People Use ‘Science’ To Prove Disney Has To Change The Lead Actor Of The Little Mermaid ‘Cause She Can’t Be Black
It’s 2019 and 182 years have passed since the first publication of The Little Mermaid. However, some people appear to be stuck in 1837. Or the middle ages. You see, Disney has announced that Halle Bailey will star as Ariel in The Little Mermaid remake, and they’re pointing out her skin color. As most of their arguments have been quickly exhausted and proven invalid for multiple reasons, the most persistent protesters have turned to “science” to support their claims. But their newest attempts to ignite racial tensions have failed just as miserably as the initial ones.
Recently, Disney announced that singer Halle Bailey will star as Ariel in The Little Mermaid remake
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Not everyone was happy with the decision
Some people are trying really hard to find a reason why Ariel cant be black, and they even turned to “science”
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However, they were instantly shut down
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People simply aren’t buying their “theories”
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Okay. A mermaid can be Black or White. Literally does not matter other than, I think, for the viewers to have a better connection with the character. I am completely for that, but I think it would be better to make NEW stories, NEW movies, NEW CHARACTERS to emphasize change and connection with the audience. Let's make less of the remakes and bring in new princess stories, one that can bring in women (HECK, I WANNA SEE A PRINCE MOVIE FOR ONCE) of color and different ethnicities. Yes, we have Tiana in "Princess and the Frog" and Mulan in "Mulan," but I think making new shows/movies based off of a genuine connection to the audience would be better. A lot of the old princess movies were based on European novels and culture, why not try basing NEW princess shows/movies on cultural references from African countries, South American countries, Asian countries, etc. Let's stop changing old characters and start making genuine new ones.
Discussing the fact that Ariel has a belly button makes more sense to me :-)
Seriously? This is the third article on the subject in the last two days and it's not even that big of an issue.
You've forgotten all the hoopla surrounding Finn, the "black" storm trooper, in Star Wars. Haters are always gonna hate.
Load More Replies...Hahahaha - love that Hugh Hoult references Monty Python's The Holy Grail to question Ariel's clam shell bra! Hmmm, so where did she get the twine? "A five ounce bird could not carry a one pound coconut!" Please, science cannot be applied to mythical creatures!
I started laughing a lot when I was reading his comments XD
Load More Replies...Ok, first of all...mermaids go to the surface of the water and get plenty of sunlight! But that doesn't mean anything because they aren't real!! Secondly, none of these people...NONE of these people have even thought about Ariel since they were kids. They are just racists who are excited to have a "reason" to be racist out loud. Its pathetic
So pathetic. One guy on Twitter said he was so angry he was boycotting with his family because Ariel should be a red head and it had nothing to do with race. When someone responded and asked if he would also boycott if they had cast a white, blonde actress....there was no response. LOL. This is not about her not being a "red head" it is about her being Black...and they know it. If they slap a red wig on her or dyes her hair red, they will STILL moan and groan about it.
Load More Replies...Using SCIENCE to disprove the colour of a MYTHICAL creature? That's just sad.
They are right. She would also have to have gills, layers of blubber, her eyes placed on the side of her head like a fish, no hair (can get caught in things, no evolutionary advantage), probably no arms, because they get in the way of swimming like a fish, no neck or a much smaller head for more balanced swimming, and wait, that's just a regular fish.
Yes, scientifically mermaids would have to be fat to keep their bodies insulated in the sea
Load More Replies...First, there are a lot of very dark-colored fish in the sea; the fact that they live underwater doesn't turn them white. Mammals that live in the water, like whales, are also fairly dark skinned. I guess mermaids should be dark gray. But I'll tell you what, bigot-guys. We'll let the mermaids be white as soon as you ditch Surfer Dude Jesus and portray him as a Jewish man born in Bethlehem and raised in the town of Nazareth, in Galilee (formerly Palestine, now northern Israel) during the first century A.D. That would be with dark brown to black hair, olive skin, and brown eyes. How's that work for you?
I think it depends on the primary environment that the sea creature lives in. There are certain sea creatures that are mostly white... but very few of them (Belugas come to mind). They live in the arctic where a pale colour makes sense for camouflage. This whole argument that 'she has to be white, because lack of sun' is so ridiculous. If anything, in the depths that she's living in... I think most of the sea creatures are DARKER in colour. Unless she lives in the MIDNIGHT ZONE, she wouldn't be pale. xD Now I'm picturing a pale Ariel, looking like a sad blobfish when she finally reaches the surface. If anything, it makes more sense for her to be darker skinned.
Load More Replies...Honestly! This is a MOVIE. It is also DISNEY. Science (and logic) doesn’t seem to apply with Disney. A movie does not have to represent real life.
IKR? The ear/head ratio in their flagship character is way off.
Load More Replies...First mermaids are not real, Ariel is a fictional character who does not exist AT ALL. But if everyone wants to portray the live action movie as correctly as possible, why isnt anyone standing up for the purple people. Why isnt anyone discussing the fact that Melissa McCarthy is set to play Ursula and Melissa is not purple? If they dont find a purple large actress with white hair to play Ursula then i cannot see this movie and will boycott it. I will spend a great deal of my time being angry about the casting of this fictional character and argue who doesnt agree. I am not racist against white people I just think that the purple people deserve their fair shot at playing this role.
They should paint the black Ariel white then, and give her red hair . And fixed. Everyone happy
Load More Replies...People are mad that a black person is playing a mermaid and I’m just dissapointed that they didn’t cast a drag queen to play Ursula, a character who was based off a drag queen in the first place :/
I love this. These people have no problem with a movie about mermaids. But a BLACK mermaid, that's where they draw the line, damn it.
It’s not about it being a black mermaid. It’s about the fact that Ariel is an extremely popular character and has a very distinctive look. Fans don’t want to see a yellow Sonic the Hedgehog or blue Pikachu or orange Ursula or neon green Mystique or for storm to have neon yellow hair. They just want live counterparts of their favorite fictional cartoons to look exactly like the cartoon. Same with books. There would have been backlash if HBO Game of Thrones gave Khaleesi blue hair. Not everyone is some sort of bigot just because they want it to be as close to the cartoon as possible. Its not like this is some random mermaid movie with new characters. There are also plenty of pale redheads who have said they got bullied for being such and that Ariel made them feel beautiful and represented. Either way, I do think some people are doing way too much and it’s not that serious. I think this young woman will win people over with her song renditions.
