Information

The Little Mermaid is a 2023 American musical romantic fantasy film directed by Rob Marshall from a screenplay written by David Magee. Co-produced by Walt Disney Pictures, DeLuca Marshall and Mark Platt Productions, it is a live-action adaptation of Disney’s 1989 animated film of the same name, itself based on the 1837 fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. The film stars singer Hayley Bailey, Jonah Hauer-King, David Diggs, Aokwafina, Jacob Tremblay, Noma Dumezweni, Art Malik, Javier Bardem and Melissa McCarthy in the title role. The plot follows the mermaid princess Ariel, who is fascinated by the human world; After saving Prince Eric from a shipwreck, he makes a pact with the sea witch Ursula to walk on land.

Plans for a remake of 1989’s The Little Mermaid were confirmed in May 2016. In December 2017, Disney announced that Marshall was being hired to direct the film. Bailey, Hauer-King, McCarthy, Bardem, Diggs, Tremblay, Aquafina and the rest of the cast joined between July and November 2019. Production was expected to begin between late March and early April 2020 in London but was delayed due to the COVID 19 pandemic, before finally taking place from January to July 2021, initially at Pinewood Studios in England and on the Italian island of Sardinia. Composer Alan Menken returned to add to the score and wrote new songs with Lin-Manuel Miranda, who served as producer along with Platt, John DeLuca and Marshall. The film is dedicated to the late Howard Ashman, who co-produced and co-wrote the original film’s songs. The film is Disney’s second-most expensive to date.

The Little Mermaid premiered at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles on May 8, 2023, but drew criticism for the visual effects and character design. The film grossed over $569 million worldwide against a total production budget of $297 million, becoming the ninth-highest-grossing film of 2023 and Disney’s seventh-highest-grossing remake.

Details

Ariel is a mermaid princess and the youngest daughter of King Triton, ruler of the Merpeople of Atlantis. He is fascinated by the human world, despite never having seen it, as Triton forbade all Merfolk to attend after Ariel’s mother was killed by a human.

One night, Ariel sees fireworks over the ocean and sees them better. They came from Prince Eric’s ship on a nearby island. When a storm comes up, the ship crashes against the rocks, forcing everyone into lifeboats. Ariel rescues Eric, brings him to shore, and sings in her siren voice to help save his life. He escapes before he regains full consciousness.

Noticing Ariel’s absent-minded behavior, Triton questions his advisor Sebastian the Crab, who reveals that he saved a human. Enraged, Triton goes to Ariel’s grotto to confront her; When he refuses to swear never to return to the surface, he destroys his collection of human artifacts. Ariel is later accompanied by two moray eels sent by the sea witch Ursula, Triton’s estranged sister and Ariel’s aunt, who was banished from Atlantica 15 years earlier.

At Ursula’s haunt, Ariel is presented with a deal: she will turn into a human for three days, during which she must receive “true love’s kiss” to remain human permanently. If Ariel fails, she will transform back into a mermaid and Ursula will claim her. To become human, Ariel must give up her tail, the ability to breathe underwater, and her siren voice, the last of which Ursula places in a nautilus shell. Ariel accepts the deal. After gaining human legs, he is taken to the surface by Sergeant Major Flounder, his best friend, and Sebastian. In the human world, he is rescued and taken to Eric’s castle. Eric, who is looking for the woman who saved his life, rushes to meet Ariel. However, her lack of voice immediately turns her away, though she allows Ariel to stay in the castle as long as she wants. While exploring the castle, Ariel finds a collection of items she has accumulated on her travels. Eric spends time with his poring over his collection.

The next day, Eric takes Ariel around the kingdom. Sebastian, who follows Ariel, realizes that Ursula has cheated on the spell which makes Ariel forget that she has to kiss Eric. Along with Scuttle, a northern gannet and flounder, Sebastian takes it upon himself to kiss the pair. They almost succeed but are foiled by Ursula’s eel. Angered by the close call, Ursula transforms into a human and uses Ariel’s siren voice to hypnotize Eric. Back in Atlantica, Triton searches the kingdom for Ariel and begins to regret the way he treated her.

The next morning, Ariel and her friends discover that Eric will announce his engagement to “Vanessa” (Ursula’s alter ego) later that day. Ariel rushes to the engagement party, confronts Ursula, and breaks the shell. She regains her voice, and Eric’s fascination is broken. However, before they can kiss, the sun sets and Ariel transforms back into a mermaid. Returning to her original form, Ursula drags Ariel back to the sea.

