Why Did Black Ariel Receive Global Backlash? 18 Responses by Fans
Disney’s highly anticipated film, The Little Mermaid, generated mixed responses from fans. At the heart of the controversy was a young woman taking on the role of a Black Ariel. This news received some racist backlash, with the hashtag #NotMyAriel trending.
So, what was the controversy about the Black Little Mermaid? Let’s dig a little deeper into the Little Mermaid controversy.
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Someone was instantly triggered by the Black mermaid and started leaving nasty comments that went viral.
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After being called out, they tried to defend themselves by saying they had a ‘half black’ friend, so they couldn’t be racist.
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It 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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Who exactly is the Black Ariel?
American singer and actress Halle Bailey was cast as the Black Disney princess in the live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid. When her casting was announced back in July 2019, it created a lot of uproar on social media.
People were upset with Disney for turning the Little Mermaid black. Many of them pointed out that the original writer, Hans Christian Andersen, had described the Little Mermaid as a white character in his book.
People took to Twitter with mostly positive reactions to the animated movie remake casting, with many highlighting the significance of Halle, a black woman, taking on the role of Ariel. However, although we should really just ignore them, there were some trolls, too.
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Others believed it was all done as a publicity stunt.
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Why did Disney Cast a Black Ariel?
So, why is the Little Mermaid Black? Turns out Halle’s casting has nothing to do with her skin color.
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 princess.”
Bailey, who said on Twitter that it was a “dream come true,” already had a small fan following at that time. She is a part of the R&B duo Chloe x Halle, who became famous for covering 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 was Bailey’s feature-film debut.
Was Ariel Originally Black?
Originally, Ariel was depicted as a white, red-haired mermaid in the Disney movie. In the book, the skin color of the mermaid is not mentioned. However, some people point out that the author mentions that the princess has “eyes as blue as the deep sea,” which points to a White European descent.
We believe the casting of Halle Bailey as the Black Ariel signifies a reimagining of the character for the live-action adaptation, embracing a more inclusive approach.
How Many Original Ariel Movies Are There?
The Little Mermaid franchise has three original animated movies:
- The Little Mermaid (1989)
- The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea (2000)
- The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning (2008)
Apart from these, there’s a musical special, The Little Mermaid Live! (2019), and the live-action remake, The Little Mermaid (2023)
Several people came to defend the actress and pointed out the absurd logic of the trolls.
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And let’s not forget Ariel’s sisters are of different races, too.
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Why are Ariel’s Sisters of Different Races?
According to a popular theory, each of Ariel’s sisters is supposed to represent an ocean. Since they are home to different cultures and ethnicities, it would make sense for the sisters to look different. They represent an expansive underwater world, and the Black Little Mermaid fits perfectly with that narrative.
Who was the First Black Disney Princess?
Princess Tiana is the OG Black Disney princess. The animated film The Princess and the Frog was released in 2009. It marked a significant milestone as the first Black princess in the Disney franchise.
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So, that was the lowdown of the Little Mermaid controversy. Fully grown adults getting all riled up by the mermaid being played by a black woman! Beyond ridiculous, isn’t it? Halle was cast for her talent, not as a publicity stunt. So just ignore the trolls and enjoy the movie.
Let us know what you think about the movie and Halle’s acting in the comments below.
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Share on FacebookI also heard that she can't breath underwater. It is disgusting! They should cast a REAL MERMAID! What are they thinking??
Load More Replies...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.
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
Load More Replies...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!" 🤣
Load More Replies...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...
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...*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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...remember when scarlet johansson was cast in ghost in the shell and matt damon in the great wall?
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.
Load More Replies...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*
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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 :)
Load More Replies...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!
Load More Replies...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.
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.
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.
Load More Replies...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.
there are also black people with blue or green eyes. (michael ealy immediately comes to mind, but i have several in my own family. thx, slavery!) so, yeah, there's that...
Load More Replies...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".
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?
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...*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.
Its funny how people get triggered over things that (in the grand scheme of things) don't really matter.
If they want more black princesses, they need to make them. Tiana and princess and the frog is, in my opinion, one of the best hand animated Disney movies ever. Why not make a live action of that? Why not make a new princess? This is insulting to everyone involved and is easily seen as the cheap and lazy decision to create a facade of wokeness that will no doubt backfire and enrage fans just like Ghostbusters, Star Wars, and soon to be Marvel have achieved.
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.
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
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.
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 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 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?
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
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 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.
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.
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.
Load More Replies...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.
F*****g hell, people.. It's not a disaster... As someone pointed out: White people have played Jesus since forever, so...
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.
Load More Replies...Yes!!! lets fight about the race of a fictional half- human- half- fish princess, yes! Lets😏
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.
Load More Replies...Leave the classics alone is all . Why change something so drastically . It would be like I am going to change a movie to my political or race preferred gender . I am going to make a movie about the Underground Railroad and Harriet Tubman will be played by Glenn Close !!!!!! Oh wait that’s not right !,,,,,, I completely agree . Leave those stories and history alone and quit politicizing EVERY DAMN THING . Disney , you sold out again for money and to make yourself look and feel better for your own political agenda . This country is truly going in the wrong direction !,, people need to wake up because one day it will be too late . A nation divided will not stand . I remember that taught back in the day . I also fought for this country in truly believing in our way of life . Man was I lied to . I am very sad about our government republicans democrats spending our tax money like it’s theirs . They get richer and us normal people do all the work . We need real HONEST people up there !!!
I mean, if the movie's good I don't see any problem. All these people are overreacting 🙄🙄🙄
while u guys are sucking each other off for upcummies i'll be watching 1989's the little mermaid
blackwashing is no better than whitewashing but whatevs...girl definitely has a beautiful voice. Just surprised disney didn't make her a lesbian lol
I don’t like that the new address is black because of you think about where Ariel is playing and also Disney just made the book into a movie so it’s technically not even there story I just don’t get it! For me Black princess should be played by black actresses and White princesses should be played by white actresses!! they also used an Asian actress for Mulan why not just sticking to the original I would also be pissed if Tina would be played by a white person!!!
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.
I respect the actress and people are right they should make new princesses and new story’s more cultural diversity and show that any little girl can be a princess no matter what race or culture but Ariel has always been white and you can’t just go and change that after decades of the same race the same origin and the same story , like everyone says people would be mad if a white girl was casted for tiana and people would be mad if a pale as white sand girl was castle for Mulan so why are you doing it with Ariel?
I'm more upset about the fact that Disney is constantly recycling its own classics for profit, rather than making even a minimal effort to come up with original, creative and motivating new characters for this generation's kids to love, emulate and relate to. Seriously, who really gives a damn what actress they choose to play in a repop of a repop of a repop of a classic story they didn't write, or what she looks like? In the end, it's nothing more than corporate laziness on Disney's part, matched with a heavy dose of wanton greed. But, if Disney REALLY wanted to show the world just how "virtuous and woke" they really are, they would've found an actual mermaid to play the role...just sayin'!
this is not racism.People just don't like the choice for the cast. Disney is trying to get more income and be like PC
It definitely isn't The Little Mermaid if it doesn't have a ginger Ariel. What were they thinking?
Thinking you're a piece of s**t racist. 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.
Load More Replies...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?
Load More Replies...There should not be such outrage about this. I will say, though, that I agree with the idea that we should remake Princess and the Frog. Also whoever reminded us that Ariel's ethnicity and skin tone are not important to the plot.
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.)
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
Load More Replies...Even if they called a white girl with dark hair it would still be s**t. 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.
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
Agree, disagree. Don't care. Original story was european, film portrayed Ariel as white. As in accurate, not racist. Now Disney is so f*****g obsessed with being politically correct that they are quite deliberately changing long told histories to further this agenda. OK, I get they changed ALOT from the original (which is a bit screwed up) but don't change that which requires no changing. Christ knows the s**t storm that erupted when the original Alladin cast weren't appropriately cast, so we finally made them race appropriate - which I get and respect 100%. But pay the same respect to the literary histories of other cultures. I'm a gay guy, so totally up for inclusion. But when does respecting culture get overtaken by appeasing PC morons? Can't wait to get cast as Martin Luther King despite being as white as snow. It's on my bucket list. And no BME people have any right to begrudge it at all. After all... Why be accurate, when we are all equal???
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.
Load More Replies...The negative reactions are obviously driven by racism, but that aside, claiming that the character is "ruined" is pure ignorance. Many classic movies have been remade, some multiple times, and it has no destructive effect on the originals. They still exist, unaltered and entirely intact. And childishly stating that your DVD of the original movie is "going in the trash" only shows you never loved the movie as much as you claim, otherwise you would never part with it and would instead continue to watch and enjoy it as the alternative to supporting a remake. The obvious conclusion is that the majority of these detractors are most likely not fans of the original movie, but rather just racist trolls pouncing on their latest target.
There are always a few ignorant people who are undereducated about social issues in these situations. Hopefully they are a vocal minority and hopefully they will become less ignorant at some point in their lives.
