Halle Bailey – 1st Look Of Singer As Ariel For Live-Action ‘Little Mermaid’ Surfaces

Halle Bailey – 1st Look Of Singer As Ariel For Live-Action ‘Little Mermaid’ Surfaces

The first look of Halle Bailey on set as Ariel for Disney’s upcoming live-action The Little Mermaid film is making its way across the internet.

In one photo, she’s seen wearing long red braids as she smiles at actor Jonah Hauer-King, 26, who plays King Eric.

Jonah Hauer-King

She’s also sporting a wet suit instead of the animated Ariels’ signature purple bikini top.

In another photo, the Chloe x Halle songstress leans toward him while resting her hand on his stomach.

Crew members were also seen offering direction on the performance. See photos here.

Halle Bailey was first cast as Ariel in July 2019. 

While she faced tons of criticism for landing the role, including a petition that called for her to be pulled, she received support from Halle Berry and grown-ish network Freeform.

It said in a statement:

“Yes. The original author of ‘The Little Mermaid’ was Danish. Ariel…is a mermaid. She lives in an underwater kingdom in international waters and can legit swim wherever she wants (even though that often upsets King Triton, absolute zaddy). But for the sake of argument, let’s say that Ariel too, is Danish. Danish mermaids can be black because Danish *people* can be black.”

It added,

“Ariel can sneak up to the surface at any time with her pals Scuttle and the *ahem* Jamaican crab Sebastian (sorry, Flounder!) and keep that bronze base tight. Black Danish people, and thus mer-folk, can also *genetically* (!!!!) have red hair. But spoiler alert – bring it back to the top – the character of Ariel is a work of fiction. So after all this is said and done, and you still cannot get past the idea that choosing the incredible, sensational, highly-talented gorgeous Halle Bailey is anything other than the INSPIRED casting that it is because she ‘doesn’t look like the cartoon one’, oh boy, do I have some news for you… about you.”

The network also included the caption,

“An open letter to the Poor, Unfortunate Souls: #TheLittleMermaid #Ariel #MyAriel”

What are your thoughts on the first look of Halle Berry as Ariel? Comment and let us know.