The Little Mermaid: Melissa McCarthy Reacts To Getting Ursala Role Over Lizzo
The Little Mermaid is the next live-action adaptation coming from Disney, and it's expected to finally be released next year. Most of the movie's casting was solidified back in 2019 with Halle Bailey taking on the role of Ariel, and Melissa McCarthy playing the iconic villain, Ursala. Back when the movie was still casting its roles, Lizzo campaigned for the part of the sea witch. When the part ultimately went to McCarthy, there were some mixed reactions from Disney fans. As Buzzfeed points out in a recent article, many thought the role of Ursala should have gone to a Black woman or a drag queen, especially since Ursala was inspired by the late, great Divine. However, McCarthy certainly has the chops to pull it off. According to a recent Variety interview with Lizzo, the star recently met McCarthy and her Ursala audition came up.
"Everyone knows I auditioned for Ursula in The Little Mermaid, and I didn't get it. But you know, I'm fine as hell," Lizzo said. "That has nothing to do with Ursula, but I was down to make Ursula a THOT, shaking ass."
"She was like, 'Hi, I'm Melissa,'" Lizzo said of meeting McCarthy at Adele's "One Night Only" CBS concert special. "And I was like, 'Hi, I'm Melissa [Lizzo's real name]. And I also auditioned for Ursula.' And she was like, 'Well, why the hell did I get the part?,' which is a classic Melissa McCarthy thing to say. And then I was like, 'Girl, because my audition was terrible.' And I say that as Tyler Perry walks by. And I was like – ruined my chances there. And then she goes, 'This is my daughter Vivian.' And I'm like, 'Get out of here, because my name is Melissa Viviane.' We were looking at each other like, 'What the hell is going on?'"
"My audition wasn't terrible," Lizzo clarified. "Sometimes I like to make jokes. My audition was good. You can ask Disney. I don't want to talk too much about it. The singing was great. I'll just say that."
In addition to Bailey and McCarthy, The Little Mermaid is set to star Javier Bardem (Being the Ricardos) as King Triton, Daveed Diggs (Hamilton) as Sebastian, Jacob Tremblay (Disney-Pixar's Luca) as Flounder, Awkwafina (Marvel's Shang-Chi) as the voice of Scuttle, and Jonah Hauer-King (TV's Little Women) as Prince Eric.
The Little Mermaid swims into theaters on May 26, 2023.