Load More Replies...WOW this is the most stupid argument I have ever seen. Using science on a fictional character. Damn, don't you ppl have anything else to do ?
imagine the outrage if they made a live remake of Princess and The Frog with a white Tiana.
Black washing is just as bad as white washing, can't ppl just respect the etnicities according to their respective stories? I wont be expecting to see Simba being a tiger in the lion king, or Di Caprio starring a movie as Martin Luther King, ppl and Disney are taking the "inclusion" troupe to super b******t levels. What's gonna be tomorrow? Something like "Hey i know: lets do Rapunzel with a bald girl" "Wait we cannot do that" "Why not are you discriminating bald girls uh?!" Its just common sense, i hate people taking out the "racist" card for everything nowadays.
Are you serious with this nonsense? MLK was a REAL person, of course you couldn't have Leo portraying him. Of course one would not cast a tiger for the LION KING...his being a lion is pivotal to the story. Rapunzel having hair was a pretty big part of the story so all of your "examples" are horrible and completely irrelevant. What does Ariel being a white, redhead have to do with the story?? NOTHING. NADA. NOT A DAMN THING. Until you can come up with a REASON, you know, a storyline that makes her whiteness and red-headedness pivotal to the story....you are just being racist and no amount of indignation or your contempt for 'inclusion" will change that, Julio.
Load More Replies...Okay, Mulan being black would be weird, because China is important to her story. At no point is it important for Arial to be white.... maybe, maybe she should still have red hair...because it makes her stand out among the other princesses.
I agree. I kinda hope they give her hair a red tint to help her stand out. Her skin colour matters not.
Load More Replies...There were quite a few threads on Twitter about how this remake would "ruin their childhoods" and I just had to ask if they ever wondered how many children of color had childhoods "ruined" because they grew up without any Disney princesses that represented them. I doubt they considered that.
and to think that most of white people are fine with turning Jesus white and christian🤷♀️ but a black mermaid is "unrealistic"
Just a note: white people have dominated every form of media since its inception. White actors have played people of color in films and tv also since their inception. Folks need to take a step back and realize that for the film industry, though small, this is progress. Mermaids aren't even real, so get over yourselves.
To hell with the science of it, I've seen people saying it "ruins the original story/Ariel is Danish" Well... I hardly doubt bright red hair and an american accent is common in Denmark now is it? And if you're bothered by the "real story" then you shouldn't even like the original disney film either, considering in the real Hans Christian Andersen story she dissolves into sea foam and "dies" in the end, becoming a spirit who has to earn an immortal soul by doing good deeds for 300 years iirc. Not exactly the happy prince/princess ending disney gave us.
Well lets c,, they dont exist so they can be any color the studio wants.
Can these scientific people explain me why a gold fish is colored like gold?? That would be interesting...
She can be black,White, Green or orange with pink spots because MERMAIDS ARE MADE UP YOU PATHETIC RACIST F***S! Get over yourselves , it is a story written about a made up creature , turned into an animation for kids re made in film form, you really need to dial down the pointless anger.
Disney is a highly progressive company. She could have been black and lesbian knowing Disney. Anyway, you either get past their casting choice or. . . .don't see the movie.
It would so much easier and save so much time and effort if you would just say you don't want Ariel to be black because you're racist. We all know it has nothing to do with science or "ruining your childhood". You don't have a "black friend". You're not fooling anybody. We all know the real reason why you're all bent out of shape over the casting of a fictional character. So if you're going to be a petty racist, the least you can do is be honest about it.
Did they notice they're talking about creatures that do not exist?
Omg, seriously. Get over it, some people will find anything and everything go b***h about. I don’t care if Ariel is played by a white red head, a person of colour with dark hair, an albino or frankenfurter from rocky horror picture show. I am still looking forward to the movie release.
Scientifically these people aren't even correct - the only albino fish are at the very bottom of the ocean, and Ariel lives in a place where the sun still reaches her. Therefore she shouldn't be albino. I do agree with one of the other commenters though, I hope her sisters look similar to her or else it wouldn't make sense.
Honestly a more useful argument is arguing how ariel pees and poops. Go take you racism and leave b
A white person isn't allowed to play a black character or adopt any aspect of black culture in fear of culturally appropriating. A straight person is also not allowed to play a trans character. Why then is an originally Danish character allowed to be changed completely?
Red heads get over it. We're not a dying breed. We're white and privileged and a very cool genetic variation. Black Ariel takes nothing away from that. Plus isn't that kind of cool? Diversity is awesome.
Yes, diversity IS awesome, but people have more "connection" to the original character because that's what they grew up with. If there was a white Tiana, people would backlash.
Load More Replies...I think she is beautiful and will make an amazing mermaid. Not all fish are white, the sea is full of colours
My only issue with her playing Ariel is that it's not consistent with the animated version. Disney went extremely far and tried extremely hard to accurately portray Middle Eastern culture and appearance in Alladin. They had Middle Eastern actors and clothing. In every other love action Disney film they have stayed true to the appearance of the animated character. When it comes down to it, Ariel is a white red head. Just as Princess Jasmin is a Middle Eastern woman with black hair and Tiana is an African American with black hair. It's not the fact that she is black that people are getting upset. It's because this is clearly a marketing scheme to get media attention for "portraying the black community." All it's doing is pretending like making Ariel black will fix racial issues. Make new princesses to create the equal representation we all want to see. Don't rewrite the casting of old classics.
Love action Disney film?? Not sure I want to watch that!
Load More Replies...So much b******t on a post about fictional creatures. Sooooo muuuuch b******t.