Just watched it with my daughter and i thought it was amazing. People crying because a POC played the lead character are idiots, it doesnt mattwr what her skin colour is, its not even mentioned in the book, the only thing mentioned is that she has skin as clear as a rose petal, which means unblemished. Shes an amazing actress and honnestly the most important feature of ariel is her voice, its even the main plot point to thw story, which hallie berry got too a tee, could not have picked a more perfect person to play the role
Nothing against anyone's skin color but this is just plain weird... Much like casting a white guy as wukong in the dragon ball movie
Let's cast a white man to play as wukong in the dragon ball life action movie.... Oh wait.. they've already done it... 🤣
STOP trying to mess with iconic classics! Would we make Mulan Scottish? Or Merida Japanese? Or Pocahontas Spanish? Or Snow WHITE African American? The classics need to stay true to their original form. This is NOT racism, just a plea to stay true. I remember when my daughter and I saw "The Princess and the Frog". It was amazing! My daughter loved it and we are as caucasian as it gets. She was too little, but I completely understood the underlying adult story line. Casting anyone but a colored princess in that role, would not have been authentic. The beauty of children is their acceptance of the story. They don't see race, UNLESS THEY ARE TAUGHT IT IS A THING! RESPONSIBLE parents need to stop trying to push race down their children's throats it's a NEW GENERATION. They will inherit our world. Let them decide without prejudice. Because Ariel is her favorite, I asked my now 19 year old daughter to go to the new mivie. She refused. Disney get a clue!
I think we should remake all black movies with white ppl.. everyone will see the problem then! I’m white and black and I have a problem with this stupid movie! It ain’t racist by any means to have a problem with it it either! She was a white a*s real red head! And a character I loved with all my heart! I even had the sound track as a kid!! This is just DISGRACEFUL!!!
look nobody cares what she looks like as long as she’s a good actress. well I don’t rlly care. and besides, she IS rlly pretty tho
you know, i wonder if all the people doing all this wailing and gnashing of teeth over ariel had the same reaction to the casting in prince of persia (jake gyllenhall) and kings of egypt (ALL white actors)? somehow, i doubt it. tho, i could be wrong. ... but i'm not.
Most of those comments were not racist and were just people wanting an accurate live action depiction of the little mermaid. So no one is going to say anything when we cast Scarlet Johansson as Tiana for the live action remake? Lets cast Donald Glover for the remake of Harry Potter guys!
Lets cast ryan gosling as the new black panther....oh, NOW you have a problem with that? Its kinda like that.
How about since the original black panther actor died, we cast ryan gosling as the new black panther....oh! NOW you have a problem with that? Maybe now youll get it.
Why are posting photoshopped things as truth. The 'Tweet' that talks aobut halle Bailey is clearly photohopped as it's from 2019.STOP SPREADING LIES!
So why are you posting B******T!! The first one that says Halle Bailey is clearly fake and photoshopped as it's from 2019 and she wasn't cast until recently. Stop SPREADING LIES TO PUSH RACISM!!
"What should be a great movie" OMG have you even watched a Disney remake?! Lmao.
OK fine! I will never b***h about people who complain about a white character being recast as black if you give us back the original recasting. The Bible in Revelations 1:15 described Jesus as “ His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined as in a furnace.” In other words Jesus was a person of color. So if you portray Jesus as black from now on, I say you can keep your white Ariel!
racist lol. Taking a white folklore story of Danish origin and casting a black person as the lead is fine. I agree. So no one will be upset when Moana is remade with a white lead, right? There are tons of non white folklore stories Disney could tell rather than remaking white culture with black casts. Moana was a great example of this. So why not keep brining black/brown stories to screen rather than trying to "un-white" actual white culture?
Why does it matter what race the actor is? It's not like being white is an intrinsic part of Ariel's character, she just happened to be white. And it seems wrong that someone shouldn't be allowed to play a role they'd be good at and want to play just because of her race.
The problem is that a LOT of red headed characters have been replaced by black characters. Yes, they could just dye her hair, but they probably won’t
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I think id like to see the reactions of those praising the changing the race/appearance of Ariel to a movie starring a white, blue eyed, blond man as Martin Luthor King or a black jew as Hitler in a serious film. Is it still praisable diversity or do they finally understand our hatred for changing characters we grew up with and have an image of? If you want a black princess as said MAKE A NEW ONE. Hallie may be your Ariel but she isnt mine.
I think the black Ariel is just fine when I was little I was wondering why there was barely and black princesses and there was mostly “white”. These ‘white” people should be happy that they have all these white princesses already and glad it’s only Ariel that’s being changed. I’m black and I love this idea and I would love to see the movie when it comes out.😁
My Problem is, that whitewashing gets frowned up (which is right in every way) but if Disney blackwashes a danish red head we white people have to shut up. Thats double standards at its finest. If Moana, Jasmin and Tiana would be played by a white actress, everyone would lose their mind. I am all for new black and lgbt princesses and i hope very much we will see a new princess who loves women. But changing a beloved character with 3 movies and a series is just not ok. I am a red head myself and feel betrayed that i dont get my ginger princess as life action.
Thanks Tim Burton, you ruined my favourite mayor :'( Untitled-5...6c4c5c.jpg
I think for the live action one they could of course have an African American woman, but if you wanted to stick to the original many people would want the red haired, white girl too. I’m not picking “sides” here because many of the things people were “joking” about wasn’t very nice but I also don’t fully agree with having a black woman play Ariel, only because it doesn’t stick to the original. I mean making another movie that is similar to Ariel but a black girl would be amazing! But changing the original can hurt some people too. :)
Can you imagine everybody going to church on Sunday and storming out cos the paintings of Jesus depict him as a white guy!? Also my friend is a mermaid and she says she's fine with it so all you humans need to calm down.
I don't care, but Little Mermaid is classic european folk story. What if they took an african story and cast Taylor Swift? Or cast a latina as Mulan ? Is any of it racist or is none of it racist , just people being too overly damn sensitive.
I don't see the problem. I mean, so long as Disney doesn't completely jack up the movie, why the big problem with the color of the lead actress? In my head mermaids are tropical fish colored. I imagine that would be more expensive in production though.
So that first one has been proven to be a troll account. Most people dont give a c**p about Ariel's color.
I am gonna have to agree that I rather they make or find new princesses with their own stories rather than recycle, but only if they do it properly. I do love MCU Valkyrie and Miles Morales, though. While it is a lot harder to make people care about new characters as opposed to previously established ones, these retold stories are getting a little old. At least Marvel knows how to keep things somewhat fresh. And, although this is a tangent, they better not make all the princesses an expanded cinematic universe. I swear, everyone wants to be Marvel and everyone keeps failing.
What's the sense/point of making different races of princess. We have Caucasian, Asian, African-American and a Pacific Islander princesses. There are already tons of Cinderella and Snow White movies that some are childhood ruining so please don't add Ariel to the list. It's fine if they just re-imagined the story but the character is not a good idea. They didn't change Belle and Jasmine but now they plan it for Ariel. I wonder if we really polluted the sea or sea creatures adapts to new environment.
I'm sick of everyone instantly labeling me racist for disagreeing with this. I believe in equality for all people. The reason I dislike her having the role is because it doesn't line up with the original movie, simple as that. I grew up with a different-looking Ariel. The original The Little Mermaid was my favorite movie growing up and a huge part of my childhood, so I'm a little saddened by the lack of accuracy. What's next, are we gonna turn Spongebob neon green? I still think it's gonna be a great movie anyways and I look forward to seeing it!
They should make a trans princess out of Mulan and cast her as black too. Or anything non-asian, tbh. Juuuuust acceptable enough to slide in, but a clear message to stop blackfacing everything.
Stoked on Ariel re-imagined as a black girl, but incredibly pissed at Disney and all of Hollywood for not coming up with an original idea in YEARS................... This is soooooooo borrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrring.
I think the new Ariel is going to be awesome. Halle looks gorgeous, she will be perfect for the role.
I think it shouldn't make one bit of difference. If you don't like it, don't go see it. I personally love the diversity of it all. Why not! Make a goth Merida. It would be great!
Literally all I care about with regards to this movie is THE FREAKING CRAB 😜👍🏻
In other news today, Americans blew a gasket of what another cartoon should look like in real life. Forgetting that anything can change and nothing was set in stone.
This happens every time a live action casting is announced for a cartoon, comic, or book. There was also a #notmybelle #notmyjasmine #notmysimba etc. Lots of hate towards Jasmine actress for being half-white or Indian.
Okay, I have decided that idk how to feel like there right,and wrong at the same time. Like I dont care if they change the race but why suddenly now?I mean there never did it before and idk I'm kinda puzzled I like the idea but they also have a point about if they made a white person as tiana some people would be mad but this is also a movie so it's not really a big fuss.lol I didn't even know they where make a new movie till today. Soo I think people should chill because it's a movie not a BIG election XD.
it would be very ridiculous if a white actress plays Tiana, and same for this situation. I am all for ending racism etc etc but this has nothing to do with racism. This is actually really annoying that Disney trying to satisfy the people and pretending to be fair and equal by using a black actress playing a white princess. I am asian and I would be very very very upset if a white or black or red or brown actress plays Mulan. So white people get their rights to say they are upset the princess is being changed completely to an image they don't connect to, because we all have always known Ariel as red hair white girl, and there is nothing wrong with that. We are twisting anti-racism into bullying people and stripping their rights to speak up their mind. The fact that people want to see a character they have grown up with, has nothing to do with racism. I'd say even if a white actress with blond hair plays Ariel, Disney would get the same criticism.
I could care less about the skin color. The only thing i care about is the color of her tail, and her iconic red hair.
But like im not going to be mad if her hair isnt red and her tail is different
Load More Replies...I cannot imagine getting riled up over a fecking Disney movie about a mythical creature. Like seriously some people really need to find a hobby.
To me, it doesn't matter whether the Little Mermaid's skin color is black or white since this is a fictional story - a fairy tale. Plus the story does not have too much hardened ties to a specified culture... unless you're referring Ariel as a fish in the sea.. then her culture is mammal. We can even debate that Prince Eric could well known be Spaniard - but in the animated feature nothing was noted of where Prince Eric came from or where his kingdom and his father and mother (the king and queen) reside. He was merely a sailor traveling the seas and had a love for the sea... hence how he fell in love with Ariel.
