Who did Halle Bailey's hair in The Little Mermaid?
Halle Bailey's Hair in The Little Mermaid Cost $150,000
In an interview with Variety, the film's hair stylist and Oscar-nominee Camille Friend explained the process of achieving the final hair look for Bailey, who plays Ariel in the Disney film.
Obviously, modifications are required anytime you adapt animation to live-action, but Bailey and the beauty department had to reimagine Ariel as a woman of color too. Bailey and the team opted to keep her hair red—that was essential—but opted for copper locs to make it her own.
To get Bailey picture perfect for the film, Bailey sat for 12 to 14 hours to wrap her locs, which the hairstylist said was the most reasonable time she could get it to.
The physical transformation of Halle did take some time, effort, and money to help her become the character of Ariel. According to Variety, Halle Bailey wished to stay true to her Black heritage and show her natural hair in the movie. So, hair extensions were used rather than a wig.
Halle Bailey's 'The Little Mermaid' Hair Transformation Cost At Least $150K
Does Halle Bailey wear a wig in The Little Mermaid?
Since Halle's locs were over 24 inches long at the time of filming, Camille ruled against hiding them because "putting her in a wig was going to look crazy." Instead, she turned to another solution: wrapping hair around Halle's natural hair.
How much did Halle Bailey get paid for The Little Mermaid?
According to Showbiz Galore, she was reportedly paid $1.5 million to don the tail and seashells, though some news outlets reported slightly more modest earnings of $500,000. Despite the online backlash about casting a Black Ariel, this project made Halle Bailey a household name, especially among young Disney fans.
On the significance of casting a Black actress as Ariel
Sherri Hope Culver: To have a Disney character who is not just a princess but a live-action, real flesh and blood person that children can be inspired by is important. This is because people of color are less likely to see themselves reflected in the media.
For Bailey, playing Ariel meant staying authentic to herself — and her hair. "There was a time when we'd barely see locs—and now we have a Disney princess with them, which has never happened before," she told Ebony. "It was super important for me to have my natural hair in this film.
The actress has now opened up about how it felt to include that feature as part of Ariel's identity. Speaking to Glamour, Halle says the film's producers – including director Rob Marshall – were keen to stay true to her Black heritage through the character.
She is the first Disney princess to have locs. Halle Bailey's trademark locs are on full display in "The Little Mermaid," just the way she wanted them to be.
Now, as for the shade of red, she was never gonna have candy apple red hair, simply because, first of all, she's not a cartoon character. She's portraying a real life mermaid, as real as that can be. Camille wanted the hair color. to compliment halle's skin tone and eye color. There was Never a question.
Hairstylist Camille Friend discussed Halle Bailey's "The Little Mermaid" transformation with Variety. Friend explained how she wrapped Bailey's natural locs with synthetic red hair to create the look. According to Friend, the process took 12 to 14 hours and cost more than $150,000.
The movie is loosely based on the fairy tale, so Disney has the freedom to give Ariel any skin color they want. In the 1989 movie, Ariel was born in the fictional underwater kingdom of Atlantica, which technically makes her Atlantican, not Danish.
There are several instances when Eric's mother Queen Salina (Noma Dumezweni), who is Black and adopted him as a child when he washed up from the ocean, chastises him for his obvious love for beings that are considered other.
Halle Bailey was the first to audition for the beloved and coveted role of Ariel in Disney's live-action “The Little Mermaid.” After Bailey belted out the classic showstopper “Part of Your World” from the original 1989 film, director Rob Marshall and the other filmmakers knew that she was the one for the role.
Director Rob Marshall reveals what it was like seeing Halle Bailey's initial audition for Ariel. “The first actor we saw for this role was Halle. The first thing she did is she came in and sang for us. She shut her eyes and started to sing the song.
Bailey resides in North Hollywood, Los Angeles with her sister. She and her sister are both vegans. Bailey has been in a relationship with DDG, a YouTuber and American rapper, since December 2021 and appears in his videos on occasion. On January 6, 2024, Bailey announced the birth of the couple's firstborn son.
Scuttle is not only changed from male to female but is also now a diving bird instead of a seagull. "This was done specifically so that Ariel would only meet Scuttle underwater, because, at the start of our story, Ariel has never dared go above the surface," director Rob Marshall said in production notes.
Berry buzzed the hair on the side of her head, and added in a series of zigzag shapes that cascaded upward and around to the bank. "Thank you Ohre," she concluded, a nod to groomer Ohre Kilpatrick, whom she tagged in the video. In her Instagram Stories, Berry showed an additional shot of the cut from the back.
Halle Berry is showing off her stunning natural hair. “Sunday serve,” Berry, 56, captioned a Sunday, August 6, Instagram selfie in which she rocked an afro and a plaid red shirt.