It’s not about it being a black mermaid. It’s about the fact that Ariel is an extremely popular character and has a very distinctive look. Fans don’t want to see a yellow Sonic the Hedgehog or blue Pikachu or orange Ursula or neon green Mystique or for storm to have neon yellow hair. They just want live counterparts of their favorite fictional cartoons to look exactly like the cartoon. Same with books. There would have been backlash if HBO Game of Thrones gave Khaleesi blue hair. Not everyone is some sort of bigot just because they want it to be as close to the cartoon as possible. Its not like this is some random mermaid movie with new characters. There are also plenty of pale redheads who have said they got bullied for being such and that Ariel made them feel beautiful and represented. Either way, I do think some people are doing way too much and it’s not that serious. I think this young woman will win people over with her song renditions.
But The Little Mermaid existed in a story that had little description of her appearance. The Disney animation is just one representation of her and there have been others. Sonic the Hedgehog et al were created with a set image. Khaleesi was described in the book but they didn't force her to wear the contact lenses to get her eyes the right colour - no-one made a fuss about that. There are plenty of pale redheads who didn't have their life impacted by The Little Mermaid for even a second. None of the argments people keep coming up with have any logic behind them.
Load More Replies...Kacia and Tamar Q Barbash hit the nail on the head. I'm surprised how many armchair experts there are out there these days. Idiots trying to excuse racism with grade school levels of science. Suspects getting arrested that become instant lawyers whose legal education consists of watching Law & Order on TV. People that act like they were sent by Jesus Himself to preach God and Christianity to people they perceive as sinners with a hate and disdain that makes me think they need to fix themselves first before trying to fix anyone else. I'm fed up with the lack of empathy and compassion in people. Stop being such douchebags and pretend to be human for a change.
Fish has Scales, not skin, these people have no brain, it's normal they reach to call racism every time they can.
these people are crazy!! you are not automatically black because you live in Hawaii and believe it or not... Black people can live in Alaska... yes it's true.. Plus with this jacked up reasoning, wouldn't you think that the sunlight reflection on the water would make it especially important to have some sun protection when surfacing???? But only above the waist.. duh duh duh.... But... who doesn't remember that these are fantasy creations.. Ya'll are culturally blind and obtuse
This is a pure commercial move... wait not! Its a Satan's plan for destroy the white race!
This is just another case of black actors taking jobs from mythical creatures. Why couldn’t they have cast an actual mermaid? It’s Hollywood black washing at its purest.
This really is laughable. All the objectors basically saying I'm not being racist... but... but... Grow up for goodness sake
Personally I would like to see Ariel coloured like a parrot fish. Many reef fish are highly coloured with stunning patterns so why not use this type of coloration for mermaid skin. When she gets turned into a human by the sea witch she can choose what kind of human skin colour she wants.
I didn't see anyone getting upset when Aquaman when from blonde haired and blue eyes to well Jason Momoa.
did we all just forget that sunlight still reaches underwater? you have to go like really really for there not to be sun
Alhought it's just a cheap marketing thing and a stupid race issue nowadays the result is that young black girls can now have princess to reflect and that's a great thing for a child perspective nothing to argue about. Hope it's a good version all together. But for JEBUS sake all you "adults" over there complaining about it's just a FKING fictional character for crying out loud...
If science was so important (in the context of the story), why are they arguing about the colour of mermaids, instead of arguing that they don't even exist? Seems a bit silly to me. Personally, I couln't care less. :)
What’s next? Mulan is a latino man who identifies as a Chinese woman who’s struggling to get accepted in a male dominated chinese army? Why can’t we just let the old storylines be the old storylines, and make up new movies/cartoons that includes all that PC stuff?
While I admit, I was kinda bummed that they decided to go a different direction than the Ariel I grew up with, I think she looks like a better choice than Chloe was. However, I still cannot see Melissa as Ursula. Not sure if that's confirmed yet or not but I just don't think she can fill those shoes (er, tentacles). And I really like her as an actress but I was kinda hoping for a drag queen or a man...I've seen some pretty awesome interpretations of "Poor Unfortunate Souls". I just hope whoever gets that role can bring the "extra" lol.
People try to prove Ariel couldn't be black with science, but science never proves Ariel exists
Can we just say "we are applying social constructs to a mythical creature" amd stop being ridiculous? Are we really so hard up for legitimate things to be divided over and outraged by that we are giving this nonsense validity?
Do you remember when all people cared about was whether she had a cleavage?
I would love to see a black mermaid. See what she adds to the character and what changes. Just like what will smith did in Aladdin.
A mermaid can be black. But Ariel is white with ginger hair. I've never seen a ginger black person. Why not make Ariel a black male merman instead. Why not make Mulan a black persons from Alabama and have Tiana a kid from Korea. It's bad enough they are messing with our childhood by making these live action movies but to then change the characters. Technically, if they are going to change anything it should be the hair - the little mermaid is supposed to be a white blond mermaid.
Her hair colour is not mentioned in the story.
Load More Replies...I bet if there were real mermaids they would be hideous. They would have those creepy staring fish eyes.
Alright, I'm tossing my 2 cents. Ariel's skin color doesn't matter. I'm a white woman raised on Disney movies, Little Mermaid included, and I'm genuinely excited to see a black mermaid brought into the mainstream of media. I've seen a few other black mermaids that weren't main characters but they were still there. Disney Studios has really been using CGI for many of their more recent films which means Ariel could be pasty as a mermaid but is then given darker skin after octo-witch turns her human to further confuse our belovedly dumb prince, really making that poor girl work for that spark of recognition. Now I shall sit by, waiting for previews and release dates. Everyone else can bicker among themselves. Have a nice day.
It really only bothers me that Ariel is black in the remake because in the original movie she is NOT . If they made a black Disney character white in a remake people would lose their s**t ! Make a new movie and have a black main character. I think its racist that they changed her to black. To me, it seems like a RIP off, not a remake
If you were talking about films about real people this would make sense. If they cast a black person to play Freddie Mercury or a white one to play Muhammad Ali - that would be wrong. Fictional characters, particularly of fictional species, are totally up for grabs. The original movie Disney animation is not the only portrayal of The Little Mermaid. This story has been dramatised many times and she didn't have red hair in any of the other ones I've seen. I've seen The Little Matchgirl played by a young black actress. These are not real people.
