1989's The Little Mermaid is a beloved classic, so remaking it was never going to be easy. It's too soon to say where it will rank among Disney's mixed bag of live-action remakes, of course, but all signs currently point to it being something special.
As you might expect, finding the right actress to play the villainous Ursula was no easy feat, and filmmaker Rob Marshall recently explained his process in an interview with SFX.
"It was really daunting to think about who was going to play this part," he admits. "I love that she was originally inspired by Divine [Harris Glenn Milstead], the wonderful drag actor, who was so original and so funny. I thought, 'Well, who’s going to be able to bring the humor and the depth?'"
"Because this is now a live-action piece, it can’t just be a funny character, it has to have a great deal of depth. Who can do that and sing - really sing - and bring originality? I wanted a woman of size, too, as I thought that was important."
That thought process led Marshall to Melissa McCarthy, an actress he calls "wonderful." The director added, "They say, 'Oh, she’s funny.' This character is an injured character, and she was able to find all that depth and emotion, in addition to all the other colors...Melissa was able to bring humanity to it."
It sounds like we're in store for a scene-stealing performance from the Bridesmaids star, and Disney has been smart not to show us too much of McCarthy's worth in advance.
In the movie, the youngest of King Triton’s daughters, and the most defiant, Ariel longs to find out more about the world beyond the sea, and while visiting the surface, falls for the dashing Prince Eric. While mermaids are forbidden to interact with humans, Ariel must follow her heart.
She makes a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, which gives her a chance to experience life on land, but ultimately places her life – and her father’s crown – in jeopardy.
Helmed by visionary filmmaker Rob Marshall, the movie opens exclusively in theaters on May 26, 2023.