People will go to great lengths to spur hate, and it’s hard to grasp.
While the culture celebrated a first look at Halle Bailey as she becomes “Ariel” in the Disney live-action remake of “The Little Mermaid,” racist trolls on the Internet went as far as using artificial intelligence to spew hate in what otherwise should be a memorable moment for the entertainer.
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Haters Gonna Hate
According to a Forbes report from Sept. 14, “The film’s trailer has been flooded with 1.5 million dislikes from angry ‘fans’ – despite YouTube removing the dislike counter, the numbers are still available through an extension.”
While some call them “angry” and others are calling it like it is.
Reactions From Twitter
If you’re mad about The Little Mermaid being black, you’re a racist. Full stop.
— George Hahn (@georgehahn) September 13, 2022
I don't know how it got onto my timeline but if y'all could not with that Little Mermaid shit over here, thanks.
Even if you insist you're not being racist, you're coming off racist. So let it go. There's been a white Ariel for decades, let little black girls to have this one.
— Jesse Cox (@JesseCox) September 15, 2022
YouTube Dislike Button
In 2021, YouTube announced in a blog post that the dislike counter would leave the platform. The dislike button, however, remained.
But Wait... There's More
And if the dislikes weren’t already cringing enough, one engineer took things as far as using artificial intelligence (AI) to swap Bailey’s race in the movie trailer.
Focusing On The Love Instead
Rather than giving attention to the hate that’s been received, Twitter users have chosen to focus on the positive reactions to the trailer.
“As I stroll on TikTok, I keep seeing parents video their children reaction to ‘The Little Mermaid’ trailer,'” a social media user wrote via Twitter. “So instead of focusing so much on the negative, I thought I’d show a thread of the little Black kids who are excited to see their favorite princess look like them.”
‘She’s like me!’ — These reactions to the recently released ‘The Little Mermaid’ teaser featuring Halle Bailey will absolutely melt your heart ♥️ pic.twitter.com/sizjfzNjPv
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) September 13, 2022
On the other hand, the trailer for “The Little Mermaid” has garnered more than 104 million views on YouTube.
A Dream Come True
During a recent appearance at the D23 Expo, Bailey herself reacted to the release of the clip and called the moment “surreal.”
“I’m so excited about this film,” she said. “You know being here today is so surreal. I definitely think that because I love this movie so much, and I’ve treasured it since I was a little girl, I did put a bit of pressure on myself. Just because I want to deliver all of the feels that I saw when I was a little girl.”
The film, which stars the 22-year-old entertainer premieres in May 2023.