Load More Replies...Ok, I just found the Solution. Just hear me out, k? So people argue about Arielle beeing black or white? Just use King Solomons way. Take a third option. And since Disney has the rights on StarWars anyway, that third option is: Jaja Binks! Thats right, Jaja Binks the Mermaid. And you can adapt it for other scenarios as well. Dont like LGBT(Q and whatever letter you need to insert..)-stuff in your Avengers Movie? No problemo, we just call it JaJa's Bink-team and replace every questionable main character with a different version of Jaja Binks. And dont forget US Elections 2020. Americase makse greatse again! Jaja for Presidentse
Scientificaly, european homo sapiens was black during the period following his migration from africa to europe. And a his exposition to weaker sun rays provoked an evolution of the pigmentation of his skin. With the time, actual black people could follow the same evolution if they stay in these territories. However, the motivation to realise a black Ariel is not an hazardous nor neutral scenaristic realisation, it's by racialist ideological militantism, and we may easily qualify this attitude with a word for that: racism… And the fact to make play a character of an occidental legend by black actors, it's a kind of cultural appropriation, no? 😇
I am not opposing the black mermaid thing, but I would like to emphasise that this story is from Denmark, written in the 1800s where the black population were basically non-existent. H.C. Andersen never intended her to be black, but then again, Disney has sugar coated the story to fit their needs, so why not change the main character entirely as well? As other before me said, it could be so cool if Disney just made more stories with non-white main characters.
People don’t even wanna talk about actual issues happening around the world and they want to ARGUE about a goddamn Disney movie? Call me when they start acting their age.smh
Good grief - you'll never hear from anyone ever again!!
Load More Replies...Changing Ariel's race changes the race of the other characters as well. I would assume King Triton and her sisters will all need to be African American now also.
Or all black. They don't have to necessarily be American actors.
Load More Replies...If she can be half fish and live underwater, I see no problem with her being purple or pink.
Hmmm, a tough one... needed to consult a second opinion ... The Professor of my choice quoted a convincing theory: https://youtu.be/4lnr8THgL5k
How bout the old mermaid is tired of having a pale skin and does sunbathing everyday to become this black? #blackissexy
The fact that the posters are focusing on black and white as if those two are the only colored aquatic animals is just to comfort their hidden racism. No one argued why Ariel isn't the color of a bluetang or clown fish. I shouldn't have said that. Some Disney exec might read that idea and now we'll have The Little Mermaid 2: Finding Ariel. SCIENCE BE PRAISED
Yet there's fish of black, grey and all dark shades in the sea, just not mermaids
LOL So why are octopi (sp?), who live on the f*****g sea floor, BROWN to BLACK??? I love the way they snowflakes are melting down.😂
Why people complaining so much about this? Why so racist, huh? Mermaid can be White, Black, Asian, Indian, or others! Don't overthinking it. You'll forget about this in 3 months after the movie release, anyway. So move on!
I have no issue with a black mermaid, not at all. My only concern is that if Disney is trying to put a black actress into the original Little Mermaid just to make it culturally diverse, it would be an extreme disgrace to the African culture. A fairy tale is not only a fictional story for kids, but it also reflects a lot of cultural aspects, such as beliefs, languages and history of a region. Africa has a rich and diverse culture, there must be a lot of cultural materials to make an interesting story. Why don't they make a new character that has a deep connection with African culture, a prince/princess/whatever with African cultural root that can proudly represent African cultures? For instance, a movie about Mami Wata - a water goddess in Africa, who usually appears in the form of a half-fish woman. I love such movies as Moana, Coco and Mulan, in which the original cultures (Hawaiian, Mexican and Chinese) are presented splendidly and accurately, so the Hawaiian/Mexican/Chinese audiences can feel extremely relatable.
Honestly i get why people are mad, but it doesnt matter that much anyway
Keep making these articles saying only racists has problems with your 62715th remake sure will make people love your 62715th remake. /sarcasm
Kinda funny when white males complain we are labeled fanboys and man babies..it's about time for white female characters to be recast for diversity sake..I'm all for a black lil mermaid
So diverse they had to delete the only redhead they had.... *eyeroll* I'm not against a black Ariel, but personally I'd rather watch new princesses in new adventures with various skin colours and face features. Now that would be fair, progressive and finally some new content.
Load More Replies...Even more ironic..she is black but has traditionally white features including straight hair
Since when is straight hair a white trait? What about Asian people, I'm pretty sure straight hair is normal there
Load More Replies...To me, this is just Disney trying to shake it up a little for extra income. Myself I do not like original characters being tampered with and changed. One of the reasons I have a hard time watching movies of books I've loved. Everyone fell in love with the red headed mermaid with her fiery rebellious nature. I just wish Disney would create new concept movies, instead of all this rehashing of originals.
Her portrayal as a redhead is not the original character though.
Load More Replies...Forget about all the “science” arguments. Hollywood is Left and because of that they live in a politically correct bubble. I’m sure the next Spider-Man movie will have Peter Parker as an Eskimo.
Confused about the word Eskimo? It's a commonly used term referring to the native peoples of Alaska and other Arctic regions, including Siberia, Canada and Greenland. It comes from a Central Algonquian language called Ojibwe, which people still speak around the Great Lakes region on both sides of the U.S.-Canadian border. But the word has a controversial history. (Editor's note: And that's why it's not used in the stories on Greenland that NPR has posted this week.) People in many parts of the Arctic consider Eskimo a derogatory term because it was widely used by racist, non-native colonizers. Many people also thought it meant eater of raw meat, which connoted barbarism and violence. Although the word's exact etymology is unclear, mid-century anthropologists suggested that the word came from the Latin word excommunicati, meaning the excommunicated ones, because the native people of the Canadian Arctic were not Christian. But now there's a new theory. According to the Alaska Native Language Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, linguists believe the word Eskimo actually came from the French word esquimaux, meaning one who nets snowshoes. Netting snowshoes is the highly-precise way that Arctic peoples built winter footwear by tightly weaving, or netting, sinew from caribou or other animals across a wooden frame. But the correction to the etymological record came too late to rehabilitate the word Eskimo. The word's racist history means most people in Canada and Greenland still prefer other terms. The most widespread is Inuit, which means simply, "people." The singular, which means "person," is Inuk. Of course, as with so many words sullied by the crimes of colonialism, not everyone agrees on what to do with Eskimo. Many Native Alaskans still refer to themselves as Eskimos, in part because the word Inuit isn't part of the Yupik languages of Alaska and Siberia. But unless you're native to the circumpolar region, the short answer is: You probably shouldn't use the word Eskimo. https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2016/04/24/475129558/why-you-probably-shouldnt-say-eskimo
Load More Replies...You live in a country with no racists? What country is that?
