[Mermaid swimming trying to get away: Photo Credit to Unsplash]

Disney’s live-action remake of the 1991 animation film, “The Little Mermaid” has spurred media responses before its release due to its unique take on casting black actress and singer Halle Bailey as the main character Ariel. 

The “open-minded” casting process has been met with both applause and criticism.

Out of Disney’s 11 classic princesses, 7 of them are Caucasian. Tiana from The Princes and the Frog, Mulan from Mulan, Jasmine from Aladdin, and Pocahontas from Pocahontas are the only four films that feature princesses of Black, Asian, and Native American ethnicities.

Even when the film featured a person of color, the characters were often represented in a stereotypical manner that discriminated against them.

For example, in The Princess and the Frog, Tinana is born into poverty and goes through constant financial struggles to open her humble restaurant. 

The characterization of Tinana starkly contrasts the narrative of the majority of the Caucasian princesses who are often wealthy to begin with, or secretly royalty. 

Tiana’s dream of opening her restaurant is only realized when she marries a wealthy man who assists her financially. 

Tiana is just one example of how the representation of minorities in Disney’s films have often been narrow.

In the live-action remake of “The Little Mermaid” Disney has decided to keep Halle's natural features instead of conforming to the original animation. 

Instead of artificially straightening Halle’s natural hair to fit Ariel's animated appearance, the film features Ariel with her natural hair put into locks. 

Apart from Ariel herself, her 6 sisters who are originally all Caucasian are played by actresses of various ethnicities including those of East Asian, Caucasian, African American, South Asian, and Hispanic ethnicities. 

However, diverse ethnicities represented in the original predominantly Caucasian film have been met with some harsh criticism for excessively adhering to “political correctness”. 

Proponents of the idea claim that Disney’s choice of casting a black actor for Ariel eradicates the value of the original work. 

Although live-action remakes of the original work often make minor changes to the plot it is uncommon for a live-action to make major changes to the original work, such as the ethnicities of the cast. 

However, even these proponents cannot deny the intrinsic value of this film for society as a whole. 

Halle’s role in “The Little Mermaid” has inspired  black and brown girls all over the world. 

The casting of Hallie provides an on-screen representation of back girls who have been misrepresented or excluded from the media. 

A black actress playing the lead role in such an iconic and powerful film empowers young girls as they can see themselves in Hallie. 

Widespread attention and controversy surrounding the casting have also shed light on the important topics of diversity and acceptance that were scarcely discussed in the entertainment industry. 

The coverage has spread awareness and inspired industry leaders to reevaluate their approach in storytelling and representation in their work. 

The discussion itself fosters understanding, empathy, acceptance, and the idea that all people from various backgrounds should have equal opportunities to be represented in any industry.