Variety reports that Halle Bailey’s The Little Mermaid trailer, which was shown to great acclaim at the D23 expo, has been seen more than 104 million times throughout the world. The video begins with breathtaking underwater settings until the Grammy-nominated singer is revealed as the real-life Ariel, performing the heartfelt rendition of “Part of Your World” from The Little Mermaid. In the video, Bailey stuns in a costume similar to that of the animated Ariel, albeit the sea-turquoise colour of her tail and the absence of the purple shell bra make for a more accurate representation of the real world than the cartoon’s green. Composer Alan Menken has worked on several Disney films, including 1989 classic The Little Mermaid, as well as Enchanted, Tangled, and Beauty and the Beast.
Bailey has given the classic song, first sung by Jodi Benson in the 1989 film, her own unique twist. Oscar-winning cinematographer Dion Beebe, whose resume includes such films as Memoirs of a Geisha, the neo-noir Collateral, Miami Vice, and many more, is responsible for the film’s magnificent images. This new trailer has already surpassed the views of the studio’s other recent live-action remakes, including Emma Stone’s Cruella (68 million views), Emma Watson and Dan Stevens’ Beauty and the Beast (94 million views), Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin (starring Will Smith, Mena Massoud, and Naomi Scott), and Angelina Jolie’s Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (74 million views) (62 million views).
Shortly after its release, the clip received widespread acclaim from moviegoers, fans, and reviewers alike for its innovative visual style and top-notch CGI, as well as for the brief yet interesting performance given by Bailey as Ariel. Rob Marshall directed the film, which stars Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric, Noma Dumezweni as the new Queen Selina, Javier Bardem as King Triton, and Melissa McCarthy as Ursula. Besides Daveed Diggs and Awkwafina, the voice cast also includes Jacob Tremblay and him. The release date for The Little Mermaid is set for May 26, 2023.
Synopsis
In “The Little Mermaid,” Halle Bailey portrays Ariel, the youngest daughter of King Triton (Javier Bardem), who rules the country of Atlantis underneath the waves. After saving the attractive Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King) from a shipwreck, Ariel (Julia Roberts) finds herself hopelessly in love with him and decides to meet him in the world above water. As a result of her journey, she finds herself at odds with her father and in Ursula’s clutches, the sea witch (Melissa McCarthy).