As one of the largest entertainment companies in the world, Walt Disney will again release a live-action film from their animated princess series entitled "The Little Mermaid." The film directed by Rob Marshall is planned to be released on May 23, 2023. The Little Mermaid is an action series of Princess Ariel which tells the story of a little mermaid who is loved by the world. The figure of Princess Ariel is described as a mermaid full of passion and adventure until finally, he met a human who fell in love named Prince Eric. But the journey is one thing that is easy to carry on a more interesting and dangerous adventure.
Sources: YouTube Walt Disney Studios
In this movie, Ariel who will be played by Halle Bailey has attracted a lot of attention and various comments from Disney fans. Since this teaser was released until now, the number of viewers has touched the figure of 13 million views and 1.6 million dislikes. It is making this teaser the most disliked video throughout the Walt Disney YouTube channel. Many Disney fans commented that they were disappointed with the selection of actors and the real depiction of Princess Ariel in the cartoon which felt very different.
Some of them mentioned that the depiction of Ariel's daughter in the animated film has white skin with red hair and bright blue eyes, while the depiction of Ariel in the live-action version has darker skin with slightly orange hair. This is said to have shattered their expectations and their depiction of the animated version of Ariel.
However, behind the many criticisms given about the depiction of Ariel, there are many moral messages and a form of real campaign that is indirectly given to dark-skinned people who have often experienced issues of racism and discrimination. Seeing the TikTok video on the @freeda_an account about the collection of reactions of black children when watching the teaser from the film "The Little Mermaid", it radiates happiness and joy when the figure of the princess they have always admired has something in common that describes them.
The depiction of this character teaches them a moral lesson that the image of beauty in a princess is not only about being white. It also builds a sense of trust from an early age about giving it to them without worrying about skin color as their identity and uniqueness. The depiction of Ariel's daughter character with darker skin color is also an act of racism and discrimination which is a long problem for black people. These films will later play an important role in forming good stereotypes for black people since Ariel's role is a new breakthrough for the participation of black actors who have been in the world of cinema as waiters. This is also a new color that Walt Disney wanted to give so that what is shown on the screen.
Apart from the different depictions of the previously animated characters, The Little Mermaid deserves full appreciation for all the diversity and messages they try to convey. One of which is the choice of characters which is also an important component in a film.
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