Halle Bailey made history by becoming the first African-American actress to portray Ariel in Disney's new live-action film The Little Mermaid. But it seems that what occupied the production's costume and props department were its rastas.
Bailey insisted on keeping her long rastas, despite the fact that she plays a princess.
Halle Bailey, Photo by GettyImages
The director of the hair department, Camille Friend, managed to cope with the demand of the actress in a sensitive way, but it cost quite a bit of money. $150,<> to be exact.
Friend told Variety that the first step was to try to figure out why Bailey's hair was so important to her. "I went to meet her family, tried to understand who they were and why it was so critical for her to keep the rastas," she said.
Friend was careful not to cut a single hair from Bailey's head. "I knew using a wig was just not an option. Bailey's hair is very long, so using a wig would be impossible. We decided to use hair extensions that blended with Bailey's natural color and would give us the red look we wanted, which would be as similar as possible to Ariel's character as we imagined it."
The Little Mermaid, Photo: AP
Friend used three different types of hair extensions in three different shades. "It cost us about $150,12. There was a point when it was necessary to add more bits of hair to look like they were floating in the water while she was swimming. Bailey had to sit for about <> hours for us to work on her hair."
Hair is not the only thing that was central to the film, but also the choice to use an African-American actress. While critics have praised the choice, there will always be those who have come out against it. Some fans of Disney films have spoken out against the choice of an actress with a dark complexion, different from the way the Little Mermaid was originally portrayed.
Halle Bailey and fans,
The remake of the original Disney fairy tale sparked deep outrage among audiences. Fans claimed that the new version of the film interfered with the appearance of their beloved characters, as it did not meet their expectations. Bailey herself said, "As a child, if I saw Ariel's image in a dark complexion, I would feel proud."
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