 "Halle Bailey cast as Ariel in Disney's live-action remake of The Little Mermaid; Halle Berry congratulates singer")
Singer Halle Bailey will next be going under the sea, starring as Ariel in the upcoming adaptation of The Little Mermaid. Bailey will make her feature debut with the film. Bailey will join Jacob Tremblay and Awkwafina in the film, which will be directed by Rob Marshall, who helmed Chicago and Mary Poppins Returns . Marshall says that Bailey “possesses that rare combination of spirit, heart, youth, innocence, and substance — plus a glorious singing voice — all intrinsic qualities necessary to play this iconic role.” She was congratulated by her namesake, Halle Berry, on Twitter for bagging the opportunity. Here’s Halle Berry’s tweet
Bailey shot to fame after she formed a music group with her sister Chloe called Chloe x Halle in 2015, and posted covers of Beyoncé’s biggest hits on YouTube. She was eventually discovered by the singer and her record label, and was given the opportunity to open for Beyoncé on her Lemonade tour. The singer-duo has also signed a record deal with Parkwood Entertainment. Meanwhile, actor-comedienne Melissa McCarthy is in talks to play sea witch Ursula, but her casting has not been confirmed yet. However, rapper Lizzo is upset with the reports of Melissa McCarthy being considered and has been lobbying for the role on Twitter . She re-posted her November video dressed as Ursula and a giving a vocal rendition of the song ‘Poor Unfortunate Souls’ from the original film. Check out the video here
The live-action version will include original songs from the 1989 animated hit as well as new tunes from the original composer Alan Menken and Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda. Some of the tunes include ‘Under the Sea,’ ‘Part of Your World’ and ‘Kiss the Girl.’ The script has been penned by David Magee while Jane Goldman wrote the initial draft. Miranda is also producing the project along with Marshall, Marc Platt, and John DeLuca. Jessica Virtue and Allison Erlikhman are overseeing on behalf of Disney. (With inputs from The Associated Press)