The Little Mermaid director responds to the casting of the female lead: There is absolutely no political correctness in casting

Disney's live-action film "The Little Mermaid" has been controversial since the casting was announced. The heroine Halle Bailey is different from the previous white image of Ariel, which makes many people question whether Disney's casting strategy is to cater to "political correctness". Recently, Rob Marshall, the director of "The Little Mermaid", was interviewed by "Entertainment Weekly". He responded to why he chose Halle Bailey to play the role and introduce the "Black Mermaid".

Marshall said that the casting of "The Little Mermaid" did not intend to select actors of a specific race. He said: "We just want to find the most suitable actor for this role, that's it. We watched the auditions of all people and actors of all races." Marshall explained that their casting criteria is to find actors who can show strength, passion, beauty and wit. Of course, they must also be able to sing. Marshall said that considering that other candidates are either too greasy or too smart, Bailey can still give people a sense of freshness. "The moment we chose her, we started thinking about 'how to create her version of Ariel'."

Marshall said the new version of the Little Mermaid is a modern female image. "This character comes from an Andersen fairy tale from another century, and in some ways feels very modern. She has a different view of her life from those around her, and sets out to pursue her dreams." "First of all, it's her passion. It's important to have that kind of fire. She feels that she is not in the right position, so she unveils a grand story of 'finding your true self'. But at the same time, she has to be full of joy, which sounds like a strange combination: innocence and wisdom, but also rich emotions and soul. In short, she is very modern."

Marshall also said that the live-action version of Prince Eric will make up for the lack of depth in the animated version: "Eric is a dull, typical prince character in the animated version, without much change. But our movie has developed a complete storyline. He has a mother and a queen, which is a new element for this film. He has a similar storyline to Ariel in some ways. He feels that the world he lives in is not a place for him. These two people in similar situations found each other and really taught the world what prejudice is and broke down the barriers between the two worlds."

Halle Bailey New Photos: