Review Roundup: Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID Live Action Remake Swims Into Theaters

This Friday, Disney's new live action reimagining of The Little Mermaid will be released in theaters. Ahead of it's premiere, find out what critics thought of the highly-anticipated film!

"The Little Mermaid" stars Halle Bailey (Chloe X Halle, "The Color Purple") as Ariel; Tony Award winner Daveed Diggs ("Hamilton," "Snowpiercer") as the voice of Sebastian; Melissa McCarthy ("Bridesmaids") as Ursula; Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric; Jacob Tremblay ("Luca," "Room") as the voice of Flounder; Awkwafina ("Raya and the Last Dragon") as the voice of Scuttle; Art Malik ("Homeland") as Sir Grimsby; Noma Dumezweni ("Mary Poppins Returns") as Queen Selina; with Oscar winner Javier Bardem ("No Country for Old Men," "Being the Ricardos") as King Triton.

The youngest of King Triton's daughters, and the most defiant, Ariel longs to find out more about the world beyond the sea, and while visiting the surface, falls for the dashing Prince Eric. While mermaids are forbidden to interact with humans, Ariel must follow her heart. She makes a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, which gives her a chance to experience life on land, but ultimately places her life - and her father's crown - in jeopardy.

"The Little Mermaid" is directed by Oscar® nominee Rob Marshall ("Chicago," "Mary Poppins Returns"), and written by two-time Oscar nominee David Magee ("Life of Pi," "Finding Neverland"), with a live-action story adaptation by David Magee, Rob Marshall, and two-time Emmy winner John DeLuca ("Tony Bennett: An American Classic"), based on the short story by Hans Christian Andersen, and the Disney animated film by Ron Clements and John Musker.

Ahead of its May 26 premiere date, find out what critics thought of the new film below. Keep checking back as we update live with new reviews as they are released.

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Peter Debruge, Variety: "Between Bailey’s wide-eyed urchin and McCarthy’s over-the-top octo-hussy, the movie comes alive — not in some zombified form, like re-animated Disney debacles 'Dumbo' and 'Pinocchio,' but in a way that gives young audiences something magical to identify with, and fresh mermaid dreams to aspire to."

Pete Hammond, Deadline: "Bailey has a ‘star is born’ role here and makes Ariel her own, even with the memories of Jodi Benson still alive from her vocal performance in 1989 and a Broadway version of the tale. Haver-King brings just the right amount of swagger to the befuddled Prince, and Bardem’s underwater king is perfect with one incredibly poignant father/daughter moment that will bring tears by the time the credits roll. The vocal work of Diggs and the irrepressible Awkwafina could not be better."

Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly: "This iteration of The Little Mermaid is the studio's freshest catch since it kicked off this live-action trend with 2015's Cinderella, featuring refreshing storytelling that captures the magic of the original. Director Rob Marshall at last has found material that fits him as well as 2002's Chicago, his splashy theatrical style merging with the tropes of musical comedy and something darker around the edges."

Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter: "Marshall’s The Little Mermaid resembles a lot of recent Disney offerings: It’s sentimental, at times uneven and padded to weather controversy. There’s a nagging sense of risk-aversion — narratively, at least — and that wariness makes the fun it does have feel sanctioned. Like other live-action remakes, The Little Mermaid is a neatly packaged story ribboned with representational awareness."

Kate Erbland, IndieWire: "Most of the musical sequences are cribbed directly from the 1989 animated feature, and are less effective, moving, and emotional when translated to live-action moviemaking. (Both 'Under the Sea' and 'Kiss the Girl' are bangers, fun and beautiful, but their live-action rendering will likely only make audiences want to run home and cue up the animated versions post-haste.)"

Clarisse Loughrey, Independent (UK): "McCarthy, as Ursula, offers her best tribute to the character’s original inspiration, the drag queen Divine. It’s a commendable performance that will make you wonder what might have been if Disney had the guts to feature an actual drag queen in the role. But it speaks to a wider issue here: Bailey aside, this Little Mermaid is yesterday’s fish served up dry and inedible."

Ellen E Jones, The Guardian: "It hurts because The Little Mermaid, the original, is a true classic. Its song-and-dance numbers are among the best in the Disney canon ... These have been revived, with original composer Alan Menken drafted in alongside Lin-Manuel Miranda to produce new toe-tappers like The Scuttlebutt. Once again though, performances are fatally undermined by performers."

Vanessa Armstrong, Slashfilm: "The Little Mermaid" is a live-action remake done well. The casting (with one notable exception) is phenomenal, led by Halle Bailey's breathtaking performance as Ariel; the original songs are portrayed in vivid displays that will make children's eyes sparkle; and the story has been adjusted to correct the first film's less-than-modern relationships."

Molly Edwards, Total Film: "Where the original ran to a slight 83 minutes, this one's a bumper 135 mins, with new songs to boot. Some of these are fabulous (Scuttle gets a catchy tune; Ariel a bubbly number about finding her land legs) while Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King) is saddled with a weaker, overly dramatic solo. But there's an endearing makeover for 'Kiss the Girl.'"

Stacey Yvonne, Black Girl Nerds: "At a hefty 2 hours and 15 minutes, The Little Mermaid delivers more than enough content to fill it wisely, using just enough nostalgia to hook the adults and adding just enough new to entertain the kids."

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Watch the trailer for The Little Mermaid here:

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