Load More Replies...Okay. A mermaid can be Black or White. Literally does not matter other than, I think, for the viewers to have a better connection with the character. I am completely for that, but I think it would be better to make NEW stories, NEW movies, NEW CHARACTERS to emphasize change and connection with the audience. Let's make less of the remakes and bring in new princess stories, one that can bring in women (HECK, I WANNA SEE A PRINCE MOVIE FOR ONCE) of color and different ethnicities. Yes, we have Tiana in "Princess and the Frog" and Mulan in "Mulan," but I think making new shows/movies based off of a genuine connection to the audience would be better. A lot of the old princess movies were based on European novels and culture, why not try basing NEW princess shows/movies on cultural references from African countries, South American countries, Asian countries, etc. Let's stop changing old characters and start making genuine new ones.
Discussing the fact that Ariel has a belly button makes more sense to me :-)
Seriously? This is the third article on the subject in the last two days and it's not even that big of an issue.
You've forgotten all the hoopla surrounding Finn, the "black" storm trooper, in Star Wars. Haters are always gonna hate.
Load More Replies...Hahahaha - love that Hugh Hoult references Monty Python's The Holy Grail to question Ariel's clam shell bra! Hmmm, so where did she get the twine? "A five ounce bird could not carry a one pound coconut!" Please, science cannot be applied to mythical creatures!
I started laughing a lot when I was reading his comments XD
Load More Replies...Ok, first of all...mermaids go to the surface of the water and get plenty of sunlight! But that doesn't mean anything because they aren't real!! Secondly, none of these people...NONE of these people have even thought about Ariel since they were kids. They are just racists who are excited to have a "reason" to be racist out loud. Its pathetic
So pathetic. One guy on Twitter said he was so angry he was boycotting with his family because Ariel should be a red head and it had nothing to do with race. When someone responded and asked if he would also boycott if they had cast a white, blonde actress....there was no response. LOL. This is not about her not being a "red head" it is about her being Black...and they know it. If they slap a red wig on her or dyes her hair red, they will STILL moan and groan about it.
Load More Replies...Using SCIENCE to disprove the colour of a MYTHICAL creature? That's just sad.
They are right. She would also have to have gills, layers of blubber, her eyes placed on the side of her head like a fish, no hair (can get caught in things, no evolutionary advantage), probably no arms, because they get in the way of swimming like a fish, no neck or a much smaller head for more balanced swimming, and wait, that's just a regular fish.
Yes, scientifically mermaids would have to be fat to keep their bodies insulated in the sea
Load More Replies...First, there are a lot of very dark-colored fish in the sea; the fact that they live underwater doesn't turn them white. Mammals that live in the water, like whales, are also fairly dark skinned. I guess mermaids should be dark gray. But I'll tell you what, bigot-guys. We'll let the mermaids be white as soon as you ditch Surfer Dude Jesus and portray him as a Jewish man born in Bethlehem and raised in the town of Nazareth, in Galilee (formerly Palestine, now northern Israel) during the first century A.D. That would be with dark brown to black hair, olive skin, and brown eyes. How's that work for you?
I think it depends on the primary environment that the sea creature lives in. There are certain sea creatures that are mostly white... but very few of them (Belugas come to mind). They live in the arctic where a pale colour makes sense for camouflage. This whole argument that 'she has to be white, because lack of sun' is so ridiculous. If anything, in the depths that she's living in... I think most of the sea creatures are DARKER in colour. Unless she lives in the MIDNIGHT ZONE, she wouldn't be pale. xD Now I'm picturing a pale Ariel, looking like a sad blobfish when she finally reaches the surface. If anything, it makes more sense for her to be darker skinned.
Load More Replies...Honestly! This is a MOVIE. It is also DISNEY. Science (and logic) doesn’t seem to apply with Disney. A movie does not have to represent real life.
IKR? The ear/head ratio in their flagship character is way off.
Load More Replies...First mermaids are not real, Ariel is a fictional character who does not exist AT ALL. But if everyone wants to portray the live action movie as correctly as possible, why isnt anyone standing up for the purple people. Why isnt anyone discussing the fact that Melissa McCarthy is set to play Ursula and Melissa is not purple? If they dont find a purple large actress with white hair to play Ursula then i cannot see this movie and will boycott it. I will spend a great deal of my time being angry about the casting of this fictional character and argue who doesnt agree. I am not racist against white people I just think that the purple people deserve their fair shot at playing this role.
They should paint the black Ariel white then, and give her red hair . And fixed. Everyone happy
Load More Replies...People are mad that a black person is playing a mermaid and I’m just dissapointed that they didn’t cast a drag queen to play Ursula, a character who was based off a drag queen in the first place :/
I love this. These people have no problem with a movie about mermaids. But a BLACK mermaid, that's where they draw the line, damn it.
It’s not about it being a black mermaid. It’s about the fact that Ariel is an extremely popular character and has a very distinctive look. Fans don’t want to see a yellow Sonic the Hedgehog or blue Pikachu or orange Ursula or neon green Mystique or for storm to have neon yellow hair. They just want live counterparts of their favorite fictional cartoons to look exactly like the cartoon. Same with books. There would have been backlash if HBO Game of Thrones gave Khaleesi blue hair. Not everyone is some sort of bigot just because they want it to be as close to the cartoon as possible. Its not like this is some random mermaid movie with new characters. There are also plenty of pale redheads who have said they got bullied for being such and that Ariel made them feel beautiful and represented. Either way, I do think some people are doing way too much and it’s not that serious. I think this young woman will win people over with her song renditions.
Load More Replies...WOW this is the most stupid argument I have ever seen. Using science on a fictional character. Damn, don't you ppl have anything else to do ?
imagine the outrage if they made a live remake of Princess and The Frog with a white Tiana.
