Disney’s trend of adapting their classic animated films into live-action is not yet close to stopping. They are currently giving The Little Mermaid the real-life reboot. The film, starring Halle Bailey (Grown-ish) in the title role alongside Daveed Diggs (Hamilton, Snowpiercer) as Sebastian and Melissa McCarthy (Ghostbusters) as Ursula, is looking to make some changes to a few of the character’s origins, with the most notable being Ursula herself.
In the animated version of The Little Mermaid, Ursula is a dangerous sea-witch known for making deals with lonely merpeople. She gives them their hearts desire in exchange for their souls. With Ariel, she agrees to give her legs with which to woo her beloved Prince Eric but takes the mergirl’s voice as collateral on the deal. It’s important to note that Ursula is a stranger to Ariel.
However, the upcoming live-action version intends to change that. The filmmakers have decided to make Ursula Ariel’s aunt. It’s an interesting twist to The Little Mermaid but not unheard of in the world of Disney. In the character’s Wikipedia page, it mentions that Ursula was originally conceived as Triton’s sister (Triton, of course, being Ariel’s father). In the film, she even speaks about her time living in the palace alongside Triton before she was banished.
Disney has also used this type of relationship in some of their other classic animated films. The Lion King, for example, throws Simba in between his feuding father and uncle, ultimately forcing him to fight his uncle for control of the throne. This is, of course, similar to Ursula’s ultimate goal in the animated film, wherein she wanted Triton’s scepter so that she could usurp the throne of Atlantica. It will be interesting to see how this new relationship dynamic will play out in the film.
In addition to Baily, Diggs, and McCarthy, The Little Mermaid stars Javier Bardem (Skyfall, Dune ) as Triton, Jacob Tremblay (Doctor Sleep) as Flounder, Jonah Hauer-King (Little Women) as Prince Eric, and Awkwafina (Ocean’s Eight, Crazy Rich Asians) as Scuttle.
There is currently no release date set for the film.
