda is also producing the film along with Marshall, Marc Platt, and John DeLuca. Jacob Tremblay and Awkwafina are also in the cast of this Disney movie, while Melissa McCarthy is in talks to play Ursula.
People took to Twitter with mostly positive reactions to the animated movie remake casting, with many highlighting the significance of a young black woman taking on the role of Ariel. However, although we should really just ignore them, there were some trolls too.
Someone was instantly triggered and started leaving nasty comments that went viral
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After being called out they tried to defend themselves by saying they have a ‘half black’ friend so they can’t be racist
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They later turned out to be a distasteful joke
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But other people weren’t just ‘joking’ with their comments and were seriously mad with Disney’s casting choice
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Others believed it was all done as a publicity stunt
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Meanwhile, these people came to defend the actress
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Fully-grown adults getting all riled up by the ethnicity of a frickin’ mermaid. Beyond ridiculous, isn’t it? The girl was cast on talent and suitability for the role, why people have to politicize everything to death is beyond me. Shouldn’t we just ignore the trolls and the negativity and just look forward to what should be a great movie?
Let us know what you think about this frankly ridiculous subject in the comments below.
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Disney what were you thinking. She doesn't even have a tail
I also heard that she can't breath underwater. It is disgusting! They should cast a REAL MERMAID! What are they thinking??
Exactly Lol. It’s not even a human being we’re taking about. It’s an animated mermaid. These people need help.
What's sad is that the actress is a real person who is passionate about her craft and probably over the moon for this opportunity, and these people are talking about her like she isn't. Why we as a society feel like we have to constantly tear people down instead of supporting them and cheering them on will never make sense to me. I cannot wait for this movie to come out, it is going to be amazing.
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There's nothing wrong with her, it's just she deserves a better character that fits to her amazing talent. It's best if she portrays Tiana or Moana, I think because she somewhat resembles like them and looks awesome.
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They are using her as a political tool, she is not even human to them black people deserve their own stories from africa not the left overs from european mythology Bailey you would have been a perfect Tiana you are a beautiful girl, instead they throw you away like trash... you deserved better T^T
Best comment!
From Cesi Baca? Yes.
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I am going to take a stab at what I think part of the problem is with it all. If a white actor/actress plays a black character and completely dresses the part, it is automatically called blackface and they are called racist. However, when a black person plays a white character in a similar fashion, nothing is said. It's a double edged sword that I wished didn't exist on any level. But back in the day, like way back in the 50s and before, it was done as racist and that was hateful. Nowadays, I think it is done more out of respect or at least that is how I see it. I just wish we could all exist without labels and hatred in our hearts.
It is not a "white" character though, it's a mermaid, a fantastical creature who lives under the sea. The only description provided of the original mermaid was "her skin was as clear and delicate as a rose-leaf, and her eyes as blue as the deepest sea; but, like all the others, she had no feet, and her body ended in a fish’s tail". She wasn't even called Ariel in the book, it was given to her by Disney when they invented her look. By clear skin I read flawless, not white. Your point misses the point. It's a mermaid, not a black woman playing a white woman.
@MWM If you want the story like Hans Christian Andersen imagined it it gets very dark.. The prince marries someone else and the little mermaid gets to choose between killing the prince and return to the sea or get killed and turned into sea foam. So she decides to kill her self. Also, her new legs hurt like knives cutting through them with every step she takes.
Blue eyes ARE white, numpty. Same goes for red hair. Both are by definition a melanin deficiency, if you'd bother to look it up. More to the point : if you haven't raised a child through the pain of being bullied as ginger and soulless and what have you, then perhaps you could speak to other parents that have about their experiences, and consider why you want to disparage their heroes so badly.
Please... this would be considered "cultural appropriation" if the original character were not from a historical fairytale of a white culture.
No Ariel was a red headed white Danish girl..... In all the original stories even before Disney had it
Hey, she’s definitely a white character. From the original book: “They were six beautiful children; but the youngest was the prettiest of them all; her skin was as clear and delicate as a rose-leaf, and her eyes as blue as the deepest sea; but, like all the others, she had no feet, and her body ended in a fish’s tail.”
She is a DANISH white girl in the movie.
fox_in _xxs_clothes yes
Princess Ariel IS a white character with red hair blue eyes a green tail and a purple shell bikini top. That is the character that has existed for 30 years - in all the games, books, stickers, figurines, computer games, comics, the likeness that greets you at Disney. Make your own new mermaid character - this is an adaption based on Disney's earlier work which was inspired but is NOT THE SAME as the tale by Hans Christian Andersen.
Maybe the problem also is we are used to what they originally looked or where the story happens, for example if Mulan was played by a white blond girl it's not Mulan anymore since we are used to what she originally is. At the end of the day we should at least give it a chance if Disney can justify the live action movie.
I think in that time they tended to like pale skinned people in Europe people would do thing like blood letting and put harmful makeup on just to be pale so I believe that the Ideal for her skin color would have been very pale. At least if I remember correctly you could just look up the beauty standards in The time the story was written.
