Halle Bailey & Melissa McCarthy Are Joined By Director Rob Marshall For The Australian Premiere of 'The Little Mermaid'

Halle Bailey and Melissa McCarthy are joined by director Rob Marshall as they walk the red carpet for the Australian premiere of The Little Mermaid on Monday (May 22) in Sydney, Australia.

The 23-year-old singer/actress stars as Ariel in the live-action movie while the 52-year-old actress stars as Ursula.

Director Rob Marshall gave his thoughts on how the media responded to Halle Bailey being cast as Ariel.

“I didn’t think that it was a big deal, casting a woman of color,” Rob said.

Keep reading to find out more…“I thought, that’s an archaic way to see the world. When that controversy arose, from narrow-minded people,” he told Deadline.

“I thought, wow, that really feels like it’s coming from another century. Are we really still there? But the bonus that came with that casting, and I wasn’t aware of it at the time, is seeing these young girls of color and young boys of color looking at her and thinking, wow, I’m represented. It was very, very moving to me,” Rob said.

“It gives me deep pride and it is an important reminder that this is still sort of new,” Rob said of representation in media. “The idea that women and men of color are cast across the board. We’re still developing and growing in that area. It is important that people are represented, and vital that people see themselves and can imagine themselves and don’t have to feel like outsiders.”

Last year, Rob said that he had no agenda when casting Halle Bailey as Ariel and that they looked at everybody from every ethnicity.

The first reactions from critics have been revealed from the world premiere of Disney’s The Little Mermaid live-action remake.

FYI: Halle is wearing custom Off White.