The Little Mermaid - Official Trailer

Based on Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale, this film follows Ariel, a mermaid who has made a deal with the Sea Witch to exchange her beautiful voice for human legs so she can explore the land.

Once Ariel takes to the surface, she becomes instantly enamored with life above water. But her father King Triton is not amused; he believes she has fallen in love with a human and orders her back into the sea.

Ariel (Halle Bailey)

Halle Bailey (Chloe X Halle) will be portraying one of Disney's beloved characters in The Little Mermaid live-action film. Her acting abilities are impressive and her singing voice truly remarkable.

In the movie, she plays Ariel, a daring and daring mermaid princess who yearns to live a human prince's life. As she explores beyond the sea with handsome Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King), Ariel falls headover in love. But first she must make an agreement with Ursula the evil sea witch in order to gain entry to land life.

Rob Marshall will direct the film, which features songs written and performed by Lin-Manuel Miranda - famous for directing both Broadway musical Chicago and Disney's animated classic The Lion King. Additionally, it will star other celebrated Disney artists such as Steve Carell on piano.

It has been a while since we last saw Ariel on the big screen, but Disney is giving us an updated take on this classic fairytale with their live-action adaptation based on Hans Christian Andersen's 1837 Danish tale of the same name set to hit theaters May 26.

At Disney's D23 Expo in August, a teaser for the film was unveiled. At the 95th Academy Awards, however, Disney released a full trailer featuring Ariel rescuing Prince Eric from a shipwreck, her confrontation with King Triton and her first meeting with Ursula the sea witch.

The captivating trailer also shows off Ariel's vibrant underwater kingdom and iconic hair flip. It provides a fun preview for fans of the original film, especially those who haven't seen it in years.

Ursula (Melissa McCarthy)

At the 2023 Oscars, Halle Bailey and Melissa McCarthy took to the stage to unveil the official trailer for Disney's live-action remake of "The Little Mermaid," set to open May 26. In it, viewers got their first look at Ariel (Halle Bailey) singing "Part of Your World" alongside Ursula - an evil sea witch who will serve as the main antagonist in the film.

Fans who remember the 1989 animated version of "The Little Mermaid" were delighted by the teaser. It provided a taste of what can be expected from the live-action version directed by Rob Marshall and produced by Lin-Manuel Miranda.

This story follows Ariel, the youngest daughter of King Triton (Javier Bardem), as she longs to explore beyond the ocean. A defiant and inquisitive young mermaid, Ariel falls in love with human Prince Eric when she visits Earth for the first time.

Merfolk are not allowed to interact with humans, yet Ariel is determined to become one. But when she agrees to give up her voice for legs, Ariel realizes it will cost her both her father's crown and heart.

To help Ariel get through this difficult challenge, Ariel strikes a deal with the sea witch Ursula (Melissa McCarthy). She promises to transform her into a human in exchange for her voice.

But as the trailer demonstrates, Ursula makes it seem easy. After all, she is not exactly the most graceful swimmer in the ocean -- her tentacles are purple and she has an unmistakably menacing cackle to match.

The teaser also gave several key characters in the film a chance to shine, including Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric and Javier Bardem as Ariel's stern father King Triton. Awkwafina joins as Scuttle while Daveed Diggs voices Sebastian - an endearing crab who'll play an integral part of Ariel's quest to become human.

Prince Eric (Johan Hauer-King)

In The Little Mermaid, an amazing ensemble of actors such as Halle Bailey (Grown-ish), Daveed Diggs (Room), Jacob Tremblay (Flounder), Awkwafina (Scuttle), Javier Bardem (King Triton), Art Malik (Sir Grimsby) and Noma Dumezweni (queen Selina) bring Disney's beloved animated classic to life. With new lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, The Little Mermaid hits theaters on May 26th!

King Triton's youngest daughter Ariel is a rebellious mermaid who wants to explore beyond the sea surface. To do so, she makes a deal with Ursula the sea witch that grants her permission to experience life on land - but ultimately puts both her life and father's crown in jeopardy.

Jonah Hauer-King, best known for his roles in A Dog's Way Home and Howards End, will star as Prince Eric in The Little Mermaid. A British actor, he was chosen for the role after passing two screen tests with director Rob Marshall.

The clip opens with a dramatic image of Prince Eric drowning on board a boat. However, Ariel saves him before it sinks beneath the ocean floor. Once they reach safety, they lean in for a kiss as Prince Eric smiles back at her.

Though the trailer for 1989's animated classic looks nearly identical, we do get to see Ariel and Eric alongside Ursula the octopus witch as well as Sebastian the crab voiced by Daveed Diggs.

King Triton is furiously lecturing Ariel about her infatuation with the human world. In fact, Ariel is so determined to connect with people that she even trades her voice for two pairs of legs in order to find Eric and win his heart.

Scuttle (Buddy Hackett)

Disney has done an outstanding job of bringing its animated films to the big screen. From The Jungle Book to Aladdin, the studio has taken some of the less credible elements from their originals and transformed them into believable visuals.

For The Little Mermaid, Disney Studios has chosen a unique approach. Their new trailer for the film features Buddy Hackett - an acclaimed American comic who has voiced many iconic Disney characters.

Over his long and illustrious career, Hackett has played a variety of roles, such as the strange mystic sculptor in The Love Bug (which he also wrote), and the perky seagull Scuttle in both The Little Mermaid films.

Hackett first gained notoriety during the 1950s and '60s as a frequent guest on variety talk shows, often telling brash, often off-color jokes and joking with the camera. He was a staple on Jack Paar's version of The Tonight Show as well as appearing as an extra on Johnny Carson's version.

Though these shows were decades past, Hackett's sharp wit and raw sense of humor still resonate today. His gruff voice, scruffy appearance, and ability to bring out the best in guests even when they were feeling their most pessimistic was a source of delight for many.

In 1980, Hackett returned to Hollywood and earned a place as host of syndicated game show You Bet Your Life. Additionally, he began exploring voice acting roles; providing voices for characters such as Pardon Me Pete and Storyteller in that year's animated film Jack Frost.

Sebastian (Daveed Diggs)

Disney has a remarkable record for creating live-action versions of animated classics that look fantastic, but they've also had some missteps along the way. Whether it's The Jungle Book or Aladdin, some elements just don't translate when turned into something more realistic.

The latest trailer for The Little Mermaid serves as a perfect example, featuring an onscreen talking crab (voiced by Tony winner Daveed Diggs). While his brief appearance may seem harmless enough, after watching a few seconds it becomes evident that something about Sebastian just doesn't feel quite right.

Disney appears to be revamping The Little Mermaid for modern audiences. They're bringing back characters from 1989, such as Flounder (Jacob Tremblay) and Scuttle (Awkwafina).

There are also some new characters not present in the 1989 animated version, including King Triton's son Prince Eric and Ursula (Melissa McCarthy), the evil sea witch.

Though largely live-action, there are some CGI elements included. These include some of Ariel's closest friends.

She must enlist the help of friends such as Flounder (Jacob Tremblay), Scuttle the seagull and, of course, Sebastian the crab. It appears these characters will play an integral role in Ariel's journey to the surface world; they'll need them for safety when she meets Ursula and to get where she needs to go. We can only hope this arrangement works out well in this live-action version of The Little Mermaid!