Who's who in the live-action film 'The Little Mermaid'?

Disney's 2023 live-action sensation, 'The Little Mermaid' directed by Rob Marshall, brought nostalgia to an entire generation and won over the next. Its explosion of beautiful marine imagery, soulful songs, humor, and romance is mesmerizing. The cast is a mix of young career performers and established stars. Check out who they are in the gallery!

For those who do not know the story: Ariel is a curious mermaid with a beautiful voice. Her father, King Triton, does not let her explore the human world, which she is fascinated by. One day, however, she makes a deal with a sea witch, who gives her legs. That's when her adventure begins.

Halle Bailey is the actress and singer who brings Ariel to life. Born in Atlanta (United States) in 2000, she was known before 'The Little Mermaid' as part of the musical duo Chloe x Halle. She sings alongside her sister Chloe.

The Bailey sisters' duo rose to fame in 2016 when they signed a contract with Parkwood Entertainment, the music production company founded by Beyoncé. The deal came after the sisters had gone viral on YouTube singing a cover of 'Pretty Hurts' by Beyoncé. Since then, Chloe x Halle has been nominated for four Grammys.

At the same time, Halle has been acting since she was six years old. She always had small roles, such as the one in the movie 'Last Holiday' (2006). She also appeared as herself in sporadic episodes of series like 'Austin & Ally' (2013) and 'WrestleMania 34' (2018).

Her first recurring role on television was in the series 'Grown-ish' (2018-22), but after her lead role in 'The Little Mermaid,' we will surely see Halle in many more films and series.

Prince Eric is the person Ariel falls in love with after saving him from drowning. From that moment on, Eric will do everything to find the beautiful girl who saved his life, not knowing that she is actually a mermaid.

Photo: Disney

At first, Harry Styles was cast to play Prince Eric in the film. However, due to scheduling problems, Jonah Andre Hauer-King took his place.

Jonah Hauer-King was born in London in 1995. He started acting in 2014 with roles in short films. His first role in a feature was in the film 'The Last Photograph' (2017). He has since appeared in films such as 'Old Boys' (2018) and 'A Dog's Way Home' (2019).

On television, he brought Harry Chase to life in the BBC World War II series 'World on Fire' (2019).

Ursula is the evil sea witch who gives Ariel legs in exchange for her voice. What Ariel doesn't know is that, deep down, Ursula is trying to conquer the aquatic kingdom of Triton.

Photo: Disney

Melissa McCarthy is the well-known actress behind the character of Ursula. She has primarily been known for her role as Sookie St. James, in the series 'Gilmore Girls' (2000-07).

Nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actress for the film 'Bridesmaids' (2012), Melissa McCarthy has an extensive list of productions on her resume. Among them are 'Charlie's Angels' (2000), 'Tammy' (2014), 'Thor: Love and Thunder' (2022), and 'Mike & Molly' (2010-16).

Jessica Alexander is the actress who gives life to the human version of Ursula. The British model started her acting career in 2018 in the Disney Channel series 'Penny on M.A.R.S'. He has since starred in movies such as 'Glasshouse' (2021) and 'Into the Deep' (2022).

King Triton is the King of Atlantica who is overprotective of his youngest daughter, Ariel. In addition, he hates humans and will do anything to keep Ariel away from their world.

Photo: Disney

Javier Bardem is another big name in the cast of 'The Little Mermaid.' Before becoming the submarine monarch, the Spanish actor was awarded a Golden Globe, five Goya Awards, and the Best Actor award at Cannes.

Among the main titles of his career are: 'No Country for Old Men' (2007), 'Vicky Cristina Barcelona' (2008), and 'Pirates of the Caribbean' (2017).

Although the film is live-action, we cannot ignore the universe of animals that accompany the characters! The crab Sebastian, faithful and loyal to King Triton, is always keeping an eye on Ariel and stars in fun scenes.

Photo: Disney

Daveed Diggs is the actor, rapper, and composer who voices Sebastian. He reached fame with the Broadway musical 'Hamilton' and has lent his voice to several characters in animated series, such as 'Undone' (2019), 'Star Wars Resistance' (2019-20), and 'Star Trek: Prodigy ' (2022), among others.

Flounder is also a lovely character in 'The Little Mermaid'. He is Ariel's best friend.

Photo: Disney

Jacob Tremblay, the voice actor of Flounder, was born in 2006 in Canada. Even at his young age, the actor has an extensive curriculum, including 'The Smurfs 2' (2013), 'Extraterrestrial' (2014), 'Room' (2015), and 'Good Boys' (2019).

And last but not least there is Scuttle, a funny and not-too-intelligent bird who provides information about the usefulness of human objects that Ariel finds. Unlike the cartoon, Scuttle has a female voice in the live-action film.

Photo: Disney

And this voice belongs to none other than Awkwafina, the American singer and songwriter known from films like 'Crazy Rich Asians' (2018) and 'The Farewell' (2019) a movie for which she won a Golden Globe for best actress.

In addition to the well-known characters from the cartoon, there is a new one in the live-action movie: Queen Selina, Eric's adoptive mother.

The talented Noma Dumezweni, who plays Queen Selina, was born in Eswatini, Africa but also has South African citizenship. In 1977, she fled with her mother and sister to England.

Noma Dumezweni has performed in several theater plays throughout her acting career. She also appeared in series such as 'The Undoing' and 'Made for Love' (2021).