Isn’t Ariel a Hebrew man’s name? I can see why a Dane wouldn’t have chosen it.
Exactly! I wish people could just forget about race and just enjoy the movie. Like you said, the "double edged sword" that is created by people being determined to call out the other race makes everything overly complicated in our society. I'm so sick of it...I just want to go watch a princess mermaid movie for gods sake.
Would you say the same if Black Panther had been cast as a white person? Or if Aladdin and Jasmine were played by white people? I doubt it.
So what if Moana, Tiana and Jasmin would be played by white woman? Guess what, there would be an outcry of "its racist". Double Standards at its finest.
But a black person playing a role of a fictional character which was once portrayed as a white person is NOT THE SAME as a white people painting their skin to appear black. Not even remotely close. But what people lose sight of in this situation is perspective...you’re so bent on the issue of the skin color change to realize that EVERY DISNEY PRINCESS until Aladdin was white...the the first black in was Tiana. The fact that people feel so attacked and insulted by this is the exact reason black people feel out of place...the be black is to be stained and to white people anything white must remain white or it’s a travesty. Black people would be angry if they switched the ONE black Disney princess to a white one because there’s only ONE BLACK PRINCESS. The fact that it matters so much to white people that one Disney character is casted as a black person shows how racist this country really is..it’s so deeply engraved in the society that people think this type of mindset isn’t racist. Smh
Were any princesses of color changed into white people? I like my stories original. The problem is changing original stories, not racism.
In the comics I think Nick Fury is a white guy while in the movie he's a black guy I think no one reacts maybe if the person who portrays the character can justify the role whether what race they were it'll be just fine.
You hit the nail on the head perfectly! Dare a white attempt what a black person just does & expects to call it racist. You can only bully whites for so long. That's my thoughts. Definitely a double edged sword these days
Nope. It's a mermaid. Not a person. A pretend character with no discernible race. I don't feel bullied by this, I am sorry that you feel that way.
“Whites” have been bullied in the past. Light skinned Jews were slaves to dark skinned Egyptians for example. Let’s not forget the Huns.
Bully whites....??......?.???? Did...you...did you just say “bully white”? Explain to people when and how whites have EVER not be the bully. Wooow. Y’all feel bullied when a white character is casted black huh?? Y’all have bullied entire civilizations for hundreds of years but now y’all feel bullied. 😂😂😂 It’s amazing when white people are threatened by any form of equality. A black personplaying a “white role” threatens you huh? You feeling bullied? Call a hotline. 🙄
When have whites ever been bullied? Are you high? Equality is not special rights. Your talking about a FICTIONAL MERMAID. She never existed.
It’s very telling that you think whitewashing characters is done out of the kindness of a bigot’s heart and only happened ‘way back in the day’ of a whopping generation ago 😒 Just say you want white people to keep hoarding everything for themselves and go 🙄
She is not going to play her in white face. Stop making excuses for racism. Her skin color had nothing to do with the story.
Again, then we should cast Tiana as a white or asian woman, right?
Halle BAILEY, not Berry.
and what so many are forgetting, is that Halle Berry is multi-racial, not "black". Her mother is white. <3
Black people are so underrepresented in films that I think the only way to alleviate this is to swing the other way for a time. Having the occasional black film does not fix the broken system and takes forever to change this underrepresentation. I have no quarms about changing any lead into a black person if it helps. Creating new characters does not have as much of an impact as changing existing characters. If skin colour is not integral to the plot then it is up for grabs.
So you’re saying that we should scrap original white characters and make them black... Is that really better than making new original stories? Also, I don’t see any lack of black representation. Every time I browse the latest movies I see tons of minority actors. They make it big in Hollywood, just like white people.
Absolutely!
WRONG. A greater percentage of actors are black than there are black people in the united states. So in REALITY, black people are better represented than their actual population would hint at. Try again.
White actors wearing black face to play a part is not the same as black actors just playing a part. I can't offhand think of any black characters who used white face to play a white character.
Two words....White Chicks. Case of two black actors wearing white face....but that's ok...right?
Is it really a double edged sword if it only cuts one way? You need to recast your metaphors. :-D
Before you comment, you really should read the rest of my comment.
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It's only blackface if they darken their skin. Haile won't be whitening her skin for this movie so you have nothing to worry about
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On the surface, that seems to make sense. The problem is, that we don't live in a world where whites and blacks have the same power and opportunities. This standup piece does a great job of laying out the problem with "reverse racism" as a concept: https://youtu.be/dw_mRaIHb-M
There is no such thing as reverse racism! Racism isn't defined as negativity towards one color of skin. It's racism regardless of who it comes from and who it's applied to during a moment.
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Tell me which white actresses have put on blackface while portraying a black character in the last fifteen years? You seriously got EVERYTHING wrong! This is not about white people trying to look black and vice versa, they're turning the characters into something new!! If you can't handle that, just stay at home and watch the animated version, I think both you and the rest of the enlightened world would feel more comfortable that way.
