Halle Bailey Says Brandy’s Cinderella Was a Big Inspiration for The Little Mermaid Role

Disney’s remake of The Little Mermaid has introduced Halle Bailey as a new incarnation of Ariel, making her the newest Disney Princess. The representation she brings to the role with her casting has been very inspiring to countless children across the world, as seen in viral clips of young fans reacting to Bailey’s Ariel. For her part, Bailey feels very grateful to be in her position, as she recalls dreaming about becoming a Disney Princess in her own childhood, never expecting that it would actually one day happen. As she recently told Entertainment Tonight:

“It feels absolutely amazing to officially be a Disney Princess. I mean, I think that it’s something that we all have just had in our dreams. You have daydreams of pretending to be a Cinderella princess, or someone like that, and you never think that it would actually happen, so I just am really grateful to be in this position.”

Back in 1997, Brandy had played Cinderella in a television special on ABC, marking the first time a Black performer had played the character on-screen. Bailey recalls how she saw Brandy as a “role model” because of that performance, even going so far as to revisit the special after getting cast as Ariel for further inspiration. Bailey says:

“Oh, yeah. I loved Brandy as Cinderella. She was so amazing. Such a role model and inspiration, and really a big studying point for me too, 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 that was to audiences, and little girls, like me, who watched it.”

Related: Halle Bailey Explains Why Her Casting in The Color Purple Remake Was ‘Amazing’

Halle Balle Says Anika Noni Rose Was Another Pioneer

Bailey also gave some credit to Anika Noni Rose, who provides the voice of Tiana in the animated 2009 film The Princess and the Frog. Rose will also return as the voice of Tiana for a sequel series in development for Disney+. Bailey recalls a time when she and sister Chloe Bailey got to sing with Rose, remembering it as a magical experience. The Little Mermaid star refers to Brandy and Rose as pioneers who helped let her know that she can become a Disney Princess.

“Anika Rose, who’s Tiana, who is just outstanding, and I had a chance to meet her, and we got to sing a song together, ‘Almost There,’ like a Disney sing-a-long with my sister and I one time, so she was always so kind. There are these beautiful Black women pioneers who have done this before and been there for me to be able to say, okay, I can too.”

The Little Mermaid is now playing in movie theaters. Along with Bailey in the lead role, the film stars Jonah Hauer-King, Javier Bardem, Melissa McCarthy, Awkwafina, Daveed Diggs, and Jacob Tremblay. The film, a live-action remake of the 1989 movie of the same name by Disney, was directed by Rob Marshall and written by David Magee.