Trying to save Ariel, Triton confronts Ursula. However, the deal he made with Ariel is unbreakable. Triton trades himself for Ariel and is reduced to dust by the eel, much to his horror. Ursula claims Triton’s trident just before Eric arrives; In the ensuing commotion, Ursula accidentally kills her eel. Enraged, he uses the trident to grow larger and summons a storm to threaten Ariel and Eric. While Eric distracts Ursula, Ariel boards a surfaced ship and impales Ursula with her split bow. Once Ursula dies, Triton comes back to life; He and Ariel accept the other’s sacrifice for them.

Ariel returns home, where she is unhappy without Eric. At Sebastian’s suggestion, Triton transforms Ariel permanently into a human and she marries Eric. The pair decide to travel together with the blessing of both their parents and the support of people from both their worlds.

Cast And Cartoon Characters

Haley Bailey as Ariel, a curious, adventurous, and headstrong mermaid princess and the youngest daughter of King Triton who is fascinated by the human world. Bailey was announced to have been cast on July 3, 2019. Early in the film’s development, Lindsay Lohan expressed interest in playing the role. Zendaya was reportedly offered the part in August 2018, but she herself said it was “just a rumor”. Bailey first auditioned for the role after Rob Marshall performed Donny Hathaway’s single “Where Is the Love” at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards in 1972. According to Marshall, hundreds of other girls tried out for the part, but she “set the bar so high that no one could cross it.”
Jonah Hauer-King as Eric, an adventurous and free-spirited human prince who falls in love with Ariel after she saves him from drowning. Hour-King was announced to have been cast on November 12, 2019. Hundreds of candidates auditioned for the role, including actors Asher Angel, Gavin Leatherwood, Christian Navarro, Jack Whitehall, and Cameron Cuffe. , doing a screen test alongside Bailey. Harry Styles was in early talks to play the part, but ultimately turned it down in favor of a concert tour. Marshall later explained that Styles also declined because he wanted darker, non-musical roles. Hauer-King described her character as “unsettled and inquisitive about where she is in the world, like Ariel… she’s quite isolated and sensitive.”
Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, a treacherous and devious sea witch and estranged sister of King Triton, with whom Ariel makes a pact to become a human, as part of Ursula’s plan to secretly conquer Atlantica. McCarthy was announced to have been cast on June 28, 2019. He described his character as “very funny”. There is intelligence, there is manipulation. He’s a great broad and at the same time, I have to wonder what armor he’s wearing? And I don’t think he’s in good mental health.” Lizzo also auditioned for the role.
Jessica Alexander as Vanessa, Ursula’s human alter ego, which she uses to destroy her deal with Ariel. Alexander was announced to have been cast on March 1, 2021. She described her character as “a seductress, seductress, the definition of a woman and a sexy female villain”. McCarthy was already playing Ursula. He added: “She’s just a beautiful, beautiful actress, and she went there. It’s rare for someone who’s beautiful and charismatic to then literally turn into a sea witch right in front of you and lose it. That transformation is exciting to watch.” Alexander enjoyed playing the role, commenting that he “love[s] being demonic, and just going crazy on screen, so it was a perfect opportunity”. Kacey Musgraves was also considered for the role.
Javier Bardem as King Triton, Ariel’s strict and overprotective father and ruler of Atlantis who is prejudiced against humans due to the death of his wife at the hands of one of them. Bardem was announced to have been cast on July 17, 2019. He described his character as “a little less angry than the original because we wanted to bring more conflict to his behavior, like his fear and insecurity as a father. It could be angry because he’s afraid to let his last daughter leave the house. Or very controlling.”
Noma Dumezweni as Queen Selina, Eric’s adoptive mother and ruler of the Caribbean island kingdom. He is a new character for the film. Dumezweni was announced to have been cast on January 5, 2021. She described her character as “a loving queen and a queen mother and a parent and a lover of the land who is learning about herself by letting go of her children”.
Art owner Sir Grimsby, Prime Minister of Selina’s kingdom and Eric’s loyal confidant who acts as a father figure to him.
David Diggs as Sebastian, a loyal Fiddler Crab and King Triton’s majordomo who watches over Ariel. Diggs was announced to have been cast on October 8, 2019.
Jacob Tremblay as Flounder, a concerned yet noble Sergeant Major who is Ariel’s best friend. Tremblay was announced to have been cast on July 1, 2019.
Awkwafina as Scuttle, an obscure northern gannet and a friend of Ariel’s to whom she relays false descriptions of any human/surface world objects Ariel finds. The character is depicted as a female diving bird instead of a male seagull to show the character in underwater scenes. Awkwafina was announced to have been cast on July 1, 2019.
Additionally, Martina Laird appears as Lashana, a maid in Eric’s castle, based on Carlotta from the animated film; Emily Coates appears as Rosa, a young girl who works as a maid in Eric’s castle; Christopher Fairbank and John Daglish appear as Hawkins and Mulligan, two of Eric’s shipmates; Jude Akuudi appears as Joshua, a fisherman who discovers Ariel in her human form; And Russell Balogh and Adrian Christopher appear as two of King Triton’s guards. Also appearing as Triton and Ariel’s sister’s daughter (dubbed for the film) are Lorena Andrea as Perla, Simone Ashley as Indira, Carolina Conchet as Mala, Sienna King as Tamika, Kajsa Mohammar as Karina, and Nathalie Sorrell as Caspia. Eric’s Old English sheepdog, Max, is portrayed by dogs Gary and Edna, the latter uncredited. [citation needed]

