Halle Bailey has spoken out about the backlash she faced over her casting as Ariel in Disney's live-action remake of The Little Mermaid.
The 1989 animated version of Disney's mermaid tale is fondly remembered by many as one of the company's all-time classics, and is often credited to breathing new life into the company following a difficult period of so-so movies.
However, when it was announced that 22-year-old singer and actress Halle Bailey had been announced to play the love-struck mermaid in the live-action remake of the original, the casting was met with vitriol on social media.
"I'm not racist but that's #NotMyAriel," one person tweeted, as the teaser trailer for the movie went on to amass over 2 million dislikes on YouTube.
Yes, it seemed that - despite the fact that mermaids are totally fictional - many people couldn't come to grips with a Black mermaid.
Fortunately, Bailey received an outpouring of support from fans and fellow Disney stars - such as original Ariel voice actress Jodi Benson and the star of the upcoming Snow White remake Rachel Zegler.
Now, Bailey has shared her thoughts on the backlash during an interview with THE FACE magazine, in which, she explains that she wasn't surprised by the comments being made about her casting.
"As a Black person, you just expect it and it’s not really a shock anymore," Halle told the publication.
She also revealed that Beyoncé had told her and her sister Chlöe not to read any online comments.
"Honestly, when the teaser came out, I was at the D23 Expo and I was so happy," she added. "I didn’t see any of the negativity."
Nevertheless, Bailey has repeatedly addressed the backlash and explained why it is important for her to embrace the role of the velvet-voiced mermaid.
"I want the little girl in me and the little girls just like me who are watching to know that they're special, and that they should be a princess in every single way. There's no reason that they shouldn't be. That reassurance was something that I needed," she said on her YouTube channel.
"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,'" she continued.
The Grammy Award nominee added: "What that would have done for me, how that would have changed my confidence, my belief in myself, everything. Things that seem so small to everyone else, it's so big to us."
And for those who do disagree with Bailey's casting, one beauty analyst recently revealed that the star has the "perfect face" to be playing Ariel.
