Thanks to some key films that set trends and became the strongest references of their time, Disney managed to become one of the most important companies in the world of animation. One of these projects was The Little Mermaid (92%), a free adaptation of the work of Hans Christian Andersen that revolutionized the company’s female characters. In order to reach new generations, the production company has supported several live-action remakes of its classics, and although not all of them met with the desired success, The Little Mermaid (66%), which went far and broke new records, premiered on Disney Plus.
“The Little Mermaid” had to overcome many obstacles to conquer the box office
In many ways, The little mermaid It came at the worst time for the company. Although the original story is one of the most popular with the public, Disney adaptations have not done particularly well in recent years. What was initially seen as a great opportunity to exploit these characters and place them in a new social and cinematic context soon devolved into a fairly simple comfort zone that did not allow for the creation of anything more relevant. Fans began complaining that these suggestions reflected a lack of energy and intent on the company’s part, and given recent reactions to franchises like Marvel and Star Wars, it seems that idea is still there.
Despite these fears, the production of The little mermaid It was one of the most anticipated in Hollywood, and thousands of actresses fought to keep the lead role. Audiences had their favorites and a very specific idea of what they wanted the live-action version to look like, which was taken to an uncomfortable extreme when it was announced that Halle Bailey had taken over the role. Some people were more worried about the changes in Flounder and Sebastian’s design or how difficult it would be to do justice to an underwater civilization; others decided to use their racism as a boycott weapon to make them fail.
Halle Bailey proved that it was mostly superficial and unfounded criticism, and the film was finally released in theaters in May and received good reviews and acceptance from the majority of the audience. Although the first weekend was poorly balanced and the film remained at the top of the worldwide box office but did not reach the expected millions, the following weeks performed very well in theaters and made it a great success of the season and the first. Semester 2023.
“The Little Mermaid” is now also a streaming success
After spending several weeks at the box office and wanting to get as much as possible into commercial theaters until the last day, Disney became one of the most anticipated films for physical formats, VOD, and streaming services. The producer announced this well in advance The little mermaid It would arrive on Disney Plus in early September, and now that the date has been set, things are looking very good for the live-action, which is already one of the most successful premieres on the platform, breaking a few records in the process.
Accordingly deadlineThe adaptation received 16 million views in its first five days on the streaming service and became the most-watched premiere on Disney Plus (70%) after the release of Abracadabra 2, which was so well received by audiences that the company is already preparing another sequel. To analyze this, the production company defines a view as the total streaming time divided by the film’s possible broadcast time, a system that Netflix also uses for its screenings.
Little by little, Disney is sharing more information about its viewership data and prioritizing the most anticipated premieres on the platform, which in turn enables better comparative analysis with other streaming services. The production company also confirmed that the live-action remake resulted in the original animated film improving its views in the catalog. Based on these results, it is expected that the production company will continue its plans to develop new versions of its classics in the coming years, including a new remake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which is 98% really close.
