Halle Bailey

Disney reveals first-ever footage of Halle Bailey as Ariel in live-action 'The Little Mermaid' at D23 expo.

Daveed Diggs, Jacob Tremblay, and Awkwafina have also been cast as voice actors for Sebastian the crab, Flounder, and Scuttle. The script was written by David Magee and will star Melissa McCarthy and Javier Bardem as Ursula and King Triton, respectively. Directed by Rob Marshall, the reveal gave us a glimpse of acclaimed R&B singer Halle Berry as the mermaid princess Ariel.

Halle Bailey tells PEOPLE that her journey making 'The Little Mermaid' 'mirrored what Ariel goes through in the film'

"But I just listened to the little girl that's in me, and I listen to her and make her happy and then I know if I put my all and my passion and everything into it that I'll give it my best. "Sometimes it can be overwhelming to take the character that everybody has loved and known for years and make it your own," says Bailey. "The fact that now it's getting to be played by me, a person who looks like me, woman of color, I'm just like, wow, I'm so grateful what it will do for all the other little Black and brown boys and girls who will see themselves in me," she says.

Some on Twitter are taking their praise of Halle Bailey's Ariel in 'The Little Mermaid' to the extreme ... by belittling the work Jodi Benson did and ...

Truth be told, Halle looks and sounds fantastic as Ariel ... The question ... Fact is, Jodi has been nothing but supportive over Halle's casting -- something a good handful on the bird app noted as they tried to shut down this anti-Jodi narrative building among rabid Halle stans. They posted a screenshot of what looks to be a post on Jodi's IG story, showing a photo of animated Ariel with the caption, "Love my Ariel." including folks posting shots of Halle's Ariel next to the animated Ariel and noting that HB has a ton of Grammys noms, while cartoon Ariel (aka, Jodi) had zero. Disney dropped the new 'Little Mermaid' trailer Friday, and while most everyone was in awe of the first look at Halle under the sea -- some couldn't help but draw comparisons to the original voice actor who played Ariel back '89 ...

The studio dropped their first teaser trailer at the D23 Expo, and it did not disappoint. The trailer gives us a glimpse of the gorgeously rendered underwater ...

Apparently, people can accept sea witches and talking crabs, but they draw the line at a Black mermaid? Those four songs will join the classic songs from the 1989 animated film, which were written and composed by Menken and the late Howard Ashman. If the trailer is anything to go by, The Little Mermaid may be Disney’s best live-action adaptation to date.

Twitter celebrated the first look at Halle Bailey's history-making portrayal of Disney's red-haired mermaid princess, Ariel.

One user said they were “literally crying” to see a Black woman in the role, while another called her casting “a dream come true.” That representation arguably will have the greatest impact on a new generation of children who might be introduced to the character for the first time through Bailey’s portrayal. “Swimming in the pool, imagining I was a mermaid, I never thought I could see that come to life,” she told the crowd, per Variety. “It was an inspiring and beautiful thing to hear their words of encouragement, telling me, ‘You don’t understand what this is doing for us, for our community, for all the little Black and brown girls who are going to see themselves in you,’” she said. Naturally, a few others called out the haters and naysayers who blasted the casting before they’d even seen what she could do. 9, and fans are already hyped to go under the sea with Bailey’s Ariel.

Chloe Bailey shared support for her sister and music collaborator as The Little Mermaid first look dropped at D23.

The 22-year-old actress has opened up about [ the role being “overwhelming” and “emotional,”](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/halle-bailey-talks-seeing-herself-as-ariel-in-the-little-mermaid-for-the-first-time-and-how-she-reacted) especially since her Black Ariel will mean so much to so many young girls. [there’s a ton more we know about the movie](https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2573624/disneys-the-little-mermaid-quick-things-we-know-about-the-live-action-remake) we can’t wait to see more ahead of the release. Halle Bailey is focusing primarily on acting, with an upcoming role in The Color Purple musical film adaptation as well, whereas Chloe is getting ready to release her debut solo album. Amidst the news, Bailey’s older sister Chloe Bailey shared the sweet way she was supporting her from afar. Over three years after Halle Bailey was cast as the live-action Ariel, the actress finally had a chance to show a first look at her take on the Disney Princess on Friday during D23 Expo. Even though the sisters were all the way across the U.S, Chloe wore shells in her hair in “honor” of Halle’s big Ariel moment.

MANILA, Philippines – Disney+ released on Saturday, September 10, the highly-anticipated teaser for the live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid.

She then strikes a deal with the sea witch Ursula to exchange her mermaid tail for human legs. Halle Bailey, who stars as Princess Ariel, delivers a line from the song “Part of Your World.” [Bailey was cast as Ariel in July 2019](https://www.rappler.com/entertainment/halle-bailey-ariel-little-mermaid-live-action-reboot).

Disney gave a first look at the film at the D23 fan expo. | iHeart.

[she "burst out crying" when hearing Halle singing on set](https://www.iheart.com/content/2022-06-11-halle-baileys-little-mermaid-song-brought-melissa-mccarthy-to-tears/). Back in July, Halle launched a YouTube channel where she [teased solo music](https://www.iheart.com/content/2022-07-18-halle-bailey-launches-youtube-channel-says-new-music-is-dropping-soon/) in her introductory video. The long-awaited teaser dropped on Friday (September 9) as part of the D23 fan expo.

Disney premiered the first teaser trailer for the upcoming "Little Mermaid" live-action film. See the clip, featuring Halle Bailey as Ariel, here.

[Appearing on Watch What Lives Happens in June](https://www.teenvogue.com/story/halle-bailey-vocals-made-little-mermaid-costars-cry), Melissa teased that Halle's Ariel portrayal will leave you feeling all of the feels. [she tweeted](https://twitter.com/ChloeBailey/status/1568390415438471169), “That’s my mfn sister. She sings just a brief snippet of “Part of Your World,” before the camera pans out, giving us a complete look at Halle in her Little Mermaid costume. Naturally, many on social media were celebrating the trailer's debut, including Halle's sister Opening with an under the sea shot, the trailer quickly takes us deeper into the water, panning across various underwater life as the first notes of “Part of Your World” begin to play. [Chlöe Bailey](https://www.teenvogue.com/tag/chloe-bailey).