Ursula is played by Melissa McCarthy in the live-action The Little Mermaid, but does she also do her own singing? Premiering in May 2023, The Little Mermaid is in a long line of Disney live-action remakes. The film follows the story of the original 1989 animated film about Ariel (Halle Bailey), a mermaid princess who dreams of being able to go to the world above the waves. Despite the heavy cost of production, The Little Mermaid ended up earning an impressive $569 million at the box office (via Box Office Mojo) and is a welcome return to the underwater world.
Besides Ursula and King Triton’s (Javier Bardem) altered relationship as brother and sister in the live-action film, the octopus villain is more or less the same as her animated counterpart. This includes Ursula’s famous number, “Poor Unfortunate Souls”, which was always one of the best songs on the soundtrack. McCarthy is perfect for the evil underwater queen, as the character has always had a sassy, comic sensibility to go along with her more sinister side, which McCarthy can tap into easily. However, singing does not always come easily to even the most accomplished actors, so it was always a question as to who would perform Ursula’s song.
The Little Mermaid Soundtrack Guide: Every Old & New Song In The Movie
The live-action remake of Disney’s The Little Mermaid brings back many of the nostalgic songs from the animated movie while providing a few more.
Melissa McCarthy Really Did Sing As Ursula In The Little Mermaid
Melissa McCarthy did indeed sing “Poor Unfortunate Souls” in the live-action Little Mermaid. McCarthy is a comic actor, but she has never claimed to have singing as part of her repertoire, so it’s impressive she was willing to do so. It’s even more impressive considering how nervous McCarthy was before she had to perform the scene. In an interview with Today, McCarthy talks about just how much she wanted to be a part of the film, even joking that she would work on the catering truck on set just to be included. But once she was cast, her excitement was short-lived.
McCarthy says, “When I got it, and I knew I was doing it, then it was, like, ‘What have you done? Like, what have you possibly done?’” The acting came naturally to McCarthy, but when she remembered she would have to sing, she became nervous and hired a vocal coach. It was with her singing coach that McCarthy learned singing could be just like acting. She herself didn’t need to be able to sing, just her character “Ursula” would need to. With that change of perspective, McCarthy was able to perform at the top of her game.
Why The “Poor Unfortunate Souls” Lyrics Were Changed
“Poor Unfortunate Souls” is a song Ursula sings to convince Ariel to sign the deal to relinquish her voice for legs. For the most part, the animated and live-action songs are the same, but the latter changed some of the lyrics to eliminate the implication that girls should not speak out of turn. Alan Menken, who composed the original soundtrack and worked on the live-action songs with Lin-Manuel Miranda had this to say (via Vanity Fair):
Menken himself was slightly irked by the changes to the lyrics he created in 1989, and it is clear from context that when Ursula is suggesting women “shut up and smile”, it’s supposed to be obvious that she is in the wrong — she is manipulating Ariel after all. It’s an odd choice by the filmmakers, but it certainly doesn’t overshadow McCarthy’s performance and unexpected talents as a singer in The Little Mermaid.
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The Little Mermaid (2023)
- Release Date:
- 2023-05-26
- Director:
- Array
- Cast:
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- Rating:
- PG
- Runtime:
- 135 Minutes
- Genres:
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- Writers:
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- Budget:
- $200 million
- Studio(s):
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- Distributor(s):
- Array
- Franchise(s):
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