February is Black History Month and in celebration of BHM, I’d like to talk about Halle Bailey. Halle was born on March 27, 2000 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. She is an actress and composer, known for Last Holiday (2006), A Wrinkle in Time (2018), and the upcoming film The Little Mermaid (2023).
Halle is casted as Ariel in The Little Mermaid and the expected release date is May 26, 2023. The Little Mermaid 2023 film was adapted from the original 1989 film The Little Mermaid, which is available on Disney+.
Although Halle is so excited to have a leading role, there were some pressures she felt from Little Mermaid Fans. According to ‘The Little Mermaid’ Had ‘No Agenda’ When Casting Ariel, Director Says: ‘We Saw Every Ethnicity’ by Zack Sharf although toxic fans were not pleased with the announcement of Halle being casted as Ariel, Halle’s grandparents helped her with mean comments on social media.
“Bolstered by toxic fans on social media, the hashtag #NotMyAriel sprung up on Twitter after Bailey’s casting was first announced. The actor told Variety that her family helped her drown out the backlash. Bailey’s grandparents shared their own memories with her of the racism and discrimination that they had endured in their lifetimes” (Sharf).
Thankfully Halle fought through the hate comments and realized her role as Ariel is a beautiful opportunity to represent young brown and black girls around the world.
“‘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,’ Bailey said.”
According to Why Halle Bailey No Longer Feels “Pressure” Over The Little Mermaid Role by Gabrielle Chung, Ella Chakarian, Halle stated, “It just makes me cry,” Halle shared. “The fact that all these little Black and Brown babies are going to be able to feel like they’re being represented is really special to me. I know that if I had that when I was younger, it would have changed a whole lot for me and my perspective on who I am as an individual.”
With that being said, I am excited to see Halle grow as an individual and able to be proud of who she is. I believe it’s a beautiful thing that she has the opportunity to represent brown and black girls all over the world! Representation is necessary! Mark it down in your calendars everyone May 26, 2023! I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on the film.