I’m more amused by how movies from the aughts made fun of the princess movies, and now we get all these remakes
Its only lame because it’s not accurate to the original. Like if a white guy was cast as Black Panther, or an Asian playing Thor, or a Black girl being cast as Jazmine, or a Latina girl as Tiana.... very few people care because of the “racial” relevance. It’s purely about the nostalgia, and when you change the look of a character it doesn’t feel right. Imagine the outcry if a white girl was cast as Mulan. Or anyone but a Native American for Pocahontas.... Ariel being a mermaid does leave the door open for more creative freedom, but you can’t expect people to just let go of what they know
Ariel is short for "Aralyn," a popular African-American female name meaning "woman of song" (look it up). Back in the day, Disney had to make a white version of her to make her acceptable. Today, however, it is not acceptable to conceal "what is," so kudos to Disney for presenting the mermaid in all her naked glory. blackmerma...5070de.jpg
I'm going to say something really outrageous and shocking. I don't watch Disney movies. I never have. You're all arguing about who's playing a princess in a movie? I hope you're all juveniles or it's just silly.
LISTEN UP, if you want to learn the TRUTH. Ariel turning Black is NOT about the "age we live in" where liberals have taken affirmative action so far that it has resulted in reverse-discrimination (blacks over whites). This isn't true. Has anyone seen Ariel in the flesh? Ariel was born "Aralyn," which means "woman with song" (see blackbabynames.com). Her exact descendants are unknown but she is without question a baby whose color is reflective of the ocean of ethnicities that swim in her world. (In nature, any interbreeding is more likely to result in something NOT white). In short, Ariel wasn't white. She was made white in land-based cartoons because that's what our world "ate." Now that we are open to -- heck, we embrace -- the organic, the cage-free, the hand-caught, Disney thought (and rightly so) that is time to show us the real story. (Environmentalists argue that Ariel must be white today because "the amount of bleach particulates in our waste water exceed......")
I don’t see why they have to remake a movie of a retelling of a story. If they want to create more diversity, can’t they come up with an original idea instead of changing a Disney character’s race? I’m all for showing respect for different cultures and creeds, but I see this remake as a turn in the wrong direction.
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.
Load More Replies...She said a true color Ariel....lmaooooo....then she would be grey or something like that not white!!
I personally think that if they're going to remake it, they should do so staying true to the details in the original movie, like they did with beauty and the beast. However, I really don't think this should make me enjoy the movie any less. People should relax, even if they aren't happy with the casting, just keep it to themselves.
It's the black hair, Ariel has red hair always has and always should. Why are you going to change something that doesn't need to be changes, I grow up with a red haired Ariel my child grows up with a black haired Ariel ? What would you do? Also put a black haired Ariel in every Disney theme park... or what? This is completely annoyed me. All for Halle Berry being Ariel just with red hair
Mermaids could be asian if they freaking want as long as the story is good that's it... we are not talking about the witcher 3 or stuf like that, even so if they want to do an african RPG they are free to use black people as much as they whant, who cares??...
Where are all the Latina princesses?? Let's face it, a beautiful, young Latino woman could very easily play Ariel.....or Pocahontas....or Cinderella. Probably the LEAST represented group here. What does that say?
It's a completely different thing. Open a history book. It matters.
Load More Replies...I think the treatment of blacks have been horrendous in the movie - and music industry. And I loathe whitewashing. BUT and this is a big BUT. HC Andersen who wrote the original fairytale in the 17th century wrote it about a white girl, he described her skin etc. And Disney being Disney chose to do an animated version that strongly resembled H.C. Andersens version. As you have seen. Now can you tell me this black girl looks like Ariel? No. Does she sound like Ariel from the 1989 version? No. So she is wrong for the version. Now this girl is talented but she would have been better for a black princess like Tiana. Disney has not casted this girl for equality reasons but for monetary ones. The reversed whitewashing is what sells right now. Its not some case of representation. At least not true. So.. Casting a black girl as Ariel is wrong. Just as it would be casting a white English girl for Pocahontas or Tiana.
The truly crazy thing about this is that kids more than likely don't care and will watch it regardless with no less enjoyment, it's grown ups that have an issue, people also seem to be forgetting how bad these live action Disney adaptations actually are, watch the old Jungle Book, I don't care how serious a person you are, you cannot help but get a big stupid s**t eating grin on your face when the songs start playing now go watch the live action version and feel a part of your soul die when the normally brilliant Christopher Walken butchers "i wanna be like you" song. It will probably suck and we won't admit it because we don't want to seem like the type of person that would have voted for Trump.
Personally I think that forcing diversity by changing already existing characters from European folklore, instead of making new movies based on other cultures and mythologies is stupid, but that's just me. I'd be more interested in seeing a movie based on an African tale I've never heard of, instead of all the pointless remakes.
People are allowed to like/not like things in whatever measure they want. Just because someone doesn't approve it does not automatically make them racist. That is (pardon the pun) black and white thinking
Exactly! It's just turned into disappointed people defending themselves from being called racist. That word gets thrown around too much... mostly what they mean is bias. Racism is bias cranked to 11 (to the point of hatred and active discrimination). Most people just don't like change, and that's what they're wrestling with.
Load More Replies...People complain when they cast a white woman to an asian role from a cartoon, people complain when they cast a black woman to a white role from a cartoon. Grow up people, it's just a cartoon!
Den lille Havfrue - Little Merrmaid, by Hans christian Andersen, from the year of 1837 - Danmark.... Dear disney, Ariel is white, because HCA whore her white. Period. No rasicim, i dont care if someone is black, orange, purple with pink dots... whatever. Would you make Hamlet black? No. Why? because he f*****g wasnt designated as black by the autor.
I just hope that the same people who defends the casting choice for this movie also defend the casting choice if they decide to do a live action movie of The Princes and the Frog, Pocahontas or Mulan with a white girl... Understand it people, we're not "against diversity", we just want the originals to be respected... I have no problem with Disney creating new princesses of any ethnicity whatsoever... just don't change the already stablished characters... If you just don't understand it and want to continue to call us "racists", that's your problem...
My sentiment. I view it as art. This remake is more like a cover to a favorite song in a different genre. I hate hearing my favorite rock songs with a country twang. I think many of us like to maintain the integrity of the original when recreating it.
Load More Replies...My question to Disney and all these folks that agree with the casting, if the character had been Hispanic, Black, Asian, Brown or any other color and a Caucasian had been cast, what would be your opinion. The issue is not that they casted a different ethnicity is that if it was the other way around the outrage would have been tremendous
I don't really care what her skintone is, as long as she still had mad red hair. That's how you know it's her.
I have no issue with it at all, good for her and all the girls that are gona love this movie. I just wish it was the same for Ghost in the shell actor Scarlett Johansson
She was horrible in the portrayal of the character and the movie sucked.
Load More Replies...- People flipped over Sonic the Hedgehog movie trailer bcs it didn't look like Sonic from the game and now they're redoing it; - Ecranisations of comic books do their best to depict the characters as much to the point as in the comics. (ALL imaginary) So what is the problem in people wanting movie Ariel to be like cartoon Ariel (except the excessive bitching part)? Everyone is worrying too much about political correctness and "representations" of POC/women/LGBT/etc. so much that it is insane. Also, the hell is with "such girls" and "such role models"?! I'm Caucasian, and my favorite Disney gals are Mulan and Pocachontas, I absolutely never liked/disliked a character or stereotyped it based on its looks and I teach my kids not to pay attention on such things, does my brain miss out on something? Do I actually need to waste my brain cells on such thoughts and analyses? - Personally, I'd like Ariel to be a pale redhead like in cartoon, but deep down, I don't give a damn. /2am rant
I think it's amusing watching both this and the Ursula Kerfluffle both sides are howling about skin color, it's a f*****g cartoon, Halle will do a wonderful job.
The girl cannot act. If they went with Zendaya or Ariana at least they can act.
Load More Replies...I think it depends a lot on how they adapt the story. Someone mentioned that it's a Danish fairytale. Per an article from someone who did extensive research on the Disney princesses in terms of their clothing, the movie is probably set around 1890. If they're going to emphasize the historical context of the movie, like they did with the live-action Beauty and the Beast, it doesn't make sense to cast a black actress. A Danish prince in the 1800s isn't going to choose a black girl for his bride. Historically, it's flawed. If they focus on the plot rather than the setting, however, it shouldn't be as much of a problem as people are making it out to be.
The animated movie was also flawed. Ariel lives in a tropical underwater kingdom, but when she sticks her head out of the water *boom* - she is in Denmark.
Load More Replies...Why would someone throw away their blue ray of the original? That one hasn't been changed. So far for me Aladdin and Beauty and the best are the only two that have come close to the original. I've still been more encouraged to get the originals again after seeing the movies. Maleficent is the only one I've purchased.
Image credit for that first art piece actually doesn’t go to chloexhalle, but an artist named Dylan Bonner on Instagram. Just sayin; crediting artists is important and celebrities shouldn’t be an exception
really should keep them to who they are not all are White I mean what if we started casting Moana has a white person or Pocahontas as a white person or Jasmine from Aladdin as a white person are the princess and the frog Tatiana as a white personyeah there are a lot of White characters in Disney but there are a lot of diverse ones to would it be okay to change who they are? Areil was written based on Danish folklore, each character has their own story that makes them unique. Instead of changing the characters why not create new and diverse characters?
The ethnicities of Pocahontas, Jasmine, mulan, Merida and maybe Moana are all part of the stories and characters. If you want to say how she was Danish, then why not have an issue with everything else they changed? As far as princess and the frog, I guess she could be white but how would that work because it's set in new orleans during the time of segregation? A white person in the same role wouldn't work.
