Entertainment
Original Little Mermaid actress Jodi Benson praises Halle Bailey’s ‘amazing’ performance after live-action trailer release-Rebecca Sayce-Entertainment – Metro
We can’t wait to be a part of their world.
A teaser trailer for the new film was released at D23 last week (Picture: Disney)
The original voice of Ariel in The Little Mermaid, Jodi Benson, has given the new Disney live-action adaptation her stamp of approval.
The actress and singer, 60, sang the praises of new Ariel star Halle Bailey, 22, hailing her performance as ‘amazing’.
‘So thrilled!!! So excited!!!’ Jodie wrote on her Instagram Story, alongside a photo of Bailey and Little Mermaid director Rob Marshall.
‘Halle, you were absolutely amazing! I’m SO proud of you and your beautiful performance as Ariel.
‘It was so wonderful to celebrate with your family here at #d23expo,’ Benson continued. ‘And to the brilliant director Rob Marshall…I’m so thankful for our friendship of over 35 years. Thank you for creating such a stunning film!!!’
Her message came after footage of Halle singing the mermaid’s signature song, Part of Your World, featured in the film’s new trailer which debuted at D23, the Disney expo.
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After Disney fans were given a glimpse of the character, many pointed out the impact the singer’s new role is about to have on children watching the film.
Various videos of Black children, particularly young girls, watching the trailer for the first time have been posted on social media.
Collating some of the most-watched in a Twitter thread, Twitter user @normanination4 said: ‘As I stroll on TikTok, I keep seeing parents video their children reacting to The Little Mermaid trailer. So instead of focusing so much on the negative, I thought I’d show a thread of the little black kids who are excited to see their favorite princess look like them.’
Director Rob Marshall recently opened up about why he cast Halle, explaining to Variety: ‘We saw everybody and I will say that Halle was the first person we saw.
Halle takes on the role of mermaid princess Ariel in the live-action adaptation (Picture: Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images for Disney)
The original voice of Ariel, Jodi, has praised Halle for her performance in the film (Picture: The Walt Disney Company via Getty Images)
‘I had seen her [at] the Grammys and I asked if she could come in to see if she could do this, and I remember at the end of her singing this song, Part Of Your World, that we just hear her singing today, I was in tears. And I thought, “Oh my god, she’s so deep and so emotional and so beautiful.” She set the bar very high and no one ever crossed that bar but her.’
Halle became the target of racist abuse online after the announcement of her casting in 2019.
Jodi threw her support behind Halle at the time, saying the actress captures the ‘spirit’ of Ariel.
‘I think that the spirit of a character is what really matters,’ Jodi said at Florida Supercon.
Halle has been subject to racist abuse from trolls online since her casting in the role (Picture: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)
‘And the outside package – cause let’s face it, I’m really, really old – and so when I’m singing Part of Your World, if you were to judge me on the way that I look on the outside, it might change the way that you interpret the song.
‘But if you close your eyes, you can still hear the spirit of Ariel,’ she said. ‘We need to be storytellers.’
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