"As a child, seeing a black mermaid would have changed my life": 'The Little Mermaid' star Halle Bailey
May 20, 2023
Washington [US], May 20 : 'The Little Mermaid' star Halle Bailey said seeing a "black mermaid" on screen when she was younger could have changed her whole perspective towards life.
According to Deadline, a US-based media house, Halle Bailey in her recent media interaction with UK's Guardian said, "If I would have had a black mermaid, that would have been insane, that would have changed my whole perspective, my whole life, my confidence, my self-worth. You're able to see a person who looks like you when you're young? Some people are just like, oh, it's whatever because they've had it their whole life. It's nothing to them. But it's so important."
Bailey who received criticism from netizens post her name was selected to play the iconic character of Princess Ariel commented on the criticism, she said "I mean, yeah. In the world we live in today, just being a black woman, you have a certain awareness that comes with life, in general. So I wasn't very surprised or shocked," as per a report by Deadline.
Earlier Halle shared her work experience she felt in terms of physical hard work for the iconic song 'Part of Your World' for the movie, "Part of Your World took three days to film. There was a lot of physicality and stunt work involved where I would be spinning, going in the air on the wires and there was a lot to think about," as per a report by People.
Weighing up the emotional waves she felt while performing, she said, "I was very emotional. I remember I was crying... If you listen to the lyrics, it's such a desperate plea and cry for help. I was able to convey those emotions of feeling alone and underwater in a way."
"I was grateful that I had that experience of feeling that isolation because I was able to play it through Ariel. I think ultimately it helped my performance," she added.
Halle, who is eyeing a much-needed vacation, concluded by mentioning planning for a long break. She said, "I'm going to take a few weeks to just woosah because this has been five years of buildup. It's nice to finally have it be released into the world."
'The Little Mermaid' will open in theatres on May 26.