Load More Replies...really should keep them to who they are not all are White I mean what if we started casting Moana has a white person or Pocahontas as a white person or Jasmine from Aladdin as a white person are the princess and the frog Tatiana as a white personyeah there are a lot of White characters in Disney but there are a lot of diverse ones to would it be okay to change who they are? Instead of changing the classics why not just create new characters with new stories and diversity, why change what's already written? Ariel is based on Danish folklore, she has her own written story, stop changing classic movies and create new ones.
Disney, can we get a white Princess Tiana in the live action Princess and the Frog movie? Thatd be amazing!! 😍😍
I can imagine people growing up with a certain image not want that to change, especially when then where compared themselves to Ariel and now feel that that will change. This doesn't make them a rasist. Seeing a difference between black and white is nornal and this isn't wrong. If Ariel was played by a Chinese actress the reaction would be the same. It's similar to people expecting Tiana to be black when a life action would be made. But is also understand that it doesn't change the story, that the cartoon Ariel is just a cartoon and that she will do a great job as Arial. So even though you don't have to agree with the others, try to understand them and don't make a big deal out of it.
People compare themselves to Ariel??? She's a bloody mermaid. Not real. Disney princesses - not real. Real princesses, a waste of money. It does make people racist if the reason they have a problem is down to race. Not wanting the character to be portrayed by a chinese actor? Yep, racist. This is a fictional creature that could be played by anyone with the talent.
Load More Replies...I. LOVE. IT. Women are complaining because they are changing their character to a black woman. But when men complain that they should not change male characters to female they go bananas. LMFAO
What if ... Hans Christian Andersen wanted his little Mermaid to have green skin - and all of our lives we believed in a Disney lie? Maybe he intended for her to die at the end of the story ... oh wait - he DID! Whatever ... Disney just does the only thing they can do: Make everything a rose-tinted, politically correct Disney thing with a happy smiley trallalla happy end. *hrgh*
But her skin was white in the story - he was specific. Though I don't think that matters in any way. Disney - totally agree with everything you said.
Load More Replies...Cruz, Morales, Valenzuela, Cuadrado... is it odd that so many of the “haters” seem to have Hispanic names?
Coming soon: Snowblack and the midget black mine workers. No wait, that's racist.
Good. I'm glad Hollywood is pandering. All races should have the opportunity to star in any movie as any character. And more races should be cast in general. I mean the only reason Ariel has red hair vs blonde is because it didn't want to be too closely related to Splash. Who gaf. Some of "us white" girls don't care.
All these people saying they "ruined their favorite princess" can go jump into Ursula's cave.
Ikr! They can't say a black person cast for a role is ruining their favorite character and then claim they aren't racist! If someone was cast with a different eye color than the original, there would be absolutely no fuss. We can't have the expectation for Disney to cast people that look exactly the same as the original character, as that's just impossible, and so people must just be consistent and be fine with any part of a person's looks being different, not pick and choose which parts they are fine with being different and which they aren't. If someone decides that race must be one of the few things that should be the same, that shows they have some idea in their head that race makes more difference to a person than something like eye color. But no, it doesn't matter what a character looks like as long as yet can play their role.
Load More Replies...I'm perfectly fine with Ariel, or any Disney princess, being a different orientation. But this Ariel looks like a Kardashian and not black, imo
She's. Beautiful!! Who gives a f*** what her skin color is?? All that really matters, is the enjoyment of the movie, the songs, the romance, fun, the fantasy of a mermaid falling in love with a man who learns to love her for who she is naturally, not what he wants her to become. Cinderella has been done in live action movies repeatedly, even having different ethnicities for nearly EVERY character!!! Get a Grip & Get OVER It!!! Look up Whoopi Goldberg, she played the fairy godmother. Did anybody whine and b***h about THAT remake?!!? Probably not. So shut up, sit down, and emerse yourself in a TALE of Fantasy and Romance. Become the child at heart and learn to love something MAGICAL again!!!💖💖💖🍍
true irony: Halle Berry's mother... is white... (ie this means that Ariel isn't "black", but rather, multi-racial). :) <3
Wow, disney screwing up The Little Mermaid again. Did you know that on the box art (on the release of the VHS tape) the artist got mad at his boss and well he drew a d*ck in the middle of the castle.
If the roles were reversed then it would be racist. Stupid left is so gullible
It's fine to depict a fictional character with any skin color you want but why stop there? Where are all the transgendered characters? Disney is biggoted!
uuugh, isn't that what disney is all about: making money? why redo classics when the animation was just fine? money. so why are people freaking out? a serious reality check is def needed.
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.
Load More Replies...Why can't they just create a whole new story with different character in the same little mermaid world. Ariel's friend or Ariel's daughter's friend who is black. In that way there will be no confusion.
Why? 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.
Load More Replies...They know it's a fictional story right? About 99% of all Disney characters are white up to a certain point. So anytime they try to be more inclusive this will happen. That's fine, it just points out who the racist are.
Some people: “I don’t see color. We should just all be the same. It doesn’t matter to me what color people are. We’re all human. There’s only one race and it’s the human race.” Those same people: “Thank you for ruining my favorite princess by having her played by a black actress”
I think it's fine. All the haters need to shut up. Truth be told mermaids looks more like actual fish , with massive black eyes to take in the darkness of the sea, webbed hands and feet to swim, scales and gills on their green-grey molted bodies (NOT pure white skin), and that red hair? Forget it! She lives in the deepest oceans... we're talking stringy matted mess with virtually no color. I love the original cartoon, but if this bee young woman has the singing chops and acting ability to pull off her own "Ariel", then let her do it. They hired her for a reason. Let her do her job, and be thankful that they're choosing girls of all shades to play parts in some of Disney's most iconic films. Basically, everyone just sit back, and enjoy the movie.
I think she's a gorgeous girl. But someone needs to teach her to dress. Her clothes are falling off her. I don't see any problem with her playing the role
I mean... congratulations to her because she is a beautiful girl and has an amazing voice, but I don't get why people are getting angry about people's opinions! If princess Tiana was casted as a white person, people would be pissed!! So why shouldn't people be angry if it's vise versa? Tbh, I think she would be an amazing Tiana. She could totally pull it off and I would be stoked if that happened.
You need to remember this: mermaids, specifically Ariel, are IMAGINARY. Disney's casting relied on IMAGINING how good she'd be in the role. Get the ongoing theme here? I can't imagine why any rational adult would think the lady's race is an issue.
Bored Panda, just stirring it up. Finding people who disagree & putting them against each other. People like the red head...people like the non-red head, why not accept people's opinion. Disney you been off, political, classless for years, past CEO's never attacked the public's words. Just like the orange clown, once it's discovered there 2 different opinions bash the one as wrong, praise one that's right. All classless! To me it's like changing St. Nicholas, it can't & shouldn't be done! Never seen such a high demand for color changing fairy tales, myths, fiction, cartoons...why is this!?!?!
Can you imagine if they cast a white girl as the princess in "The Princess and the Frog?" People would be super pissed and screaming racist. Ariel's red hair is a major part of who she is...this just doesn't fit. No disrespect to Halle, just not a good fit in my opinion.
Keep it how it was. The actress they chose is great, but she doesn't fit the role.
The role being that of a mermaid... a fictional creature. We should have Disney tell us what that should look like? Doesn't fit the role... pfft.
Load More Replies...Those who are overly concerned about her race have grown up in an ignorantly privileged (and sheltered) bubble. I very much enjoy seeing movies with races other than white. It doesn't change the story line. But, it DOES allow half of our human citizens a chance to feel a part of the collective story. Why would people be mad about that? Why so much hate for something so trivial. Find something better to focus your anger on... like being a better person to humanity.
Hey people, all of this is to p**s Donald Trump! XD
i just find it amusing how bored panda always tries to dig up as many negative responses as they can to stuff like this and tries to make the "backlash" look 10X worse than it actually is.
People defending this change are worked up, too, and automatically calling those opposed "racist"... which is incredibly disingenuous and painting with a broad brush. I didn't mind Ghostbusters remade into an all women cast because the plot and setting were different. Change the setting and timeline and plot for this remake, and maybe I won't mind so much about this change either. But knowing how identical to the original these are, I'm more bummed than excited about it (not excited at all) It wasn't an "extensive" search; they grabbed a wooden actress that happens to sing well instead of grabbing an actress that can ACT and then teach her to sing. Think Moulin Rouge. Some of us are just disappointed because it isn't what we expected. #scratchingthisoneoffmylist
Skin colour originated from the people's home countries, the more sun you had to endure the darker your skin, the more cold you had to endure, the lighter. So it originally made more sense that the Danish little mermaid under the cold dark sea would have light skin. Though I totally agree that Disney should create more diverse princesses than messing with the old ones.
I saw an article about this the other day, no pics, and misread it as, 'Halle Berry'. I thought, 'Wow! She is beautiful but way too old to play a teenager!' This young woman is a far better choice.
Remakes should stay true to the original. A black Ariel is not what I want to see.
The good thing is you don't have to. She could be great in this role, but we don't know.
Load More Replies...I don’t really care about Halle Berry‘s skin colour as Ariel, but for me, Ariel has to have flame red hair. Simply because when I think of Ariel, that is what comes to my mind first. I do think flame red hair could work on Halle Berry though.
It won't work. The Little Mermaid takes place in Europe and Ariel becomes human to try and marry Eric, who is a European prince. During that time period, it would have been unthinkable for a black woman to marry a European prince. In order for it to even make sense, they'd have to relocate the characters to a predominantly black country that still had royalty.
I'm sure the five year old kids that go to watch this are all going to be experts on European historic racial social norms, "Ma Ma why is that black woman kissing that Danish prince if Denmark did not abolish slavery till 1792?"