Why would you think she would do it in whiteface? She's exactly the same character. Why do you think she's different? The color of her skin does not define her character, literally or figuratively.
Oh good grief! So Disney gave her red hair and that's the colour it must forever be? I don't think her hair colour is even mentioned in the original story. Yes, she was described as very white with blue eyes and dark lashes. I've seen a foreign drama where she was blonde. It doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is that the actor can do a really good job with the role and make us believe in her. Talent, not appearance.
My big issues was "Hell, she's too old to play the role." Then I was like "Wait, they aren't talking about Halle Berry ... Who is Halle Bailey? Damn *I'm* old!" 🤣
Right? I was all "Catwoman is going to play Ariel? WTF???" Then like you, I realized that I had the wrong Halle too LOL
Have you seen Halle Berry recently? She looks amazing and could totally pull it off even now!
I also thought that it was Halle Berry and I thought that it is great to see older and more mature version of Ariel. :D
Haha! I did the same thing!
I did this too lol! I thought they were talking about Halle Berry.
It's sad that a Google search doesn't list Hans Christian Anderson first. I'm sure there are a number of people who think it's a Disney story :(
I believe you spelled his name wrong.
People want a person who looks like a cartoon character... sigh. She would need to be an extremely odd shape then as they never give cartoon characters realistic figures.
I remember fans protesting when the blond Daniel Craig became 007, because James had to be dark. Turned out he is the best. I think history is about to repeat itself.
Hopefully!! 🤞🤞🤞
uhg. one of *those*. Sean Connery is the actor that made bond... Bond, James Bond. :)
Oh my, Daniel Craig, I do believe I have the vapors!
They can still give her whatever hair color they want. Who says mermaids have the same hair color types as humans?
Exactly - I'd love it to be a silvery blue or rich green!
Thing is though Bonnie - she's a cartoon red. Doesn't really make you think of ginger hair (which I think is gorgeous by the way). I agree that it would be amazing for non-white gingers to be represented. Do you know, genuine question, if there are any actors that fit the bill? I'm sorry you've been bullied. I was as well - it's hell.
As a Ginger who's been bullied for it, I will be kinda sad if they make her not-ginger (certainly not going to have a tantrum about it though). But it would be AMAZING for non-white gingers (real humans, google it!) to finally get some representation.
As a Zelda fan I would be up for her being blue like the Zora's.
No, she doesn't have to be ginger. (And there's no reason a mermaid can't still have red hair no matter what colour their skin is.) However, given how rare Ginger characters are (in general, not just Disney) it does tend to automatically become one of their defining features, especially to ginger kids (most of whom get bullied for it, and who have so few positively portrayed examples of other redheads). There's no excuse for people to be so racist or angry about the casting choice. But it's fair for people to be disappointed if they change that aspect of the character. She DOES look kind ginger in that photo though, so personally, I'm pretty excited. Since there ARE non-white ginger people in the world it would be freaking awesome to see that represented.
The comment showing up in several places is some temporary glitch that goes in you refresh (or has for me). Merida is a ginger lass.
SORRY - IDK why that comment showed up in three places. :/
Then i demand Tiana gets played by a white woman. If skin color really isnt an issue, you should be fine.
Yes. Disney gave her red hair and that's the colour it must forever be because we're not talking about the original little mermaid by Andersen or all the other representations of the little mermaid, we're talking about this specifical Disney character, Ariel, who is recognized by her red hair, blue eyes and white skin. Just like Cinderella has to be blonde and Tiana has to be black, and Mulan asian, each disney princess has a specific appearance which is the way we can recognize them in the Disney franchise, if they're making a live action version of a Disney princess one of the most important things should be making the actress look as close as possible as the original character. What's the sense of giving them an iconic appearance and then changing it completely? Appearance is just as important as talent when performing a character.
Ariel doesn't even exist with that name and physical features in the original tale but that doesn't matter because this a live action remake of Disney's animated film, not the original tale. Ariel is not the little mermaid of Andersen. Ariel as a Disney character is clearly a white redhead and her appearance is just as important as her personality, it's part of who she is and how she's recognized as a princess in the Disney franchise. Just like Mulan who is Chinese and has black straight hair and slanted eyes, or like Belle who is French, white with curly brown hair and the iconic yellow dress, or like Tiana who is black and wears a green dress. All of them have a specific physical appearance and for a live action we want to see actresses who ressemble them and look like the original.
🤦🏼♂️
Disney didn't give her red hair, the original DANISH fairytale did... we are removing the original culture to satisfy another
Hair colour wasn't mentioned in the original.
She might still have red hair. They most likely would not have cast a natural red head anyways.
It all a Conspiracy to make us forget that they are making godawful live action remakes
Yes! I'm so sick of them. There are so, so many new, original and interesting stories out there, yet they choose to take yet another plot everybody knows already. And don't get me started on sequels and prequels...
