Featured Image Credit: TikTok/@callmedari / Disney
Topics: TV And Film, Disney
Ali Condon
Parents are sharing their young daughters' reactions to the first teaser trailer for Disney's live action The Little Mermaid film, and everyone is *sobbing*. Watch below:
This is the first glimpse that Disney fanatics have gotten to see Halle Bailey as Ariel and so far, the response has been super emotional.
Ever since Bailey was announced as the film's lead back in 2019, the excitement over the first Black Princess Ariel has been immense.
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Two years later, the first look has finally been released and it's just as magical as die-hard Disney fans had hoped.
TikTok is now flooded with heart-warming videos of little girls watching the trailer for the first time, and each one is leaving viewers in floods of tears.
One video, shared by TikToker @callmedarii, captured the moment that her two young daughters (one dressed in a Princess Tiana costume) lighting up with excitement when they saw caught a glimpse of Ariel.
She captioned the video: "That's why representation matters! We can't wait to watch this."
In another clip, uploaded by mum Candace (@candikane__) captured the moment her daughter Sienna saw Halle Bailey as Ariel for the first time, asking in disbelief: "That is Ariel? That's the real her?"
One viewer commented: "Instant tears oh my god."
A second shared: "This is the most heart warming thing I’ve ever seen."
When the video of Sienna was also shared to Twitter, Halle herself admitted that the little girl's reaction had her in tears.
Another clip of a three-year-old girl bolting up to watch the trailer with wide eyes has gone viral on TikTok with 1.5 million likes and more than five million views.
Commenting on the popular video, one emotional viewer wrote: "I’m balling my eyes out she sat up and everything!"
A second raved: "All these videos of these beautiful little girls seeing representation has me an absolute blubbering mess. I never want these videos to stop."
And Halle Bailey added: "Oh my goodness my heart."
When Halle Bailey was first announced for The Little Mermaid live action, not all of the reaction was positive. Amid the excitement and anticipation, there was some pretty heavy racist backlash, with some unimpressed Disney fans pointing out that the animated Princess Ariel was white.
Now, people can see for themselves just how much Halle Bailey's casting means to hundreds of thousands of young girls across the globe.
Last month, Halle Bailey spoke to Today about just how much the coveted role means to her, sharing: "I want the little girl in me and the little girls just like me who are watching to know that they’re special, and that they should be a princess in every single way.
“There’s no reason that they shouldn’t be. That reassurance was something that I needed."
The Little Mermaid is set to hit theatres on 26 May, 2023.