Black washing is just as bad as white washing, can't ppl just respect the etnicities according to their respective stories? I wont be expecting to see Simba being a tiger in the lion king, or Di Caprio starring a movie as Martin Luther King, ppl and Disney are taking the "inclusion" troupe to super b******t levels. What's gonna be tomorrow? Something like "Hey i know: lets do Rapunzel with a bald girl" "Wait we cannot do that" "Why not are you discriminating bald girls uh?!" Its just common sense, i hate people taking out the "racist" card for everything nowadays.
Are you serious with this nonsense? MLK was a REAL person, of course you couldn't have Leo portraying him. Of course one would not cast a tiger for the LION KING...his being a lion is pivotal to the story. Rapunzel having hair was a pretty big part of the story so all of your "examples" are horrible and completely irrelevant. What does Ariel being a white, redhead have to do with the story?? NOTHING. NADA. NOT A DAMN THING. Until you can come up with a REASON, you know, a storyline that makes her whiteness and red-headedness pivotal to the story....you are just being racist and no amount of indignation or your contempt for 'inclusion" will change that, Julio.
Load More Replies...Okay, Mulan being black would be weird, because China is important to her story. At no point is it important for Arial to be white.... maybe, maybe she should still have red hair...because it makes her stand out among the other princesses.
I agree. I kinda hope they give her hair a red tint to help her stand out. Her skin colour matters not.
Load More Replies...There were quite a few threads on Twitter about how this remake would "ruin their childhoods" and I just had to ask if they ever wondered how many children of color had childhoods "ruined" because they grew up without any Disney princesses that represented them. I doubt they considered that.
and to think that most of white people are fine with turning Jesus white and christian🤷♀️ but a black mermaid is "unrealistic"
Just a note: white people have dominated every form of media since its inception. White actors have played people of color in films and tv also since their inception. Folks need to take a step back and realize that for the film industry, though small, this is progress. Mermaids aren't even real, so get over yourselves.
To hell with the science of it, I've seen people saying it "ruins the original story/Ariel is Danish" Well... I hardly doubt bright red hair and an american accent is common in Denmark now is it? And if you're bothered by the "real story" then you shouldn't even like the original disney film either, considering in the real Hans Christian Andersen story she dissolves into sea foam and "dies" in the end, becoming a spirit who has to earn an immortal soul by doing good deeds for 300 years iirc. Not exactly the happy prince/princess ending disney gave us.
Well lets c,, they dont exist so they can be any color the studio wants.
Can these scientific people explain me why a gold fish is colored like gold?? That would be interesting...
She can be black,White, Green or orange with pink spots because MERMAIDS ARE MADE UP YOU PATHETIC RACIST F***S! Get over yourselves , it is a story written about a made up creature , turned into an animation for kids re made in film form, you really need to dial down the pointless anger.
Disney is a highly progressive company. She could have been black and lesbian knowing Disney. Anyway, you either get past their casting choice or. . . .don't see the movie.
It would so much easier and save so much time and effort if you would just say you don't want Ariel to be black because you're racist. We all know it has nothing to do with science or "ruining your childhood". You don't have a "black friend". You're not fooling anybody. We all know the real reason why you're all bent out of shape over the casting of a fictional character. So if you're going to be a petty racist, the least you can do is be honest about it.
Did they notice they're talking about creatures that do not exist?
Omg, seriously. Get over it, some people will find anything and everything go b***h about. I don’t care if Ariel is played by a white red head, a person of colour with dark hair, an albino or frankenfurter from rocky horror picture show. I am still looking forward to the movie release.
Scientifically these people aren't even correct - the only albino fish are at the very bottom of the ocean, and Ariel lives in a place where the sun still reaches her. Therefore she shouldn't be albino. I do agree with one of the other commenters though, I hope her sisters look similar to her or else it wouldn't make sense.
Honestly a more useful argument is arguing how ariel pees and poops. Go take you racism and leave b
A white person isn't allowed to play a black character or adopt any aspect of black culture in fear of culturally appropriating. A straight person is also not allowed to play a trans character. Why then is an originally Danish character allowed to be changed completely?
Red heads get over it. We're not a dying breed. We're white and privileged and a very cool genetic variation. Black Ariel takes nothing away from that. Plus isn't that kind of cool? Diversity is awesome.
Yes, diversity IS awesome, but people have more "connection" to the original character because that's what they grew up with. If there was a white Tiana, people would backlash.
Load More Replies...I think she is beautiful and will make an amazing mermaid. Not all fish are white, the sea is full of colours
My only issue with her playing Ariel is that it's not consistent with the animated version. Disney went extremely far and tried extremely hard to accurately portray Middle Eastern culture and appearance in Alladin. They had Middle Eastern actors and clothing. In every other love action Disney film they have stayed true to the appearance of the animated character. When it comes down to it, Ariel is a white red head. Just as Princess Jasmin is a Middle Eastern woman with black hair and Tiana is an African American with black hair. It's not the fact that she is black that people are getting upset. It's because this is clearly a marketing scheme to get media attention for "portraying the black community." All it's doing is pretending like making Ariel black will fix racial issues. Make new princesses to create the equal representation we all want to see. Don't rewrite the casting of old classics.
Love action Disney film?? Not sure I want to watch that!
Load More Replies...So much b******t on a post about fictional creatures. Sooooo muuuuch b******t.
It’s not about it being a black mermaid. It’s about the fact that Ariel is an extremely popular character and has a very distinctive look. Fans don’t want to see a yellow Sonic the Hedgehog or blue Pikachu or orange Ursula or neon green Mystique or for storm to have neon yellow hair. They just want live counterparts of their favorite fictional cartoons to look exactly like the cartoon. Same with books. There would have been backlash if HBO Game of Thrones gave Khaleesi blue hair. Not everyone is some sort of bigot just because they want it to be as close to the cartoon as possible. Its not like this is some random mermaid movie with new characters. There are also plenty of pale redheads who have said they got bullied for being such and that Ariel made them feel beautiful and represented. Either way, I do think some people are doing way too much and it’s not that serious. I think this young woman will win people over with her song renditions.