Load More Replies...Hey people all of this is to p**s Donald Trump! XD
Alright I'm not racist but I'm probably gonna get called it but I think its wrong cause why not make her look like the character to be fair I feel like they only cast her to say they are not racist but like they said up there if they made Tiana white it would be a crime I will not see this because it irks me not to see a character matching her.
"Fully grown adults getting all riled up by the ethnicity of a frickin' mermaid. Beyond ridiculous, isn't it?....why people have to politicize everything to death is beyond me.". See that's exactly the problem. By casting a POC it's Disney catering to the PC culture. If they cast a "Princess and the Frog" or "Mulan" or "Moana" live action film with a white actress you would be the one screaming about cultural appropriation.
I am admittedly a bit on the fence here...but as long as they give her a massively thick head of red hair and the girl can really sing it up, I am good with it. I am very curious to see what her sisters are cast as because they are each a representation of a different sea. So maybe they all have extremely varied appearance and who will be King Triton? Personally I am more concerned about them casting Ursula
I'd expect them to cast Queen Latifa at that point. She can sing, there's no denying that and she's black to make the movie politically correct.
Load More Replies...This is exactly what I was thinking. Totally agree. Disney making Ariel black creates more diversity as there are many more white characters than black ones, while Tiana becoming white would do the complete opposite
Load More Replies...Wow - so important you said it twice. Except it isn't.
Load More Replies...I don't. Why should we slavishly go with what Disney thought she should look like. New times, new looks. Maybe Halle could be the iconic version for new generations.
Load More Replies...I'm sure they're really hurting from your lack of patronage
Load More Replies...I also heard that she can't breath underwater. It is disgusting! They should cast a REAL MERMAID! What are they thinking??
Load More Replies...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.
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
Load More Replies...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!" 🤣
Load More Replies...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...
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...*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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...remember when scarlet johansson was cast in ghost in the shell and matt damon in the great wall?
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.
Load More Replies...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*
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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 :)
Load More Replies...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!
Load More Replies...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.
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.
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.
Load More Replies...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.
there are also black people with blue or green eyes. (michael ealy immediately comes to mind, but i have several in my own family. thx, slavery!) so, yeah, there's that...
Load More Replies...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".
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?
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...*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.
Its funny how people get triggered over things that (in the grand scheme of things) don't really matter.
If they want more black princesses, they need to make them. Tiana and princess and the frog is, in my opinion, one of the best hand animated Disney movies ever. Why not make a live action of that? Why not make a new princess? This is insulting to everyone involved and is easily seen as the cheap and lazy decision to create a facade of wokeness that will no doubt backfire and enrage fans just like Ghostbusters, Star Wars, and soon to be Marvel have achieved.
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.
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
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.
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 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 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?
Load More Replies...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.
Load More Replies...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.
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 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.
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.
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.
Load More Replies...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.
F*****g hell, people.. It's not a disaster... As someone pointed out: White people have played Jesus since forever, so...
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.
Load More Replies...Yes!!! lets fight about the race of a fictional half- human- half- fish princess, yes! Lets😏
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.
Load More Replies...Leave the classics alone is all . Why change something so drastically . It would be like I am going to change a movie to my political or race preferred gender . I am going to make a movie about the Underground Railroad and Harriet Tubman will be played by Glenn Close !!!!!! Oh wait that’s not right !,,,,,, I completely agree . Leave those stories and history alone and quit politicizing EVERY DAMN THING . Disney , you sold out again for money and to make yourself look and feel better for your own political agenda . This country is truly going in the wrong direction !,, people need to wake up because one day it will be too late . A nation divided will not stand . I remember that taught back in the day . I also fought for this country in truly believing in our way of life . Man was I lied to . I am very sad about our government republicans democrats spending our tax money like it’s theirs . They get richer and us normal people do all the work . We need real HONEST people up there !!!
I mean, if the movie's good I don't see any problem. All these people are overreacting 🙄🙄🙄
while u guys are sucking each other off for upcummies i'll be watching 1989's the little mermaid
blackwashing is no better than whitewashing but whatevs...girl definitely has a beautiful voice. Just surprised disney didn't make her a lesbian lol
I don’t like that the new address is black because of you think about where Ariel is playing and also Disney just made the book into a movie so it’s technically not even there story I just don’t get it! For me Black princess should be played by black actresses and White princesses should be played by white actresses!! they also used an Asian actress for Mulan why not just sticking to the original I would also be pissed if Tina would be played by a white person!!!
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.
I respect the actress and people are right they should make new princesses and new story’s more cultural diversity and show that any little girl can be a princess no matter what race or culture but Ariel has always been white and you can’t just go and change that after decades of the same race the same origin and the same story , like everyone says people would be mad if a white girl was casted for tiana and people would be mad if a pale as white sand girl was castle for Mulan so why are you doing it with Ariel?
I'm more upset about the fact that Disney is constantly recycling its own classics for profit, rather than making even a minimal effort to come up with original, creative and motivating new characters for this generation's kids to love, emulate and relate to. Seriously, who really gives a damn what actress they choose to play in a repop of a repop of a repop of a classic story they didn't write, or what she looks like? In the end, it's nothing more than corporate laziness on Disney's part, matched with a heavy dose of wanton greed. But, if Disney REALLY wanted to show the world just how "virtuous and woke" they really are, they would've found an actual mermaid to play the role...just sayin'!
this is not racism.People just don't like the choice for the cast. Disney is trying to get more income and be like PC
It definitely isn't The Little Mermaid if it doesn't have a ginger Ariel. What were they thinking?
Thinking you're a piece of s**t racist. 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.
Load More Replies...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?
Load More Replies...There should not be such outrage about this. I will say, though, that I agree with the idea that we should remake Princess and the Frog. Also whoever reminded us that Ariel's ethnicity and skin tone are not important to the plot.
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.)
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
Load More Replies...Even if they called a white girl with dark hair it would still be s**t. 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.
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
Agree, disagree. Don't care. Original story was european, film portrayed Ariel as white. As in accurate, not racist. Now Disney is so f*****g obsessed with being politically correct that they are quite deliberately changing long told histories to further this agenda. OK, I get they changed ALOT from the original (which is a bit screwed up) but don't change that which requires no changing. Christ knows the s**t storm that erupted when the original Alladin cast weren't appropriately cast, so we finally made them race appropriate - which I get and respect 100%. But pay the same respect to the literary histories of other cultures. I'm a gay guy, so totally up for inclusion. But when does respecting culture get overtaken by appeasing PC morons? Can't wait to get cast as Martin Luther King despite being as white as snow. It's on my bucket list. And no BME people have any right to begrudge it at all. After all... Why be accurate, when we are all equal???
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.
Load More Replies...The negative reactions are obviously driven by racism, but that aside, claiming that the character is "ruined" is pure ignorance. Many classic movies have been remade, some multiple times, and it has no destructive effect on the originals. They still exist, unaltered and entirely intact. And childishly stating that your DVD of the original movie is "going in the trash" only shows you never loved the movie as much as you claim, otherwise you would never part with it and would instead continue to watch and enjoy it as the alternative to supporting a remake. The obvious conclusion is that the majority of these detractors are most likely not fans of the original movie, but rather just racist trolls pouncing on their latest target.
There are always a few ignorant people who are undereducated about social issues in these situations. Hopefully they are a vocal minority and hopefully they will become less ignorant at some point in their lives.
Just watched it with my daughter and i thought it was amazing. People crying because a POC played the lead character are idiots, it doesnt mattwr what her skin colour is, its not even mentioned in the book, the only thing mentioned is that she has skin as clear as a rose petal, which means unblemished. Shes an amazing actress and honnestly the most important feature of ariel is her voice, its even the main plot point to thw story, which hallie berry got too a tee, could not have picked a more perfect person to play the role
Nothing against anyone's skin color but this is just plain weird... Much like casting a white guy as wukong in the dragon ball movie
Let's cast a white man to play as wukong in the dragon ball life action movie.... Oh wait.. they've already done it... 🤣
STOP trying to mess with iconic classics! Would we make Mulan Scottish? Or Merida Japanese? Or Pocahontas Spanish? Or Snow WHITE African American? The classics need to stay true to their original form. This is NOT racism, just a plea to stay true. I remember when my daughter and I saw "The Princess and the Frog". It was amazing! My daughter loved it and we are as caucasian as it gets. She was too little, but I completely understood the underlying adult story line. Casting anyone but a colored princess in that role, would not have been authentic. The beauty of children is their acceptance of the story. They don't see race, UNLESS THEY ARE TAUGHT IT IS A THING! RESPONSIBLE parents need to stop trying to push race down their children's throats it's a NEW GENERATION. They will inherit our world. Let them decide without prejudice. Because Ariel is her favorite, I asked my now 19 year old daughter to go to the new mivie. She refused. Disney get a clue!
I think we should remake all black movies with white ppl.. everyone will see the problem then! I’m white and black and I have a problem with this stupid movie! It ain’t racist by any means to have a problem with it it either! She was a white a*s real red head! And a character I loved with all my heart! I even had the sound track as a kid!! This is just DISGRACEFUL!!!
look nobody cares what she looks like as long as she’s a good actress. well I don’t rlly care. and besides, she IS rlly pretty tho
you know, i wonder if all the people doing all this wailing and gnashing of teeth over ariel had the same reaction to the casting in prince of persia (jake gyllenhall) and kings of egypt (ALL white actors)? somehow, i doubt it. tho, i could be wrong. ... but i'm not.
Most of those comments were not racist and were just people wanting an accurate live action depiction of the little mermaid. So no one is going to say anything when we cast Scarlet Johansson as Tiana for the live action remake? Lets cast Donald Glover for the remake of Harry Potter guys!