True! It’ll be terrible, not because she’s played by a black girl but because it’s yet another crappy remske
I don't think people expecting the actress to look like the character is specifically racist. (some of the comments are) However, those who are irate about this need to get a life.
How can they though? Cartoon characters are so exaggerated that it becomes silly to think they can be replicated.
We don't need Bella Thorne. Luckily we already have Halle Bailey and she's perfect.
Bella Thorne would have nailed it
https://www.boredpanda.com/realistic-3d-illustrations-cartoon-characters-miguel-vasquez/
The problem is, it is impossible for a person to be cast that has exactly the same features as the character (eye color, hair color, skin color, height, weight, hair length, face shape, etc). So clearly, you gotta be fine with some things being different. But if people pick race as one of the things that has to be the same, that shows they think race is a more defining, important, feature of a person than other features, which is racist. In reality, race affects a person's behavior no more than any other feature.
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While the backlash is ridiculous, I don't understand why Disney is rehashing so many older kids movies right now, instead of doing new stuff. Another version of Lion King, now a new Little Mermaid. Don't they have original ideas anymore?
They never did - this was Hans Christian Andersen's idea.
Yes, they are all versions of fairy tales or books. Remaking your own remake is overkill though.
Remaking remakes is very common. If it was popular the first time chances are it will be rehashed many times.
You could argue that all the Disney classics ripped off something. I mean The Lion King was a rip-off of a Japanese movie that was very similar. Of course, most of them were just retellings of old fairie tales. You don't really go to one of these to see new and exciting stories. The appeal is mainly visual, and that's fine, but the live action versions will always come up second in comparison to the original animated versions.
it's all about the IP"s (intellectual properties) not only do remakes allow them to use material they already own, but they are going to make money off of it no matter what. and since they own the story, they can do anything they want with it.
Every generation will have their own version and think it's the best one.
There should only be one way people voice their disapproval, that is with their money. If you do not like how it was cast, do not see it. It is as simple as that.
Don't worry, I'm not going to see it. I wonder why Disney didn't take a black actor to play Aladdin. Disney are just here for monye and don't respect people.
Alladin's ethnicity is dictated by the location of the story. In the ocean there is no majority human ethnicity, so it's wide open to new interpretations. And by "don't respect people" you mean they're not catering to white people.
@Monilip Actually, the origins are Babylonian and Assyrian (3000 ya) so, from the Middle East. Also, about every culture had their own version of a mermaid (including Chinese, Japanese and Polynesian to name a few... pretty much all the cultures who had a strong relation with the oceans/water had one) so all colors and origins, really.
Why so you care about the color of the actors' skin so much?
@DerekI'm pretty sure Tritons and Mermaids are from Greek Mythology, who were white
Things that matter when casting someone: Can they act? If it's a musical: Can they sing? That is all.
Well then they should have gotten someone that could act. Horrible actress, shes pretty and she can sing. I think her voice is too deep and mature for Ariel.
If you’re going to play a well known character you must also look like them, you forgot that point.
*sigh* Shall we really do this again? People are fed up with all these remakes. Just because you cite like 10 comments from people who hate this movie because they are racist won't change the fact that the other hundreds of thousand simply hate it, because it's another damned remake.
Hollywood churns out rehashed money makers, banking on nostalgia and CGI. Quality and originality are far too financially risky at the box-office.
lol
It did say it was a reimagining. It could very well take place in another part of the world where a Jamaican crab makes more sense. Personally, I'm just tired of live action remakes in general. And princesses to be honest. And romance. So I probably won't see it regardless. Even if they had cast a red head. Like, who even cares anymore? Besides Disney basically rules the world so they can do whatever they want.
You are right. The underwater setting is Caribbean with tropical fauna, yet when she goes to the surface it's suddenly Nordic. NOBODY EVER MENTIONED THIS CONTRADICTION.
I wouldn’t have an issue with it if they made it about another mermaid. It’s the fact that they’re using and abusing Ariel for their stupid remake.
Dunno what's that hype about. The girl has a nice 'baby' face to play a princess, and I certainly don't see how any color of skin can 'ruin' anything...They should remember that their favorite cartoon was already too far from the original Danish story. To live, any good story should change with the time.
Agreed. I think she looks gorgeous and I still love Ariel. In the end everyone will love her and knew this cast was going to be a success right away. Important problems we have. *sigh*
But she is not that good an actress, watch grownish
The live action isn’t remaking the danish story. It’s remaking the Disney cartoon specifically, and doing so inaccurately
Was a JAMAICAN CRAB in Hans Christen Andersen's version? No, you're just a racist.
Seeing as how Disney massively tweaked the orginal story of the little mermaid, this should be fine.
