The Little Mermaid live-action movie trailer from Disney has been trending on social media ever since its debut. Particularly among young Black girls, who were awestruck by a young mermaid who resembled them at first sight. Halle Bailey, a singer and actress, portrays the new Princess Ariel in the adaptation, making her the first Black woman to do so. Even though the film won’t be released until 2023, Bailey has already had a huge influence.
Videos of young Black girls’ “blind reactions” to seeing the live-action trailer for the first time have been making the rounds on TikTok and Twitter ever since the Disney first teaser trailer debuted on September 9. This trailer features a brief glimpse of Bailey as Ariel singing the song “Part of Your World” underwater. There have been a variety of responses, from outright disbelief to pure awe and delight.
And many people are choosing to concentrate on the positive aspects of this occasion despite the persistent prejudice and ignorance that have been spoken about Bailey since it was revealed that she will play the Disney princess. As one Twitter user observed when browsing TikTok, “I keep seeing parents record their children reacting to The Little Mermaid trailer,” she said in her own popular thread.
Therefore, I decided to present a thread of the small black children who are happy to see that their favorite princess looks like them rather than concentrating so much on the negative.
For instance, the TikTok user @nickyknackpaddywack recorded a video of her daughter watching the trailer while fixated on the TV. “Mommy! The small child informs her mother that she is Brown like me.
The reaction of @jendayis682’s daughter was just stunning as she saw the trailer on TikTok. She is Black!” When her daughter first sees Bailey, she exclaims, “She looks so gorgeous! Is Ariel actually Black?” after which she queries her mother. “In this Little Mermaid she will be,” her mother replies.
We could all use this delight [right now], according to digital strategist and consultant Leslie Mac, who started an entire Twitter thread highlighting a group of young Black girls’ reactions to Bailey as Ariel.
Even Ariel herself was drawn in by the video compilation! On September 12, Bailey tweeted, “People have been sending these reactions to me all weekend and i’m in honestly in amazement.
