One of the recurring criticisms of Disney’s live-action remakes is that the vast majority of them don’t tend to bring anything new to the table, and are happy enough to be safe in the knowledge that a beat-for-beat recreation of the beloved animated originals will be able to generate audience enthusiasm and bumper box office business.
Cruella deviated from the norm by telling an origin story about the titular antiheroine’s rise to infamy, but the next trio of projects look to be reverting back to formula. Rob Marshall’s The Little Mermaid, Robert Zemeckis’ Pinocchio and David Lowery’s Peter Pan & Wendy are all concurrently in production as we speak, with the latter two heading exclusively to Disney Plus, and all of them are expected to hew pretty closely to the template set by their 2D counterparts.
Interior shooting on The Little Mermaid kicked off back in January, but the crew has since pitched up in Italy, where the remainder of principal photography will take place until the blockbuster wraps next month, and you can check out a batch of set photos featuring Halle Bailey’s Ariel and Jonah Hauer-King’s Eric below.
EXCLUSIVE: Halle Bailey pictured for the first time as Ariel as she films The Little Mermaid in Italy https://t.co/yxGS0sdEY3
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As is the case with virtually every Disney remake, the supporting cast comes bearing plenty of star power with Melissa McCarthy set to chew on the scenery as Ursula and Javier Bardem bringing the gravitas as King Triton, while Lin-Manuel Miranda is penning some new songs for the movie.
Marshall, meanwhile, is clearly a favorite of the Disney brass having previously helmed box office hits Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Into the Woods and Mary Poppins Returns, so at least The Little Mermaid is in the hands of a filmmaker who knows the Mouse House’s recipe for success.