Ariel killing herself over losing the prince is a tad harsh for modern little kids, though. Medieval kids had plagues, public executions, scabies, famines, and other family oriented activities. A suicidal mermaid would've been tame to those semi-feral kids.
technicly, she didn't kil herself. She refused to kill prince, which is a good thing, and her sister saved her life soshe didn't die (got turned into wind with possibility to go do Heaven after doing many good things)
People seem to forget the reason the original Ariel was white, because she is Danish, just like Belle is white because she's French, and Cinderella is white because it's based on the French and German versions. If they are remaking a traditional version (or pure live action remake) of the story it seems a bit odd to cast a coloured person, it would make more sense if it were a modern or fractured version. It does seem a bit weird to me more having grown up on the traditional story, with the not so happy ending (not the disney). But I'm sure I'll adjust, if she can sing that's what matters.
It's literally a mermaid, not a human. She might as well be green or blue.
She wouldn't be able to pass as human if she were blue or green.
People seem to forget that in the Disney picture she lives in the Caribbean and has a calypso-singing lobster friend and a tropical fish for a best friend, which is very un-Danish
Pff, calypso-singing lobsters are the most Danish thing I can imagine.
Thank you.
The Disney stories are so far removed from the original language fairy tales. If we want to get ever so technical, then none of them should be speaking English at all. So let's just accept that anyone can play a mermaid. On another note, not sure where you're from, but "coloured person" is considered quite an offensive term in most English speaking countries (although if you are from Africa, I get the usage of the term is different).
People seem to forget that A MERMAID IS A MYTHICAL CREATURE!
Disney doesn't own the original story meaning they don't have to keep to the source material at all.
Was a JAMAICAN CRAB in Hans Christen Andersen's version? No, you're just a racist. Not "coloured." Black. There are black French and German people.
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White people are insufferable: they expect minorities to continue watching melanin deficient everything on every medium yet rile themselves into a frenzy when presented with anything other than milk and oatmeal. Deal with it. Times are a-changing.
remember when scarlet johansson was cast in ghost in the shell and matt damon in the great wall?
Don't make us rembeber!!!!
What's wrong with Matt Damon playing a European mercenary? Did I miss something, is it racist to go to China?
The Great Wall was a Chinese movie though and they cast Matt Damon in order to draw in western audiences. It's not the same as with Ghost in the Shell.
Did they erase the original story? No! Get a life. Sincerely a red head :)
As someone who is clearly "not white" I should say that I hate forced diversity. The same feeling I get when I see a white Blade, black James Bond &...... Noticing the color of a person and thinking about it, is racism and it could work both ways. (Yeah I can be againtst your opinion).
They should just create a new princess instead of changing the original ones
The world doesn't need new princesses at all. Bad enough that any real ones exist.
They didn't change her. She's exactly the same character. Why do you think she's different? The color of her skin does not define her character, literally or figuratively.
you guys said tyana and the frog is not geeting enough by disney ... we latinos got an insult stereotype, a mean mexican girls dont even have a princess that represent them... because sofia is what represent hispanic spaniards that are EUROPEAN but us american hispanics dont have a princess and by the way the "princess" that disney came up to represent american continent Hispanics , latinos is a ridiculous mix of a stereotype. if you guys said tyana has not attention by disney i said we the spanish speakers of the american continent we have a joke that is just a disgrace and pretty much an insult. pixar by far did a excellent job with coco. and i glad because disney have let us down with the "princess" they give us.
I think Disney needs to stop wasting its time on remakes and just make new stories! I'd welcome a Latina princess :)
Sadly, Disney always use already existing stories for "new" movies, so they have to find an original American Hispanic princess/fairy tale. I googled American Hispanic fairy tales and they are either retelling of European tales or Native American tales or they are like -gulp- La Llorona. Coco was really good, but I doubt they can do the same "originality magic" with a classic princess story.
Not discrediting this, but on Disney Channel there's a show called "Elana of Avalor" featuring all Latino characters.
According to the fairy tale her skin is "pure ad tender as a rose petal" and her eyes are blue, but who cares, it's not like Disney ever sticks to the original story, a detail like the colour of her skin is irrelevant to the story.
She also turns to sea foam at the end and doesn't get her prince, which is a much better ending than the Disney one.
She becomes a daughter of the air - as you say a much better ending than the Disney one.
Can't wait to see a black King Triton too...hee hee hee!
I can imagine the siblings of Ariel being all colorful, she has 6 sisters and I bet every one of them will represent a different ethnicity.
This is nothing compared to all the white washing that was done in many "foreign" movies.
So you'll still be mad about whitewashing, but this is cool. got it, hypocrite.
Yes, because it's not remotely the same. Feel free to crack a history book some time in your life.
I'm no fan of The Mouse TM C R Inc., but I hope they stick to their guns on this one. If for no other reason than it seems to trigger all the latent racism in those people who always insist they aren't racist.
Yay! Another person who's non-Disney. I thought I was alone in my view! Calling out closet racists and bigots gives me immense joy!
Is there room for me on the wagon?
Its funny how people get triggered over things that (in the grand scheme of things) don't really matter.
Wait, so let’s break this down. Essentially this is what is being said: “the mythological sea creature that was likely the hallucination of drunken lonely sailors, but was really a manatee, and later turned into a fairy tail then made into a cartoon, now looks different in yet another remake of the original hallucination”. Jesus, get a life.
