When the news came out about the actress chosen to play Ariel in The Little Mermaid, it was immediately picked up by many news stations. People were not happy that the actress chosen to play Ariel, Halle Bailey, was black. However, shortly afterward, the news seemed to forget about the controversial casting decision. Three weeks ago, however, Walt Disney Studios finally released the trailer for the live-action The Little Mermaid, which sparked the controversy all over again. Many people disagree with the decision Disney made. 

One pointed out that “scientifically,” since she lives at the bottom of the ocean, she would not have dark skin. They explained how it’s not racist or a race thing in general, and it’s merely “science.” However, I fear that this fan has forgotten that “scientifically,” Ariel is half fish and half human, which is also not scientifically accurate. 

Another fan said that people changing the color of Ariel’s skin is the same concept as changing Tiana’s skin color in The Frog Princess. However, in Tiana’s case, Tiana doesn’t just happen to be black; it’s an important part of her story. It’s something she has to deal with throughout the movie, and it makes sense for where she lives and how she grew up. 

Through the media, we have seen that people don’t have a problem with casting actors of different races when the actor is white. A classic case is in Greek mythology with someone named Andromeda. She was said to be one of the most beautiful women and was punished for this. In Clash of Titans (1981) and in other forms of art, she is portrayed as a white woman; however, this goes against her story. Not only does it talk about her beautiful dark skin in Greek mythology, but she is also said to be the queen of Ethiopia. 

Learn more about this here: How black women were whitewashed by art – BBC Culture

Around the same time Disney announced that Halle Bailey was going to be playing Ariel, they also announced that Yara Shahidi, another black actress, would be portraying Tinkerbell in the live-action version of Peter Pan. The trailer for the live-action Peter Pan has not come out yet, but there will surely be the same uproar of controversy when it does come out. 

However, like always, with all the negativity that has come with the release of the trailer, there is positivity also. Check out the links below for some reactions from black kids to the new trailer (it will only take a couple of minutes). If you are against Ariel being black, watch these kids’ reactions. (Warning: you might cry with joy).

Shorter video: Black Kids React To Little Mermaid Trailer! ❤️

Longer version: Black Kids’ Heartwarming Reactions to ‘The Little Mermaid’