While many fans have been bashing Disney’s casting of Halle Bailey in their live-action remake of The Little Mermaid, the Chloe x Halle singer has gained another supporter: the original Ariel.
Jodi Benson, the actress who voiced Ariel in the original 1989 Disney animated classic The Little Mermaid, was at Florida SuperCon over the weekend, where she lent her support to the 19 year old singer/actress.
‘The most important thing is to tell the story. And we have, as a family, we have raised our children, and for ourselves, that we don’t see anything that’s different on the outside,’ Benson said Saturday at Florida Supercon convention.
Support: While many fans have been bashing Disney’s casting of Halle Bailey in their live-action remake of The Little Mermaid, the Chloe x Halle singer has gained another supporter: the original Ariel
‘I think that the spirit of a character is what really matters. What you bring to the table in a character as far as their heart, and their spirit, is what really counts,’ Benson added.
Benson voiced Ariel in the original 1989 classic The Little Mermaid, and also the 1992 animated series of the same name.
She would also voice Ariel in a number of video games, and in 2018’s Disney animated sequel Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2, along with a slew of other Disney Princesses.
Original Ariel: Benson voiced Ariel in the original 1989 classic The Little Mermaid, and also the 1992 animated series of the same name
Benson added that the ‘outside package’ counts as well, with the 57 year old actress stating she’s ‘really, really old.
‘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,’ Benson added.
‘But if you close your eyes, you can still hear the spirit of Ariel,’ Benson added.
Spirit of Ariel: ‘But if you close your eyes, you can still hear the spirit of Ariel,’ Benson added
‘And no matter what we look like on the outside, no matter our race, our nation, the color of our skin, our dialect, whether I’m tall or thin, whether I’m overweight or underweight, or my hair is whatever color, we really need to tell the story,’ Benson concluded.
The Little Mermaid remake will be directed by Rob Marshall (Into the Woods), with Awkwafina also coming aboard to voice Scuttle, Jacob Tremblay as Flounder and Melissa McCarthy as Ursula.
No release date or production schedule has been given for The Little Mermaid remake at this time.
Outside package: Benson added that the ‘outside package’ counts as well, with the 57 year old actress stating she’s ‘really, really old
Other celebrities such as Zendaya, Mariah Carey and Halle Berry have praised the casting, though others have spoken out against it with the hashtag #NotMyAriel.
Bailey currently stars on the Freeform hit series Grown-Ish, with the network itself issuing a statement of support for the actress.
‘Yes. The original author of The Little Mermaid was Danish. Ariel… is a mermaid,’ the statement began.
‘She lives in an underwater kingdom in international waters and can legit swim wherever she wants. … But for the sake of argument, let’s say that Ariel, too, is Danish. Danish mermaids can be black because Danish *people* can be black.’
Speaking out: Other celebrities such as Zendaya, Mariah Carey and Halle Berry have praised the casting, though others have spoken out against it with the hashtag #NotMyAriel
Support: Bailey currently stars on the Freeform hit series Grown-Ish, with the network itself issuing a statement of support for the actress