People get a life, it´s a damn movie, I hope she deliver a fantastic preformance and shut your mouths up, plus she is beautiful. You should be against anyone who hurts people with words, mostly racist words.
So you're happy to accept that a character has a literal fish tail and gets her voice stolen by a sea witch, but you can't accept her skin colour? Alrighty. I live-action adaption doesn't ruin the original. It'll still be there. I thought Emma Watson was an absolute abomination as Belle but hey, I still have the original. And the stage shows. And the books. So, who cares? Some adaptions will appeal and some won't, we don't have to like EVERYTHING. Just take it or leave it.
People aren't understanding why fans of the little mermaid are upset. They are quick to call people racist just when race is not even the issue. Their argument is that Ariel is a mermaid so she can have any look. But she can't. Ariel is an icon and her image has already been embedded in our minds and it has strong emotional ties to it. By their argument we can say that Bugs Bunny is a rabbit, so he can be gray, brown, or white. So from now on he is going to be brown. Now if you complain about his new look it's because you hate brown rabbits, not because they changed his look. Is everyone okay with that? Probably not. Furthermore, nobody is concerned about how this will affect children. Having two images of the same character will cause confusion and ruin the magic. Many children are not able to differentiate the real from the fictional yet. So which version will they see in the park?
no I think people are not understanding how grown adults can be this ridiculous about a character. it shouldn't matter what race Ariel is. it shouldn't take away from the story at all. more than just white kids are watching these movies and would like to see someone who looks like they do... is that so wrong? also bugs bunny analogy is funny because they have changed his color scheme, he's been white, gray, and tan. your childhood cartoon movie will not disappear and will always be available to watch, this is just a new rendition! it shouldn't be this devastating thing. I just don't understand.
FINALLY! Somebody said it!
She's exactly the same character. Why do you think she's different? The color of her skin does not define her character, literally or figuratively.
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I'm not worried about the children. They're pretty smart. They'll just see 2 versions like everyone else will. "Do you want white Ariel or black?" Has anyone ever noticed how the same Barbie doll offered in two skin tones sells? It was depressing..black barbie was on clearance with 12 dolls on the shelf...the same white barbie was full price still with only 2. I think we need to check what we want with how consumers behave. If you make 2 versions, this Barbie syndrome might infect Disney, too. When it comes to consumers, they might still prefer white Ariel when given the choice. Racist? Racism is a cognitive decision. This is more of an unconscious racial bias than actual racism.
Love how people are losing their minds over a FANTASY STORY!
Who f*** cares. It is just a movie. I bet she will be great Ariel.
Is it me, or do racism and crass stupidity always go hand in hand?
Clearly these people who are upset about not having a natural red head cast have never met a person of color who is a red head. Which FYI they do exist. Plus no ones hair is ever going to be as red as Ariel’s, even if it’s a cartoon it’s still as red as a fire truck.
Her sisters didn't have natural hair color.
Ariel's voice is so much more important to her character than her appearance. This actress is a good singer, so I'm hoping she's got the pipes for the role. I'm sorry, but debating the ethnicity of a mermaid is a bit like debating the color of unicorns, dragons, or Santa's elves. It's so unbelievably stupid to get offended over something so insignificant.
So everyone stating that the little mermaid is supposed to be Danish: the original HCA story might be set in Denmark, but the Disney version clearly takes place in a fantastical land. For instance, it borrows from greek mythology (King Triton's look), and some of its music is clearly inspired by the Caribbean (not to mention Sebastian's accent) so if you want to make the Denmark argument, you must also oppose these elements in the animated film. Mulan and Pocahontas's ethnicity are integral to their story, the same way Merida's is. (+ Snow white would obviously need to be fair-skinned). While technically Tiana's isn't, making her nonblack would remove layers of complexity to her story as a disenfranchised woman striving to own her own restaurant in a time where segregation in the south was the norm. Making Ariel black, asian or hispanic wouldn't change anything, so long as the kingdom which she visits, and where she meets Prince Eric, has enough diversity that she can "fit in".
I think the hardest thing in this change is that Disney set the precedent of who and what Ariel looks like. Prior to the movie...how many people heard the fairytale that is Ariel the mermaid? Disney is big enough to form in our mind the depiction of Ariel and how her story in the time in our life she was introduced shaped our perspective of her and her influence. Trying to completely change her physically (because in reality what else do we have but what we see and how it connects to what we think) forces our mind to disconnect with what we remember we felt from what we saw. That's hard to do...especially if they were fond memories.
I knew and enjoyed the story.
Ariel is a mermaid. Made up story about a made up entity. Jesus people, get a life!
Too bad plastics in the ocean, japanese dolphin and whale killing, and climate change don't get this kind of uproar.....
Are you talking about the after ever after songs?
Wrong page.
It does. If it's not getting this kind of uproar in the crowds you hang out with, it's time to change up who you hang out with and what websites, and tv channels you frequent.
#myariel
Global warming will kill us before this movie comes out anyway.
