'The Little Mermaid' Director Explains Why He Picked Halle Bailey to Play Ariel, Says There Was 'No Agenda'

Rob Marshall, the director of the upcoming live-action The Little Mermaid movie remake, is opening up about his decision to cast Halle Bailey as Ariel.

The director says there was “no agenda” behind her casting and he also responded to the moving videos of young Black children reacting to seeing a Black Ariel in the teaser trailer.

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“We just were looking for the best actor for the role, period. The end,” Rob told EW about the casting choice. “We saw everybody and every ethnicity.”

Rob said that the team was looking for someone who could be “incredibly strong, passionate, beautiful, smart, clever,” and with “a great deal of fire and joy.”

In response to those moving videos on social media, Rob said, “I wasn’t anticipating that because, in a way, I felt like we’ve moved so far past that kind of thing, but then you realize, in a way we haven’t. It was very moving to me to see how important this kind of casting is for the world.”

Watch the teaser trailer now!