[Issue Video] Disney's 'The Little Mermaid' Video Faces 'Mocking Barrage'... Why?

Controversy Over 'Blackwashing' in Casting Halle Bailey as Lead
Disney Dismisses, Saying "Since There Are Black Danes, the Danish Mermaid Can Also Be Black"

[Asia Economy PD Yoon Jin-geun] Walt Disney Studios released the live-action movie trailer for "The Little Mermaid" on the 10th (local time), which has drawn "negative comments" from netizens around the world.

The live-action version of "The Little Mermaid" sparked controversy over "blackwashing" from the casting announcement stage before filming began. Blackwashing refers to casting a Black actor in a role originally set as a white character.

Fans pointed out that casting Halle Bailey, a Black actress, as Ariel?depicted in the original 1989 animated film with red hair and fair skin?would damage the original work.

Walt Disney Studios released the trailer for the live-action film "The Little Mermaid," but some netizens are claiming "The Little Mermaid cannot be Black" and have started the hashtag campaign "#NotMyAriel" on social media. The photo shows posts with the hashtag "NotMyAriel" captured from Twitter on the 13th. Photo by Twitter

When the casting was announced in 2019, original fans launched the hashtag campaign "#NotMyAriel" on social media, claiming "The Little Mermaid cannot be Black." In various domestic communities, netizens often expressed opinions such as "A Black mermaid doesn't make sense."

The trailer released on the 10th was mainly met with comments criticizing the "Black Little Mermaid."

In response to the deletion of critical comments within the video, some users began posting comments unrelated to "The Little Mermaid" movie content.

For example, they mentioned the movie "The Lion King," saying "I really like the part where they say 'Hakuna Matata,'" or referenced "Avengers: Endgame," writing "The part where Ariel says 'Mermaids, assemble!' was touching."

As criticism grew over the casting of a Black mermaid in the live-action film "The Little Mermaid" being produced by Walt Disney Studios, with claims that "a Black mermaid cannot exist," Walt Disney Studios directly refuted this through the official account of its subsidiary Freeform, stating, "The Danish mermaid can be Black and can have red hair." Photo by Freeform Twitter

Meanwhile, Disney stated through their Instagram and Twitter accounts that "The original author of 'The Little Mermaid' (Hans Christian Andersen) was Danish, and just as there are Black Danes, Danish mermaids can also be Black," adding, "Black Danes and mermaids can genetically have red hair." The live-action "The Little Mermaid," starring Halle Bailey, has completed filming and is scheduled for release in May 2023.