I always thought Ariel was darker skinned, could be from watching on VHS on a CRT tv in the 90s
It must've been a really bad VHS and TV - if milky white Ariel looked dark, did you even see the background?
I think that having Ariel be played by a black actress is just another example of forced diversity and that it would be better to just have more black princesses instead of making white princesses black; but I also don’t think it’s as big of a deal as some of these people are making it out to be, this doesn’t ruin the movie and you’d have to be really childish to hate Disney over it
BUT! Colour blind casting first started to gain acceptance in the 80s and refers to non-traditional casting – i.e., where the race, ethnicity or sex of actors when casting is not relevant. Prior to this, it wasn't common to see actors of colour in classical roles.
You're an idiot if not a racist to say such a stupid thing. She's exactly the same character. Why do you think she's different? The color of her skin does not define her character, literally or figuratively.
I’m a racist idiot for wanting disney to produce more stories with people of colour? That doesn’t really make sense...
*headdesk* ARIEL. IS. A. CARTOON. MERMAID. She can be purple with pink polka dots and have green hair, it would not matter. She does not exist.
White ppl have portrayed black people in movies for many years, Liz Taylor was not Egyptian, but now its a problem for a black woman to play a fictional fish? lmfao deal with it
I wish to God that He had made us ALL a putrid color of green with purple pimples all over us.... What the hell is the matter with all people? Last time I looked we ALL bleed red.
1 - No real mermaids has ever been sighted, so they might be green for all we know 2 - She has a cute cartoonish face, so it works for me 3 - Getting a bit ged up with ths whole black vs white war that's invading the internet (drowning out the very real cases of racial violence that get far less media attention)
Isn't this a lot like when Fox News went ballistic over a depiction of a black Santa? Like... this is a fake person. It's not like casting Denzel Washington as Julius Caesar in a true-to-history biopic where you could at least argue that hey, maybe it creates a distracting dissonance. (Though, still, could somebody please do that?? Because Denzel is a goddamn national treasure and could definitely pull it off.) The little mermaid literally DOES NOT EXIST and *still* skin color manages to trigger people??
I as somebody who is in the early stages of studying acting, personally would like to feel that I’m entering into an open-minded world, that whoever, regardless of appearance will have the same opportunity to audition for a role and be accepted for my talent, not my looks. I’m sure you will all agree that looking back over the many visionary characters we grew up with, we see ourselves reproducing many classic’s across all theatre, live-action and animated movies and one thing is clear, there will always be conflict. Ariel is a character that both my mother and I love and never did we discuss the colour of her hair or her skin, it never came into the conversation. It was what she represented as a unique character and that she was on a magical journey of discovery. Therefore, why does Ariel’s appearance matter? It doesn’t affect the story whatsoever and I think this is what we should be teaching the future generation.
All this reminds me of when people lost their s**t when Daniel Craig became the new Bond. All because he is blonde. He’s perfect and I think Irdis Elba would be as well. Goes to the heart of the characters and the talent of the actors.
She is pretty and beautiful woman who can portray any character that is given to her. Just because I disagree on her being cast as Ariel in live action of Ariel does not mean I consider her ugly or awful person. It just does not fit in my mind that she will be playing as Ariel. Its just like casting a Latino in Mulan or a white actress in Pocahontas. As we can see in the animated version that Ariel in a mermaid with fair complexion and blue eyes. Now, this does not mean I am being racist or I prefer white color instead of brown or black. It simply means I cant take her as my Ariel.Period.
Fucking hell, people.. It's not a disaster... As someone pointed out: White people have played Jesus since forever, so...
Well, he is a mythical creature...
It's a stunt to get attention, idt Disney is trying to do real gingers wrong but political messages are becoming the trendy thing. Gay dude in beauty and the beast, I mean c'mon you have to draw out annoyed adults to keep your movies in the convo duh! Live action movies are mostly for grown ups anyways not for children😉. The live action of Rapunzel is going to be the story of a boy transvestite locked away rejected for his new found sexuality... boom next public stunt, LGBTQ vs everyone posted off = $ in Disneys pocket
Does your mommy know you're on her phone?
Why cant they make a new mermaid tale starring Halle Bailey. Instead of the little mermaid, give it a new plot and characters.... they could still use ursala... maybe even make an origin story for Ursula that shows why she was they way she was.....
Why? She's already perfectly cast as The Little Mermaid.
a whole host of reasons, the number one answer being they want easy money - theyve got the well known story and the tokenism so why should they bother with new ideas. The original story was far different from Disney's, anyway i'd actually be happy if they changed it up a bit, the older ones got boring
I think I like the darker skin tone. It's less common in the main characters in Disney princess movies.
Yes!!! lets fight about the race of a fictional half- human- half- fish princess, yes! Lets😏
The big question is "was she picked because she was the best person for the part? Or was this pandering to social justice warriors?" Unfortunately, sometimes people are freaking because the SJW stuff has happened too often, and it is kneejerk.
i totally get you, i hate the fact this girl may not be cast for her acting ability or suitability to the role rather just that she's a political instrument.
