The Little Mermaid has been out only a few days and has already broken an incredible Rotten Tomatoes record. The 1989 film was the fifth official Disney princess film to be adapted into live-action, with Cinderella premiering in 2015, Beauty & The Beast premiering two years later, Aladdin in 2019, and Mulan in 2020. However, Disney has released countless other live-action films, which have mostly been met with mixed reviews. It’s a difficult feat to reimagine a beloved animated film in live-action, especially because the magic often fades in the transformation from cartoon to live actors.
The Little Mermaid (2023)
Even so, the films have succeeded enough for Disney to keep going. Disney already has its live-action Snow White and Lilo & Stitch scheduled for 2024 releases, meaning any backlash the company has received from its prior live-action films hasn’t financially harmed it. Despite some negative reviews, most of the films have good Rotten Tomatoes audience scores. One of Disney’s lower-rated live-action films is 2014’s Into The Woods, which has only a 49% audience score. Most, though, are in the 80s and 90s. With the release of Rob Marshall’s The Little Mermaid, the Halle Bailey-led film has set a new standard for live-action Disney films.
The Little Mermaid Has The Highest Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score For Disney’s Remakes
Despite some negative reactions, The Little Mermaid has the highest Rotten Tomatoes audience score out of all the Disney live-action remakes. While Cinderella falls at 78% and Lady and the Tramp earned only 50%, The Little Mermaid has a 95% audience score. The only Disney live-action film with a higher score is 2021’s Cruella, with a 97. But, it’s important to note that Cruella is more of a prequel, and not a true remake.
Unfortunately, The Little Mermaid‘s critic score is much lower, falling at 68%. Though its audience score shows that fans of The Little Mermaid were pleased with the updated story as well as Bailey’s performance as Ariel and Jonah Hauer-King’s more substantial take on Prince Eric. Also, all the hype surrounding the film, including the excitement surrounding the casting choice for Ariel, may have affected how fans rated the film.
How The Little Mermaid 2023’s Rotten Tomatoes Compares To The Original Movie
Surprisingly, the original Disney animated film has a lower audience score and a higher Tomatometer. The film has only an 88% audience score but a 92% from critics. This is likely because fans and critics are going into movies with different expectations. While fans may have enjoyed all the new elements of the remake, critics were looking for how it held up against the standards created by the original. Based on reviews, Critics seemingly appreciated what Disney animators did in 1989 for the original The Little Mermaid more than what filmmakers created 33 years later, which included heavy use of CGI.