But The Little Mermaid existed in a story that had little description of her appearance. The Disney animation is just one representation of her and there have been others. Sonic the Hedgehog et al were created with a set image. Khaleesi was described in the book but they didn't force her to wear the contact lenses to get her eyes the right colour - no-one made a fuss about that. There are plenty of pale redheads who didn't have their life impacted by The Little Mermaid for even a second. None of the argments people keep coming up with have any logic behind them.
Load More Replies...Kacia and Tamar Q Barbash hit the nail on the head. I'm surprised how many armchair experts there are out there these days. Idiots trying to excuse racism with grade school levels of science. Suspects getting arrested that become instant lawyers whose legal education consists of watching Law & Order on TV. People that act like they were sent by Jesus Himself to preach God and Christianity to people they perceive as sinners with a hate and disdain that makes me think they need to fix themselves first before trying to fix anyone else. I'm fed up with the lack of empathy and compassion in people. Stop being such douchebags and pretend to be human for a change.
Fish has Scales, not skin, these people have no brain, it's normal they reach to call racism every time they can.
these people are crazy!! you are not automatically black because you live in Hawaii and believe it or not... Black people can live in Alaska... yes it's true.. Plus with this jacked up reasoning, wouldn't you think that the sunlight reflection on the water would make it especially important to have some sun protection when surfacing???? But only above the waist.. duh duh duh.... But... who doesn't remember that these are fantasy creations.. Ya'll are culturally blind and obtuse
This is a pure commercial move... wait not! Its a Satan's plan for destroy the white race!
This is just another case of black actors taking jobs from mythical creatures. Why couldn’t they have cast an actual mermaid? It’s Hollywood black washing at its purest.
This really is laughable. All the objectors basically saying I'm not being racist... but... but... Grow up for goodness sake
Personally I would like to see Ariel coloured like a parrot fish. Many reef fish are highly coloured with stunning patterns so why not use this type of coloration for mermaid skin. When she gets turned into a human by the sea witch she can choose what kind of human skin colour she wants.
I didn't see anyone getting upset when Aquaman when from blonde haired and blue eyes to well Jason Momoa.
did we all just forget that sunlight still reaches underwater? you have to go like really really for there not to be sun
Alhought it's just a cheap marketing thing and a stupid race issue nowadays the result is that young black girls can now have princess to reflect and that's a great thing for a child perspective nothing to argue about. Hope it's a good version all together. But for JEBUS sake all you "adults" over there complaining about it's just a FKING fictional character for crying out loud...
If science was so important (in the context of the story), why are they arguing about the colour of mermaids, instead of arguing that they don't even exist? Seems a bit silly to me. Personally, I couln't care less. :)
What’s next? Mulan is a latino man who identifies as a Chinese woman who’s struggling to get accepted in a male dominated chinese army? Why can’t we just let the old storylines be the old storylines, and make up new movies/cartoons that includes all that PC stuff?
While I admit, I was kinda bummed that they decided to go a different direction than the Ariel I grew up with, I think she looks like a better choice than Chloe was. However, I still cannot see Melissa as Ursula. Not sure if that's confirmed yet or not but I just don't think she can fill those shoes (er, tentacles). And I really like her as an actress but I was kinda hoping for a drag queen or a man...I've seen some pretty awesome interpretations of "Poor Unfortunate Souls". I just hope whoever gets that role can bring the "extra" lol.
People try to prove Ariel couldn't be black with science, but science never proves Ariel exists
Can we just say "we are applying social constructs to a mythical creature" amd stop being ridiculous? Are we really so hard up for legitimate things to be divided over and outraged by that we are giving this nonsense validity?
Do you remember when all people cared about was whether she had a cleavage?
I would love to see a black mermaid. See what she adds to the character and what changes. Just like what will smith did in Aladdin.
A mermaid can be black. But Ariel is white with ginger hair. I've never seen a ginger black person. Why not make Ariel a black male merman instead. Why not make Mulan a black persons from Alabama and have Tiana a kid from Korea. It's bad enough they are messing with our childhood by making these live action movies but to then change the characters. Technically, if they are going to change anything it should be the hair - the little mermaid is supposed to be a white blond mermaid.
Her hair colour is not mentioned in the story.
Load More Replies...I bet if there were real mermaids they would be hideous. They would have those creepy staring fish eyes.
Alright, I'm tossing my 2 cents. Ariel's skin color doesn't matter. I'm a white woman raised on Disney movies, Little Mermaid included, and I'm genuinely excited to see a black mermaid brought into the mainstream of media. I've seen a few other black mermaids that weren't main characters but they were still there. Disney Studios has really been using CGI for many of their more recent films which means Ariel could be pasty as a mermaid but is then given darker skin after octo-witch turns her human to further confuse our belovedly dumb prince, really making that poor girl work for that spark of recognition. Now I shall sit by, waiting for previews and release dates. Everyone else can bicker among themselves. Have a nice day.
It really only bothers me that Ariel is black in the remake because in the original movie she is NOT . If they made a black Disney character white in a remake people would lose their s**t ! Make a new movie and have a black main character. I think its racist that they changed her to black. To me, it seems like a RIP off, not a remake
If you were talking about films about real people this would make sense. If they cast a black person to play Freddie Mercury or a white one to play Muhammad Ali - that would be wrong. Fictional characters, particularly of fictional species, are totally up for grabs. The original movie Disney animation is not the only portrayal of The Little Mermaid. This story has been dramatised many times and she didn't have red hair in any of the other ones I've seen. I've seen The Little Matchgirl played by a young black actress. These are not real people.