Flotsam and Jetsam, Ursula’s green moray eel minions appear. Jody Benson, the original voice of Ariel in the animated film, cameos as a market vendor who hands Ariel a fork during her kingdom tour.

Box Office

The Little Mermaid grossed $298.2 million in the United States and Canada and $271.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $569.6 million. Disney received a total of £46.6 million ($56.8 million) in film-related COVID-19 insurance payments from the UK government.

In the United States and Canada, The Little Mermaid—released alongside The Machine, Kandahar, About My Father, and You Heart My Feelings—was projected to gross $120–125 million from 4,320 theaters during its four-day Memorial Day opening weekend. . The film earned $38 million on its opening day, including $10.3 million from Thursday night previews. It debuted with $95.6 million in the traditional three-day weekend and $118.8 million in the four-day frame, topping the box office and making it the fifth-highest Memorial Day opening in history (after 20th inflation-adjusted).In its second weekend, the film dropped 57% to $41.4 million while newcomer Spider -Man: Finished second in the Spider-Verse. The film then earned $23.2 million in its third weekend, finishing third behind newcomers Transformers: Rise of the Beasts and Across the Spider-Verse. It remained in the top ten for another five weeks.

Outside the United States and Canada, opening weekend box office results fell short of expectations, grossing just $68.3 million. One financial insider described the film’s opening weekend deadline as “not a huge disappointment, but a disappointment, nonetheless.” Brazil and Australia (both around $4 million. The Hollywood Reporter also reported that the film was a success in Japan after grossing $10.3 million in its first two weeks of release.

The film’s biggest markets in terms of gross were the UK ($34.1 million), Japan ($23.9 million), Mexico ($20.9 million), Brazil (17.3 million) and Australia ($15 million). In the Philippines, the movie was The Super Mario Bros. Movie and grossed more than Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 at the box office. Its performance in China and South Korea was considered disappointing; It grossed just $3.6 million in China and $4.4 million in South Korea in its first 10 days. The film grossed $415,672 in India and $184,214 in South Africa in its opening weekend.

About

Directed by	Rob Marshall
Screenplay by	David Magee
Based on	·         Disney’s The Little Mermaid by o    Ron Clements o    John Musker ·         “The Little Mermaid” by Hans Christian Andersen
Produced by	·         Marc Platt ·         Lin-Manuel Miranda ·         John DeLuca ·         Rob Marshall
Starring	·         Halle Bailey ·         Jonah Hauer-King ·         Daveed Diggs ·         Awkwafina ·         Jacob Tremblay ·         Noma Dumezweni ·         Art Malik ·         Javier Bardem ·         Melissa McCarthy
Cinematography	Dion Beebe
Edited by	Wyatt Smith
Music by	Alan Menken
Production companies	·         Walt Disney Pictures ·         DeLuca Marshall ·         Marc Platt Productions
Distributed by	Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Release dates	·         May 8, 2023 (Dolby Theatre) ·         May 26, 2023 (United States)
Running time	135 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$297 million (reported)  $240 million (net)
Box office	$569.6 million

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