Little Mermaid Remake Improves On Original Prince Eric, Says Director

Director Rob Marshall says Prince Eric in The Little Mermaid remake will be better than the original. While the live-action remakes of classic Disney animated films have been divisive, it cannot be denied that they have managed to accrue some success for the studio. It also cannot be ignored that the filmmakers have gone out of their way to try and make their versions distinct while respecting the original film’s creators and artists. They have also tried to expand on or improve some areas of the original, such as explaining the reason for Belle being an outcast in Beauty and the Beast and making King Louie’s species accurate in The Jungle Book.

While talking to Entertainment Weekly, Marshall revealed more details on The Little Mermaid, including how they will characterize the role of Prince Eric, who is to be played by Jonah Hauer-King. A common issue with classic Disney animated films is how the prince is usually portrayed as a perfect do-gooder whose only job is to defeat the villain and get the girl. Marshall aims to escape this trope by fleshing out Prince Eric’s background. He hopes to do this by making his story relate to Ariel’s (Halle Bailey) more by introducing his mother. Read his full quote below:

The role of Eric in the animated film — I’m sure the original creators would agree with this — it’s a wooden, classic prince character with not a lot going on. There’s a whole story that’s developed in our film. He has a mother, a queen, that’s new to the film. He has a very similar trajectory in a way to Ariel. He doesn’t feel like it’s where he fits in, his world.

Have Other Live-Action Disney Remakes Improved On The Princes?

Ever since Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the Disney Prince has always been portrayed as a flat character who is supposed to whisk the damsel away at the film’s end. In recent years, Disney has steered away from this trope in their concurrent animated films with characters like Kristoff in Frozen and Eugene in Tangled, who are technically not princes but follow improved prince archetypes. When remaking them in live-action, the filmmakers aimed to improve on the dull and generic Disney Princes by giving them more agency. The changing times allow Disney to feel more up-to-date with its ever-changing audience.

Despite the remakes’ divisive response, one aspect that cannot be denied is the filmmakers’ good intent to add more development to their male leads. The most obvious example is with the Prince (Richard Madden) in Kenneth Branagh’s remake of Cinderella, where the relationship between him and his father, the King, is given more focus. Mulan‘s male lead Honghui (Yoson An), was made a soldier who saw himself as an equal to the titular hero. Both Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin already had fleshed-out male leads, but both films do attempt to expand on the relationships with the other characters.

While it is unknown how Hauer-King’s portrayal of Prince Eric will turn out, it is good news knowing that Marshall aims to make his version of the character distinct by expanding on his background. Besides Ariel, there has yet to be any footage of the characters from the film, but it is already shaping up to have a large cast who will no doubt share similar fleshed characterizations like Eric. The Little Mermaid is one of Disney’s most beloved stories, and so far, the remake has shown a lot of promise by showcasing the spectacle and Bailey’s powerful singing voice. The addition of a better prince makes this remake feel worthwhile.