Somhow the sea creatures are usually pale as they are not exposed to the sun like we are. But this is a children story so it doesnt matter.
The original is not a children's story and the film might not be - they aren't always.
Someone should remind these people that mermaids don't exist ! So why get all excited about what colour your particular fictional version of a non-existant creature is ?
With all due respect but how the hell does the fact that Disney cast a black beautiful play Ariel in a Disney live action cash grab affect your life?! I mean really...they 'ruined' Ariel? How? They deleted the original movie? No. They erased
Learn the psychology of social memory and how faury tales affect our culture.
As a Scandinavian I’m honestly sad that our culture isn’t being respected. Both Disney and Marvel take whatever they want from Nordic culture and change it. If you did that to any other culture it would likely not be tolerated. But Nordic culture, hey just spit in our faces and kick us when we’re down. Go ahead. Make a fool out of our mythology (Thor etc.) and take one of our most iconic stories (the little mermaid) and rip it apart. 😓🤐 If people want a black mermaid, please make your OWN story and don’t take ours! Respecting each other’s cultures goes both ways. Whatever is going on atm is only going to cause an ethic war. Turning the tables in some sort of revenge tactic has never worked in the history of humanity.
I'm sorely disappointed in Disney! Just as one of the other comments stated, Ive never asked Disney for anything and yet somehow they've disappointed me. That was one of my favorite Disney movies in childhood, and thank God we still have the animated version because there's not a chance I'm going to watch this new one. Its going to be awful. If Disney wants to make Ariel a person of color then can we make Mulan black? Can we make Pocahontas chinese? Oh! What if we made Tiana white? Wouldnt that cause a scene?? People would LOSE THEIR MINDS. People would say its racist, and wrong. But reverse racism is fine. It's really sad that they're taking a really good movie and ruining it all for publicity, attention and pandering and getting that poor girl involved too. Its so sad.
It really is just sorely disappointing. I refuse to see it in theaters and my kids sure as hell aren't going to watch it. They're going to watch the old one, and they can watch many other great Disney movies. But not this live monstrosity
I'm sorely disappointed in Disney. Just like one of the other comments stated, Ive never asked Disney for anything and yet somehow they've disappointed me. That was one of my favorite Disney movies in childhood, and thank God I still have the animated version because there's not a chance I'm going tow watch this new one. If Disney wants to make Ariel a person of color then can we make Mulan black? Can we make Pocahontas chinese? Oh! What if we made Tiana white? Wouldnt that cause a scene?? People would LOSE THEIR MINDS. It's really sad that they're taking a really good movie and ruining it all for publicity and attention and pandering and getting that poor girl involved too. Its so sad and aggravating.
Get a grip. It's not a documentary.
Just curious. . . what race will the prince be in the movie? Will we have an interracial couple or will Disney make the prince black? I'm really interested to see how far Disney will push the envelope and how they will handle the backlash of either.
I'm speculating that Ariel's family will be multi-racial, too. She has many sisters with different hair colors in the animation, so why not different skin colors?
What year is this again? no cancel that what flaming century is this ? shaking my head. I don't even like Disney films, but I'm gonna pay to watch this one. In support of a gorgeous singer / actor.
Wow. What a downer
I actually think she's beautiful, and might be really good as Ariel! (also, the person claiming "I'm not racist because I have a half-black friend".. still is acting pretty racist. Please don't use your friends as an excuse to say this kind of thing.)
So much outrage about the color of Ariel's hair, but not a single one has been upset that Scar's mane isn't the iconic black we are used to!
Is Scar at least gay? He was totally gay in the first one.
i understand, everybody's used to white Ariel. but thats not excuse for being such a jerk
I could really care less about the race of the actor but I do hope they keep the hair red given how iconic it is. Either way I won't actually be watching the movie so my opinion doesn't really matter in the least. I don't like the live action versions and if I am going to watch a live action Disney movie I want it to be a new story. Disney could be really inclusive and make an original story about other cultures.
None of this changes the previous movie. Get over yourself. -- A Redhead
Even if they called a white girl with dark hair it would still be shit. It's not a race thing. Just stick to the real character ffs!
racism will never die. no one complained when aladins genie became a black actor. WHO CARES! lol All the people complaining is going to go watch it anyways.
A lot of people complained.
People complained he wasn't blue when they saw the first announcement. SO the skin color still did matter!
Instead of making remake live actions of the old movies... make new original stories! Make a new mickey mouse movie!
I have a question. First, I think it's totally fine to cast any race of person if it doesn't effect the story line. I think this actress looks super cute and would fit the character. But if she's trying to get a white Danish man to fall in love with her, according to the past and it's racism, wouldn't that be more challenging or considered taboo? Or was racism different in Denmark? Looking for some insight.
It's a story based on a mermaid, logic doesn't need to apply.
But who has crayon red hair like Ariel anyways lol. She's a fish. She can be any color. Embrace the change!