Lets cast ryan gosling as the new black panther....oh, NOW you have a problem with that? Its kinda like that.
How about since the original black panther actor died, we cast ryan gosling as the new black panther....oh! NOW you have a problem with that? Maybe now youll get it.
Why are posting photoshopped things as truth. The 'Tweet' that talks aobut halle Bailey is clearly photohopped as it's from 2019.STOP SPREADING LIES!
So why are you posting B******T!! The first one that says Halle Bailey is clearly fake and photoshopped as it's from 2019 and she wasn't cast until recently. Stop SPREADING LIES TO PUSH RACISM!!
"What should be a great movie" OMG have you even watched a Disney remake?! Lmao.
OK fine! I will never b***h about people who complain about a white character being recast as black if you give us back the original recasting. The Bible in Revelations 1:15 described Jesus as “ His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined as in a furnace.” In other words Jesus was a person of color. So if you portray Jesus as black from now on, I say you can keep your white Ariel!
racist lol. Taking a white folklore story of Danish origin and casting a black person as the lead is fine. I agree. So no one will be upset when Moana is remade with a white lead, right? There are tons of non white folklore stories Disney could tell rather than remaking white culture with black casts. Moana was a great example of this. So why not keep brining black/brown stories to screen rather than trying to "un-white" actual white culture?
Why does it matter what race the actor is? It's not like being white is an intrinsic part of Ariel's character, she just happened to be white. And it seems wrong that someone shouldn't be allowed to play a role they'd be good at and want to play just because of her race.
The problem is that a LOT of red headed characters have been replaced by black characters. Yes, they could just dye her hair, but they probably won’t
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I think id like to see the reactions of those praising the changing the race/appearance of Ariel to a movie starring a white, blue eyed, blond man as Martin Luthor King or a black jew as Hitler in a serious film. Is it still praisable diversity or do they finally understand our hatred for changing characters we grew up with and have an image of? If you want a black princess as said MAKE A NEW ONE. Hallie may be your Ariel but she isnt mine.
I think the black Ariel is just fine when I was little I was wondering why there was barely and black princesses and there was mostly “white”. These ‘white” people should be happy that they have all these white princesses already and glad it’s only Ariel that’s being changed. I’m black and I love this idea and I would love to see the movie when it comes out.😁
My Problem is, that whitewashing gets frowned up (which is right in every way) but if Disney blackwashes a danish red head we white people have to shut up. Thats double standards at its finest. If Moana, Jasmin and Tiana would be played by a white actress, everyone would lose their mind. I am all for new black and lgbt princesses and i hope very much we will see a new princess who loves women. But changing a beloved character with 3 movies and a series is just not ok. I am a red head myself and feel betrayed that i dont get my ginger princess as life action.
Thanks Tim Burton, you ruined my favourite mayor :'( Untitled-5...6c4c5c.jpg
I think for the live action one they could of course have an African American woman, but if you wanted to stick to the original many people would want the red haired, white girl too. I’m not picking “sides” here because many of the things people were “joking” about wasn’t very nice but I also don’t fully agree with having a black woman play Ariel, only because it doesn’t stick to the original. I mean making another movie that is similar to Ariel but a black girl would be amazing! But changing the original can hurt some people too. :)
Can you imagine everybody going to church on Sunday and storming out cos the paintings of Jesus depict him as a white guy!? Also my friend is a mermaid and she says she's fine with it so all you humans need to calm down.
I don't care, but Little Mermaid is classic european folk story. What if they took an african story and cast Taylor Swift? Or cast a latina as Mulan ? Is any of it racist or is none of it racist , just people being too overly damn sensitive.
I don't see the problem. I mean, so long as Disney doesn't completely jack up the movie, why the big problem with the color of the lead actress? In my head mermaids are tropical fish colored. I imagine that would be more expensive in production though.
So that first one has been proven to be a troll account. Most people dont give a c**p about Ariel's color.
I am gonna have to agree that I rather they make or find new princesses with their own stories rather than recycle, but only if they do it properly. I do love MCU Valkyrie and Miles Morales, though. While it is a lot harder to make people care about new characters as opposed to previously established ones, these retold stories are getting a little old. At least Marvel knows how to keep things somewhat fresh. And, although this is a tangent, they better not make all the princesses an expanded cinematic universe. I swear, everyone wants to be Marvel and everyone keeps failing.
What's the sense/point of making different races of princess. We have Caucasian, Asian, African-American and a Pacific Islander princesses. There are already tons of Cinderella and Snow White movies that some are childhood ruining so please don't add Ariel to the list. It's fine if they just re-imagined the story but the character is not a good idea. They didn't change Belle and Jasmine but now they plan it for Ariel. I wonder if we really polluted the sea or sea creatures adapts to new environment.
I'm sick of everyone instantly labeling me racist for disagreeing with this. I believe in equality for all people. The reason I dislike her having the role is because it doesn't line up with the original movie, simple as that. I grew up with a different-looking Ariel. The original The Little Mermaid was my favorite movie growing up and a huge part of my childhood, so I'm a little saddened by the lack of accuracy. What's next, are we gonna turn Spongebob neon green? I still think it's gonna be a great movie anyways and I look forward to seeing it!
They should make a trans princess out of Mulan and cast her as black too. Or anything non-asian, tbh. Juuuuust acceptable enough to slide in, but a clear message to stop blackfacing everything.
Stoked on Ariel re-imagined as a black girl, but incredibly pissed at Disney and all of Hollywood for not coming up with an original idea in YEARS................... This is soooooooo borrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrring.
I think the new Ariel is going to be awesome. Halle looks gorgeous, she will be perfect for the role.
I think it shouldn't make one bit of difference. If you don't like it, don't go see it. I personally love the diversity of it all. Why not! Make a goth Merida. It would be great!
Literally all I care about with regards to this movie is THE FREAKING CRAB 😜👍🏻
In other news today, Americans blew a gasket of what another cartoon should look like in real life. Forgetting that anything can change and nothing was set in stone.
This happens every time a live action casting is announced for a cartoon, comic, or book. There was also a #notmybelle #notmyjasmine #notmysimba etc. Lots of hate towards Jasmine actress for being half-white or Indian.
Okay, I have decided that idk how to feel like there right,and wrong at the same time. Like I dont care if they change the race but why suddenly now?I mean there never did it before and idk I'm kinda puzzled I like the idea but they also have a point about if they made a white person as tiana some people would be mad but this is also a movie so it's not really a big fuss.lol I didn't even know they where make a new movie till today. Soo I think people should chill because it's a movie not a BIG election XD.
it would be very ridiculous if a white actress plays Tiana, and same for this situation. I am all for ending racism etc etc but this has nothing to do with racism. This is actually really annoying that Disney trying to satisfy the people and pretending to be fair and equal by using a black actress playing a white princess. I am asian and I would be very very very upset if a white or black or red or brown actress plays Mulan. So white people get their rights to say they are upset the princess is being changed completely to an image they don't connect to, because we all have always known Ariel as red hair white girl, and there is nothing wrong with that. We are twisting anti-racism into bullying people and stripping their rights to speak up their mind. The fact that people want to see a character they have grown up with, has nothing to do with racism. I'd say even if a white actress with blond hair plays Ariel, Disney would get the same criticism.
I could care less about the skin color. The only thing i care about is the color of her tail, and her iconic red hair.
But like im not going to be mad if her hair isnt red and her tail is different
Load More Replies...I cannot imagine getting riled up over a fecking Disney movie about a mythical creature. Like seriously some people really need to find a hobby.
To me, it doesn't matter whether the Little Mermaid's skin color is black or white since this is a fictional story - a fairy tale. Plus the story does not have too much hardened ties to a specified culture... unless you're referring Ariel as a fish in the sea.. then her culture is mammal. We can even debate that Prince Eric could well known be Spaniard - but in the animated feature nothing was noted of where Prince Eric came from or where his kingdom and his father and mother (the king and queen) reside. He was merely a sailor traveling the seas and had a love for the sea... hence how he fell in love with Ariel.
I’m more amused by how movies from the aughts made fun of the princess movies, and now we get all these remakes
Its only lame because it’s not accurate to the original. Like if a white guy was cast as Black Panther, or an Asian playing Thor, or a Black girl being cast as Jazmine, or a Latina girl as Tiana.... very few people care because of the “racial” relevance. It’s purely about the nostalgia, and when you change the look of a character it doesn’t feel right. Imagine the outcry if a white girl was cast as Mulan. Or anyone but a Native American for Pocahontas.... Ariel being a mermaid does leave the door open for more creative freedom, but you can’t expect people to just let go of what they know
Ariel is short for "Aralyn," a popular African-American female name meaning "woman of song" (look it up). Back in the day, Disney had to make a white version of her to make her acceptable. Today, however, it is not acceptable to conceal "what is," so kudos to Disney for presenting the mermaid in all her naked glory. blackmerma...5070de.jpg
I'm going to say something really outrageous and shocking. I don't watch Disney movies. I never have. You're all arguing about who's playing a princess in a movie? I hope you're all juveniles or it's just silly.
LISTEN UP, if you want to learn the TRUTH. Ariel turning Black is NOT about the "age we live in" where liberals have taken affirmative action so far that it has resulted in reverse-discrimination (blacks over whites). This isn't true. Has anyone seen Ariel in the flesh? Ariel was born "Aralyn," which means "woman with song" (see blackbabynames.com). Her exact descendants are unknown but she is without question a baby whose color is reflective of the ocean of ethnicities that swim in her world. (In nature, any interbreeding is more likely to result in something NOT white). In short, Ariel wasn't white. She was made white in land-based cartoons because that's what our world "ate." Now that we are open to -- heck, we embrace -- the organic, the cage-free, the hand-caught, Disney thought (and rightly so) that is time to show us the real story. (Environmentalists argue that Ariel must be white today because "the amount of bleach particulates in our waste water exceed......")
