‘The Little Mermaid’ Makes A Splash At The Box Office

• Disney’s live-action remake of The Little Mermaid rode a wave of nostalgia to the top of the box office this weekend.
• The movie is on track to make $118 million over the four-day holiday weekend – the 5th-highest Memorial Day weekend opening ever.
• Fast X took second place with $28.7 million in its second weekend, followed by Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3 with $20 million.
• The Super Mario Bros. Movie ($6.3 million) and The Machine ($5.8 million) rounded out the top five.
• Which of Disney’s live-action remakes have you enjoyed the most?  Which movie would you like to see them remake next?

Halle’s Inspiration…

• Halle Bailey says she was “inspired” by Brandy for her role as Ariel in ‘The Little Mermaid.’
• She said, “I loved Brandy as Cinderella; she was so amazing, such a role model and inspiration, and a really big kind of studying point for me as I was taking on Ariel. I just watched how amazing she was in that role and how comfortable she was in her skin and how impactful to audiences and little girls like me who watched it.”
• She continued, “I’ve had the chance to meet her and we got to sing [‘The Princess and the Frog’] song together, ‘Almost There’ for [2022’s ‘Disney Family Singalong’] with my sister. She was always so kind! But there are these beautiful black women pioneers who’ve done this before and been there for me to be able to say, ‘OK, I can do this.”
• Back in 1997, Brandy had played Cinderella, alongside Whitney Huston as the fairy Godmother in a television special on ABC, marking the first time a Black performer had played the character on-screen.
• Who is your biggest inspiration? Who is your favorite Disney princess?

Also…

• Halle Bailey says she was “inspired” by Brandy for her role as Ariel in ‘The Little Mermaid.’
• She said, “I loved Brandy as Cinderella; she was so amazing, such a role model and inspiration, and a really big kind of studying point for me as I was taking on Ariel. I just watched how amazing she was in that role and how comfortable she was in her skin and how impactful to audiences and little girls like me who watched it.”
• She continued, “I’ve had the chance to meet her and we got to sing [‘The Princess and the Frog’] song together, ‘Almost There’ for [2022’s ‘Disney Family Singalong’] with my sister. She was always so kind! But there are these beautiful black women pioneers who’ve done this before and been there for me to be able to say, ‘OK, I can do this.”
• Back in 1997, Brandy had played Cinderella, alongside Whitney Huston as the fairy Godmother in a television special on ABC, marking the first time a Black performer had played the character on-screen.
• Who is your biggest inspiration? Who is your favorite Disney princess?