Credit: Nyle DiMarco Instagram
Nyle DiMarco decided to throw his name into the Ariel The Mermaid ring amid the controversy surrounding Disney casting singer and actress Halle Bailey as its leading lady.
The America’s Next Top Model winner dropped a suggestion on his Twitter earlier this week about playing the role of Prince Eric, or for him, deaf Prince Eric, in the upcoming live action adaption of the 1989 classic movie.
“DEAF Prince Eric or nah?” he asked his 368,000 fans. It included a split shot of him in his car on the left and the animated version of the character on the right.
His fans agreed with the idea. “She can’t speak, he cant hear, they learn to communicate through sign language and develop a healthy happy relationship end of story,” one wrote.
His idea even caught the attention of Oscar-nominated director Ava DuVernay who wanted to make this happen ASAP.
The role of Prince Eric has yet to be announced by Disney although they have revealed names for some of the others who are in early negotiations to be part of the film. The list includes Melissa McCarthy as Ursula and Awkwafina as Scuttle.
Halle Bailey Instagram / Ariel – The Little Mermaid Screen Capture
Disney’s decision to cast Halle, 19, as The Little Mermaid has been met with both praise and criticism on social media. Many have supported them doing this while others have taken a racist route and questioned why this has happened when the original character was white.
