Report: ‘Little Mermaid’ Animated Series with Black Ariel Greenlit at Disney After Success of Halle Bailey-Led Film

In news certain to piss off the racist detractors, Disney’s 2023 live-action remake of the 1989 animated classic ‘The Little Mermaid‘ has not only doubled the original’s box office receipts but has sailed into the top 5 ranking of “most successful films of the year” to date.

And despite the unfavorable reception in Asian markets, the execs at Disney are so pleased with the performance of the Halle Bailey-led flick that they’re giving it an animated spinoff for TV.

Details inside.

At the time of this report, Disney’s live-action ‘Mermaid’ – which also stars Daveed Diggs, Awkwafina, Melissa McCarthy, Jonah Hauer-King, and more – has raked in over $415 million worldwide since its release on May 24.

Those figures were just the inspiration needed to capitalize on the movie’s ongoing buzz by greenlighting an animated prequel for the Disney television subsidiary Disney Jr.

Reportedly titled ‘Ariel,’ the cartoon series will be targeted to preschool-aged children and will most notably feature a younger, Black representation of its leading mermaid. King Triton, Ursula, Sebastian, Flounder, and a slew of new additions are said to be joining the singing redhead on the new and exciting underwater adventures.

At writing, Disney has not confirmed who will voice the beloved characters or when it will sail to screens.