I don’t see why they have to remake a movie of a retelling of a story. If they want to create more diversity, can’t they come up with an original idea instead of changing a Disney character’s race? I’m all for showing respect for different cultures and creeds, but I see this remake as a turn in the wrong direction.
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.
Load More Replies...She said a true color Ariel....lmaooooo....then she would be grey or something like that not white!!
I personally think that if they're going to remake it, they should do so staying true to the details in the original movie, like they did with beauty and the beast. However, I really don't think this should make me enjoy the movie any less. People should relax, even if they aren't happy with the casting, just keep it to themselves.
It's the black hair, Ariel has red hair always has and always should. Why are you going to change something that doesn't need to be changes, I grow up with a red haired Ariel my child grows up with a black haired Ariel ? What would you do? Also put a black haired Ariel in every Disney theme park... or what? This is completely annoyed me. All for Halle Berry being Ariel just with red hair
Mermaids could be asian if they freaking want as long as the story is good that's it... we are not talking about the witcher 3 or stuf like that, even so if they want to do an african RPG they are free to use black people as much as they whant, who cares??...
Where are all the Latina princesses?? Let's face it, a beautiful, young Latino woman could very easily play Ariel.....or Pocahontas....or Cinderella. Probably the LEAST represented group here. What does that say?
It's a completely different thing. Open a history book. It matters.
Load More Replies...I think the treatment of blacks have been horrendous in the movie - and music industry. And I loathe whitewashing. BUT and this is a big BUT. HC Andersen who wrote the original fairytale in the 17th century wrote it about a white girl, he described her skin etc. And Disney being Disney chose to do an animated version that strongly resembled H.C. Andersens version. As you have seen. Now can you tell me this black girl looks like Ariel? No. Does she sound like Ariel from the 1989 version? No. So she is wrong for the version. Now this girl is talented but she would have been better for a black princess like Tiana. Disney has not casted this girl for equality reasons but for monetary ones. The reversed whitewashing is what sells right now. Its not some case of representation. At least not true. So.. Casting a black girl as Ariel is wrong. Just as it would be casting a white English girl for Pocahontas or Tiana.
The truly crazy thing about this is that kids more than likely don't care and will watch it regardless with no less enjoyment, it's grown ups that have an issue, people also seem to be forgetting how bad these live action Disney adaptations actually are, watch the old Jungle Book, I don't care how serious a person you are, you cannot help but get a big stupid s**t eating grin on your face when the songs start playing now go watch the live action version and feel a part of your soul die when the normally brilliant Christopher Walken butchers "i wanna be like you" song. It will probably suck and we won't admit it because we don't want to seem like the type of person that would have voted for Trump.
Personally I think that forcing diversity by changing already existing characters from European folklore, instead of making new movies based on other cultures and mythologies is stupid, but that's just me. I'd be more interested in seeing a movie based on an African tale I've never heard of, instead of all the pointless remakes.
People are allowed to like/not like things in whatever measure they want. Just because someone doesn't approve it does not automatically make them racist. That is (pardon the pun) black and white thinking
Exactly! It's just turned into disappointed people defending themselves from being called racist. That word gets thrown around too much... mostly what they mean is bias. Racism is bias cranked to 11 (to the point of hatred and active discrimination). Most people just don't like change, and that's what they're wrestling with.
Load More Replies...People complain when they cast a white woman to an asian role from a cartoon, people complain when they cast a black woman to a white role from a cartoon. Grow up people, it's just a cartoon!
Den lille Havfrue - Little Merrmaid, by Hans christian Andersen, from the year of 1837 - Danmark.... Dear disney, Ariel is white, because HCA whore her white. Period. No rasicim, i dont care if someone is black, orange, purple with pink dots... whatever. Would you make Hamlet black? No. Why? because he f*****g wasnt designated as black by the autor.
I just hope that the same people who defends the casting choice for this movie also defend the casting choice if they decide to do a live action movie of The Princes and the Frog, Pocahontas or Mulan with a white girl... Understand it people, we're not "against diversity", we just want the originals to be respected... I have no problem with Disney creating new princesses of any ethnicity whatsoever... just don't change the already stablished characters... If you just don't understand it and want to continue to call us "racists", that's your problem...
My sentiment. I view it as art. This remake is more like a cover to a favorite song in a different genre. I hate hearing my favorite rock songs with a country twang. I think many of us like to maintain the integrity of the original when recreating it.
Load More Replies...My question to Disney and all these folks that agree with the casting, if the character had been Hispanic, Black, Asian, Brown or any other color and a Caucasian had been cast, what would be your opinion. The issue is not that they casted a different ethnicity is that if it was the other way around the outrage would have been tremendous
I don't really care what her skintone is, as long as she still had mad red hair. That's how you know it's her.
I have no issue with it at all, good for her and all the girls that are gona love this movie. I just wish it was the same for Ghost in the shell actor Scarlett Johansson
She was horrible in the portrayal of the character and the movie sucked.
Load More Replies...- People flipped over Sonic the Hedgehog movie trailer bcs it didn't look like Sonic from the game and now they're redoing it; - Ecranisations of comic books do their best to depict the characters as much to the point as in the comics. (ALL imaginary) So what is the problem in people wanting movie Ariel to be like cartoon Ariel (except the excessive bitching part)? Everyone is worrying too much about political correctness and "representations" of POC/women/LGBT/etc. so much that it is insane. Also, the hell is with "such girls" and "such role models"?! I'm Caucasian, and my favorite Disney gals are Mulan and Pocachontas, I absolutely never liked/disliked a character or stereotyped it based on its looks and I teach my kids not to pay attention on such things, does my brain miss out on something? Do I actually need to waste my brain cells on such thoughts and analyses? - Personally, I'd like Ariel to be a pale redhead like in cartoon, but deep down, I don't give a damn. /2am rant
I think it's amusing watching both this and the Ursula Kerfluffle both sides are howling about skin color, it's a f*****g cartoon, Halle will do a wonderful job.
The girl cannot act. If they went with Zendaya or Ariana at least they can act.
Load More Replies...I think it depends a lot on how they adapt the story. Someone mentioned that it's a Danish fairytale. Per an article from someone who did extensive research on the Disney princesses in terms of their clothing, the movie is probably set around 1890. If they're going to emphasize the historical context of the movie, like they did with the live-action Beauty and the Beast, it doesn't make sense to cast a black actress. A Danish prince in the 1800s isn't going to choose a black girl for his bride. Historically, it's flawed. If they focus on the plot rather than the setting, however, it shouldn't be as much of a problem as people are making it out to be.
The animated movie was also flawed. Ariel lives in a tropical underwater kingdom, but when she sticks her head out of the water *boom* - she is in Denmark.
Load More Replies...Why would someone throw away their blue ray of the original? That one hasn't been changed. So far for me Aladdin and Beauty and the best are the only two that have come close to the original. I've still been more encouraged to get the originals again after seeing the movies. Maleficent is the only one I've purchased.
Image credit for that first art piece actually doesn’t go to chloexhalle, but an artist named Dylan Bonner on Instagram. Just sayin; crediting artists is important and celebrities shouldn’t be an exception
really should keep them to who they are not all are White I mean what if we started casting Moana has a white person or Pocahontas as a white person or Jasmine from Aladdin as a white person are the princess and the frog Tatiana as a white personyeah there are a lot of White characters in Disney but there are a lot of diverse ones to would it be okay to change who they are? Areil was written based on Danish folklore, each character has their own story that makes them unique. Instead of changing the characters why not create new and diverse characters?
The ethnicities of Pocahontas, Jasmine, mulan, Merida and maybe Moana are all part of the stories and characters. If you want to say how she was Danish, then why not have an issue with everything else they changed? As far as princess and the frog, I guess she could be white but how would that work because it's set in new orleans during the time of segregation? A white person in the same role wouldn't work.
Load More Replies...really should keep them to who they are not all are White I mean what if we started casting Moana has a white person or Pocahontas as a white person or Jasmine from Aladdin as a white person are the princess and the frog Tatiana as a white personyeah there are a lot of White characters in Disney but there are a lot of diverse ones to would it be okay to change who they are? Instead of changing the classics why not just create new characters with new stories and diversity, why change what's already written? Ariel is based on Danish folklore, she has her own written story, stop changing classic movies and create new ones.
Disney, can we get a white Princess Tiana in the live action Princess and the Frog movie? Thatd be amazing!! 😍😍
I can imagine people growing up with a certain image not want that to change, especially when then where compared themselves to Ariel and now feel that that will change. This doesn't make them a rasist. Seeing a difference between black and white is nornal and this isn't wrong. If Ariel was played by a Chinese actress the reaction would be the same. It's similar to people expecting Tiana to be black when a life action would be made. But is also understand that it doesn't change the story, that the cartoon Ariel is just a cartoon and that she will do a great job as Arial. So even though you don't have to agree with the others, try to understand them and don't make a big deal out of it.
People compare themselves to Ariel??? She's a bloody mermaid. Not real. Disney princesses - not real. Real princesses, a waste of money. It does make people racist if the reason they have a problem is down to race. Not wanting the character to be portrayed by a chinese actor? Yep, racist. This is a fictional creature that could be played by anyone with the talent.
