How Twitter Reacted To The Live-Action Little Mermaid
Disney hasn't let up with its attempts to remake its animated classics into live-action blockbusters, with the latest arriving in the form of "The Little Mermaid." Carrying on the legacy of the Hans Christian Andersen story and the 1989 Disney favorite, the Rob Marshall-directed remake sees Halle Bailey take on the role of Ariel. Based on promotional material, it seems that moviegoers will see her fascination with the surface world get the best of her, allowing the evil Ursula (Melissa McCarthy, though the role could've gone to any number of drag queens) to take advantage of her curiosity and threaten the entire sea.
Talks of this "Little Mermaid" live-action adaptation date back to 2016, though it was slow going on the production front for some time. Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic didn't help matters, but eventually, the ball got rolling. The cast was assembled, filming began, and by late 2022, fans witnessed the release of the first trailer. In May 2023, critics got the chance to see the movie ahead of its premiere, though reactions to it proved mixed at best. With a release date of May 26, some fans made it to early screenings that took place on May 25.
Upon checking out the live-action "Little Mermaid" in cinemas, here's what fans on Twitter had to say about it.
The majority of moviegoers found a lot to love in The Little Mermaid
Some of the first moviegoer reactions to 2023's "The Little Mermaid" on Twitter highlight that there's a lot to love about this aquatic remake.
First and foremost, many fans were quick to give props to Halle Bailey for her Ariel performance as well as her singing ability. "Just saw the little mermaid @HalleBailey wonderful performance of my favorite Disney movie," tweeted @kimcheemommy, with @kriisxtine even calling Bailey the definitive version of Ariel in their mind. While @ToomeyMatt doesn't think it surpasses the original "Little Mermaid," they did appreciate this adaptation's music and Daveed Diggs' take on Ariel's crustacean friend, Sebastian the crab.
In their tweet, they also noted that the newest take on "The Little Mermaid" does a great job catering to its younger viewers — something @vikki99 likely agrees with. Not only did they give the film their seal of approval in their tweet but they also shared that their young daughter absolutely adored it. As for Twitter user @jblazn, they liked the movie so much that not long after seeing it the first time, they shared that they're eager to return to the movies for another viewing. Talk about high praise.
Longtime Little Mermaid fans are feeling the nostalgia
As one of the most widely-beloved Disney animated features out there and the first film in the famed Disney Renaissance of the late 1980s into the '90s, the original "Little Mermaid" has fans the world over. Unsurprisingly, many of those who adore the animated version wasted no time checking out the live-action remake. Suffice to say, just about everyone's "Little Mermaid"-loving inner child left the theater very much satisfied.
"I just saw the little mermaid and I sobbed like a little baby like that's my childhood and it was so beautiful," tweeted @tinybluepixels, with @RoysAdams admitting that they likely cried around seven times during the movie because of their childhood memories of the original. @weirdgaem described "The Little Mermaid" as "reviving [their] childhood in a live action form," and @TheOneNOnlyAnaB touched on how refreshing it is to see a Disney princess that looks like them after spending their youth with so few to look up to.
While it may seem like another Disney live-action remake that no one asked for on paper, according to fans, "The Little Mermaid" is more than worth the price of admission for more reasons than one. For those hoping to rekindle that sense of childhood wonder that Ariel's story brought in animated form so many years ago, and those hoping to treat the kids to an entertaining movie night, "The Little Mermaid" is now playing exclusively in theaters.