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Disney to turn updated 'Little Mermaid' into TV series

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Agence France-Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="A scene from " The="" Little="" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/entertainment/05/29/05292023-live-action-little-mermaid-makes-box-office-waves.jpg"/><figcaption>A scene from &#x27;The Little Mermaid.&#x27; Handout</figcaption></figure></div><p>ANNECY, France - Disney on Tuesday announced a new animated children&#x27;s series inspired by its 1989 film &quot;The Little Mermaid,&quot; which like the live-action adaptation released last month will feature a black Ariel.</p><p>&quot;Disney Junior&#x27;s Ariel&quot;, a musical series for toddlers, is currently in production and is due for release next year.</p><p>It depicts the underwater adventures of Ariel, the eight-year-old mermaid princess, and her friends including Flounder in the fairytale Caribbean-inspired kingdom of Atlantica.</p><p>Ayo Davis, president of Disney Branded Television, a subsidiary dedicated to television content, said she was excited to have a character her daughter could relate to.</p><p>The plan is not a minor consideration for Disney. It faced a racist backlash online after it awarded the role of Ariel to pop singer Halle Bailey for the recently released remake, as opposed to a white actress as in the original.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/05/26/23/movie-review-halle-bailey-delivers-in-little-mermaid">Movie review: Halle Bailey delivers as Ariel in &#x27;The Little Mermaid&#x27;</a></li></ul><p>The house of mouse, which in recent years stepped up its diversity advocacy, is locked in a standoff with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is seen as a rival to Donald Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential primary.</p><p>Disney&#x27;s first black princess appeared only in 2009 as Tiana in the animated feature &quot;The Princess and the Frog.&quot;</p><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2678935" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

'Disney Junior's Ariel', a musical series for toddlers, is currently in production and is due for release next year.