Load More Replies...Ok, I just found the Solution. Just hear me out, k? So people argue about Arielle beeing black or white? Just use King Solomons way. Take a third option. And since Disney has the rights on StarWars anyway, that third option is: Jaja Binks! Thats right, Jaja Binks the Mermaid. And you can adapt it for other scenarios as well. Dont like LGBT(Q and whatever letter you need to insert..)-stuff in your Avengers Movie? No problemo, we just call it JaJa's Bink-team and replace every questionable main character with a different version of Jaja Binks. And dont forget US Elections 2020. Americase makse greatse again! Jaja for Presidentse
Scientificaly, european homo sapiens was black during the period following his migration from africa to europe. And a his exposition to weaker sun rays provoked an evolution of the pigmentation of his skin. With the time, actual black people could follow the same evolution if they stay in these territories. However, the motivation to realise a black Ariel is not an hazardous nor neutral scenaristic realisation, it's by racialist ideological militantism, and we may easily qualify this attitude with a word for that: racism… And the fact to make play a character of an occidental legend by black actors, it's a kind of cultural appropriation, no? 😇
I am not opposing the black mermaid thing, but I would like to emphasise that this story is from Denmark, written in the 1800s where the black population were basically non-existent. H.C. Andersen never intended her to be black, but then again, Disney has sugar coated the story to fit their needs, so why not change the main character entirely as well? As other before me said, it could be so cool if Disney just made more stories with non-white main characters.
People don’t even wanna talk about actual issues happening around the world and they want to ARGUE about a goddamn Disney movie? Call me when they start acting their age.smh
Good grief - you'll never hear from anyone ever again!!
Load More Replies...Changing Ariel's race changes the race of the other characters as well. I would assume King Triton and her sisters will all need to be African American now also.
Or all black. They don't have to necessarily be American actors.
Load More Replies...If she can be half fish and live underwater, I see no problem with her being purple or pink.
Hmmm, a tough one... needed to consult a second opinion ... The Professor of my choice quoted a convincing theory: https://youtu.be/4lnr8THgL5k
How bout the old mermaid is tired of having a pale skin and does sunbathing everyday to become this black? #blackissexy
The fact that the posters are focusing on black and white as if those two are the only colored aquatic animals is just to comfort their hidden racism. No one argued why Ariel isn't the color of a bluetang or clown fish. I shouldn't have said that. Some Disney exec might read that idea and now we'll have The Little Mermaid 2: Finding Ariel. SCIENCE BE PRAISED
Yet there's fish of black, grey and all dark shades in the sea, just not mermaids
LOL So why are octopi (sp?), who live on the f*****g sea floor, BROWN to BLACK??? I love the way they snowflakes are melting down.😂
Why people complaining so much about this? Why so racist, huh? Mermaid can be White, Black, Asian, Indian, or others! Don't overthinking it. You'll forget about this in 3 months after the movie release, anyway. So move on!
I have no issue with a black mermaid, not at all. My only concern is that if Disney is trying to put a black actress into the original Little Mermaid just to make it culturally diverse, it would be an extreme disgrace to the African culture. A fairy tale is not only a fictional story for kids, but it also reflects a lot of cultural aspects, such as beliefs, languages and history of a region. Africa has a rich and diverse culture, there must be a lot of cultural materials to make an interesting story. Why don't they make a new character that has a deep connection with African culture, a prince/princess/whatever with African cultural root that can proudly represent African cultures? For instance, a movie about Mami Wata - a water goddess in Africa, who usually appears in the form of a half-fish woman. I love such movies as Moana, Coco and Mulan, in which the original cultures (Hawaiian, Mexican and Chinese) are presented splendidly and accurately, so the Hawaiian/Mexican/Chinese audiences can feel extremely relatable.
Honestly i get why people are mad, but it doesnt matter that much anyway
Keep making these articles saying only racists has problems with your 62715th remake sure will make people love your 62715th remake. /sarcasm
Kinda funny when white males complain we are labeled fanboys and man babies..it's about time for white female characters to be recast for diversity sake..I'm all for a black lil mermaid
So diverse they had to delete the only redhead they had.... *eyeroll* I'm not against a black Ariel, but personally I'd rather watch new princesses in new adventures with various skin colours and face features. Now that would be fair, progressive and finally some new content.
Load More Replies...Even more ironic..she is black but has traditionally white features including straight hair
Since when is straight hair a white trait? What about Asian people, I'm pretty sure straight hair is normal there
Load More Replies...To me, this is just Disney trying to shake it up a little for extra income. Myself I do not like original characters being tampered with and changed. One of the reasons I have a hard time watching movies of books I've loved. Everyone fell in love with the red headed mermaid with her fiery rebellious nature. I just wish Disney would create new concept movies, instead of all this rehashing of originals.
Her portrayal as a redhead is not the original character though.
Load More Replies...Forget about all the “science” arguments. Hollywood is Left and because of that they live in a politically correct bubble. I’m sure the next Spider-Man movie will have Peter Parker as an Eskimo.
Confused about the word Eskimo? It's a commonly used term referring to the native peoples of Alaska and other Arctic regions, including Siberia, Canada and Greenland. It comes from a Central Algonquian language called Ojibwe, which people still speak around the Great Lakes region on both sides of the U.S.-Canadian border. But the word has a controversial history. (Editor's note: And that's why it's not used in the stories on Greenland that NPR has posted this week.) People in many parts of the Arctic consider Eskimo a derogatory term because it was widely used by racist, non-native colonizers. Many people also thought it meant eater of raw meat, which connoted barbarism and violence. Although the word's exact etymology is unclear, mid-century anthropologists suggested that the word came from the Latin word excommunicati, meaning the excommunicated ones, because the native people of the Canadian Arctic were not Christian. But now there's a new theory. According to the Alaska Native Language Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, linguists believe the word Eskimo actually came from the French word esquimaux, meaning one who nets snowshoes. Netting snowshoes is the highly-precise way that Arctic peoples built winter footwear by tightly weaving, or netting, sinew from caribou or other animals across a wooden frame. But the correction to the etymological record came too late to rehabilitate the word Eskimo. The word's racist history means most people in Canada and Greenland still prefer other terms. The most widespread is Inuit, which means simply, "people." The singular, which means "person," is Inuk. Of course, as with so many words sullied by the crimes of colonialism, not everyone agrees on what to do with Eskimo. Many Native Alaskans still refer to themselves as Eskimos, in part because the word Inuit isn't part of the Yupik languages of Alaska and Siberia. But unless you're native to the circumpolar region, the short answer is: You probably shouldn't use the word Eskimo. https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2016/04/24/475129558/why-you-probably-shouldnt-say-eskimo
Load More Replies...You live in a country with no racists? What country is that?
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