Load More Replies...I. LOVE. IT. Women are complaining because they are changing their character to a black woman. But when men complain that they should not change male characters to female they go bananas. LMFAO
What if ... Hans Christian Andersen wanted his little Mermaid to have green skin - and all of our lives we believed in a Disney lie? Maybe he intended for her to die at the end of the story ... oh wait - he DID! Whatever ... Disney just does the only thing they can do: Make everything a rose-tinted, politically correct Disney thing with a happy smiley trallalla happy end. *hrgh*
But her skin was white in the story - he was specific. Though I don't think that matters in any way. Disney - totally agree with everything you said.
Load More Replies...Cruz, Morales, Valenzuela, Cuadrado... is it odd that so many of the “haters” seem to have Hispanic names?
Coming soon: Snowblack and the midget black mine workers. No wait, that's racist.
Good. I'm glad Hollywood is pandering. All races should have the opportunity to star in any movie as any character. And more races should be cast in general. I mean the only reason Ariel has red hair vs blonde is because it didn't want to be too closely related to Splash. Who gaf. Some of "us white" girls don't care.
All these people saying they "ruined their favorite princess" can go jump into Ursula's cave.
Ikr! They can't say a black person cast for a role is ruining their favorite character and then claim they aren't racist! If someone was cast with a different eye color than the original, there would be absolutely no fuss. We can't have the expectation for Disney to cast people that look exactly the same as the original character, as that's just impossible, and so people must just be consistent and be fine with any part of a person's looks being different, not pick and choose which parts they are fine with being different and which they aren't. If someone decides that race must be one of the few things that should be the same, that shows they have some idea in their head that race makes more difference to a person than something like eye color. But no, it doesn't matter what a character looks like as long as yet can play their role.
Load More Replies...I'm perfectly fine with Ariel, or any Disney princess, being a different orientation. But this Ariel looks like a Kardashian and not black, imo
She's. Beautiful!! Who gives a f*** what her skin color is?? All that really matters, is the enjoyment of the movie, the songs, the romance, fun, the fantasy of a mermaid falling in love with a man who learns to love her for who she is naturally, not what he wants her to become. Cinderella has been done in live action movies repeatedly, even having different ethnicities for nearly EVERY character!!! Get a Grip & Get OVER It!!! Look up Whoopi Goldberg, she played the fairy godmother. Did anybody whine and b***h about THAT remake?!!? Probably not. So shut up, sit down, and emerse yourself in a TALE of Fantasy and Romance. Become the child at heart and learn to love something MAGICAL again!!!💖💖💖🍍
true irony: Halle Berry's mother... is white... (ie this means that Ariel isn't "black", but rather, multi-racial). :) <3
Wow, disney screwing up The Little Mermaid again. Did you know that on the box art (on the release of the VHS tape) the artist got mad at his boss and well he drew a d*ck in the middle of the castle.
If the roles were reversed then it would be racist. Stupid left is so gullible
It's fine to depict a fictional character with any skin color you want but why stop there? Where are all the transgendered characters? Disney is biggoted!
uuugh, isn't that what disney is all about: making money? why redo classics when the animation was just fine? money. so why are people freaking out? a serious reality check is def needed.
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.
Load More Replies...Why can't they just create a whole new story with different character in the same little mermaid world. Ariel's friend or Ariel's daughter's friend who is black. In that way there will be no confusion.
Why? 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.
Load More Replies...They know it's a fictional story right? About 99% of all Disney characters are white up to a certain point. So anytime they try to be more inclusive this will happen. That's fine, it just points out who the racist are.
Some people: “I don’t see color. We should just all be the same. It doesn’t matter to me what color people are. We’re all human. There’s only one race and it’s the human race.” Those same people: “Thank you for ruining my favorite princess by having her played by a black actress”
I think it's fine. All the haters need to shut up. Truth be told mermaids looks more like actual fish , with massive black eyes to take in the darkness of the sea, webbed hands and feet to swim, scales and gills on their green-grey molted bodies (NOT pure white skin), and that red hair? Forget it! She lives in the deepest oceans... we're talking stringy matted mess with virtually no color. I love the original cartoon, but if this bee young woman has the singing chops and acting ability to pull off her own "Ariel", then let her do it. They hired her for a reason. Let her do her job, and be thankful that they're choosing girls of all shades to play parts in some of Disney's most iconic films. Basically, everyone just sit back, and enjoy the movie.
I think she's a gorgeous girl. But someone needs to teach her to dress. Her clothes are falling off her. I don't see any problem with her playing the role
I mean... congratulations to her because she is a beautiful girl and has an amazing voice, but I don't get why people are getting angry about people's opinions! If princess Tiana was casted as a white person, people would be pissed!! So why shouldn't people be angry if it's vise versa? Tbh, I think she would be an amazing Tiana. She could totally pull it off and I would be stoked if that happened.
You need to remember this: mermaids, specifically Ariel, are IMAGINARY. Disney's casting relied on IMAGINING how good she'd be in the role. Get the ongoing theme here? I can't imagine why any rational adult would think the lady's race is an issue.
Bored Panda, just stirring it up. Finding people who disagree & putting them against each other. People like the red head...people like the non-red head, why not accept people's opinion. Disney you been off, political, classless for years, past CEO's never attacked the public's words. Just like the orange clown, once it's discovered there 2 different opinions bash the one as wrong, praise one that's right. All classless! To me it's like changing St. Nicholas, it can't & shouldn't be done! Never seen such a high demand for color changing fairy tales, myths, fiction, cartoons...why is this!?!?!
Can you imagine if they cast a white girl as the princess in "The Princess and the Frog?" People would be super pissed and screaming racist. Ariel's red hair is a major part of who she is...this just doesn't fit. No disrespect to Halle, just not a good fit in my opinion.
Keep it how it was. The actress they chose is great, but she doesn't fit the role.
The role being that of a mermaid... a fictional creature. We should have Disney tell us what that should look like? Doesn't fit the role... pfft.
Load More Replies...Those who are overly concerned about her race have grown up in an ignorantly privileged (and sheltered) bubble. I very much enjoy seeing movies with races other than white. It doesn't change the story line. But, it DOES allow half of our human citizens a chance to feel a part of the collective story. Why would people be mad about that? Why so much hate for something so trivial. Find something better to focus your anger on... like being a better person to humanity.
Hey people, all of this is to p**s Donald Trump! XD
i just find it amusing how bored panda always tries to dig up as many negative responses as they can to stuff like this and tries to make the "backlash" look 10X worse than it actually is.
People defending this change are worked up, too, and automatically calling those opposed "racist"... which is incredibly disingenuous and painting with a broad brush. I didn't mind Ghostbusters remade into an all women cast because the plot and setting were different. Change the setting and timeline and plot for this remake, and maybe I won't mind so much about this change either. But knowing how identical to the original these are, I'm more bummed than excited about it (not excited at all) It wasn't an "extensive" search; they grabbed a wooden actress that happens to sing well instead of grabbing an actress that can ACT and then teach her to sing. Think Moulin Rouge. Some of us are just disappointed because it isn't what we expected. #scratchingthisoneoffmylist
Skin colour originated from the people's home countries, the more sun you had to endure the darker your skin, the more cold you had to endure, the lighter. So it originally made more sense that the Danish little mermaid under the cold dark sea would have light skin. Though I totally agree that Disney should create more diverse princesses than messing with the old ones.
I saw an article about this the other day, no pics, and misread it as, 'Halle Berry'. I thought, 'Wow! She is beautiful but way too old to play a teenager!' This young woman is a far better choice.
Remakes should stay true to the original. A black Ariel is not what I want to see.
The good thing is you don't have to. She could be great in this role, but we don't know.
Load More Replies...I don’t really care about Halle Berry‘s skin colour as Ariel, but for me, Ariel has to have flame red hair. Simply because when I think of Ariel, that is what comes to my mind first. I do think flame red hair could work on Halle Berry though.
It won't work. The Little Mermaid takes place in Europe and Ariel becomes human to try and marry Eric, who is a European prince. During that time period, it would have been unthinkable for a black woman to marry a European prince. In order for it to even make sense, they'd have to relocate the characters to a predominantly black country that still had royalty.
I'm sure the five year old kids that go to watch this are all going to be experts on European historic racial social norms, "Ma Ma why is that black woman kissing that Danish prince if Denmark did not abolish slavery till 1792?"
Load More Replies...Hey people all of this is to p**s Donald Trump! XD
Alright I'm not racist but I'm probably gonna get called it but I think its wrong cause why not make her look like the character to be fair I feel like they only cast her to say they are not racist but like they said up there if they made Tiana white it would be a crime I will not see this because it irks me not to see a character matching her.
"Fully grown adults getting all riled up by the ethnicity of a frickin' mermaid. Beyond ridiculous, isn't it?....why people have to politicize everything to death is beyond me.". See that's exactly the problem. By casting a POC it's Disney catering to the PC culture. If they cast a "Princess and the Frog" or "Mulan" or "Moana" live action film with a white actress you would be the one screaming about cultural appropriation.
I am admittedly a bit on the fence here...but as long as they give her a massively thick head of red hair and the girl can really sing it up, I am good with it. I am very curious to see what her sisters are cast as because they are each a representation of a different sea. So maybe they all have extremely varied appearance and who will be King Triton? Personally I am more concerned about them casting Ursula
I'd expect them to cast Queen Latifa at that point. She can sing, there's no denying that and she's black to make the movie politically correct.
Load More Replies...This is exactly what I was thinking. Totally agree. Disney making Ariel black creates more diversity as there are many more white characters than black ones, while Tiana becoming white would do the complete opposite
Load More Replies...Wow - so important you said it twice. Except it isn't.
Load More Replies...I don't. Why should we slavishly go with what Disney thought she should look like. New times, new looks. Maybe Halle could be the iconic version for new generations.
Load More Replies...I'm sure they're really hurting from your lack of patronage
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