The Little Mermaid made a big splash at the box office in its premiere weekend. The live-action film starring Halle Bailey as the beloved red-haired Ariel raked in $95.5 million between Friday (May 26) and Sunday (May 28), according to CBS News.
The holiday weekend has yet to wrap up, meaning the movie could potentially bring in millions more today (May 29). But the wet and wild adventure far exceeded its competition, outpacing films like Fast X, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and The Super Mario Bros. Movie. The Disney flick earned $38 million on its premiere day alone; Fast X, its closest competitor, pulled in $23 million throughout the whole weekend.
If The Little Mermaid earns a total of $126.9 million by the end of the four-day holiday weekend, it would become the third-highest-earning movie to premiere on Memorial Day weekend ever. It would only be outdone by 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick, which earned $160 million, and 2007’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, which earned $139 million. As such, it would be the highest-earning children’s movie to premiere over the late May weekend.
Disney has taken to remaking some of their classic stories in recent years in the form of live-action versions. From The Lion King to Mulan, some of the film giant’s biggest movies to date are getting a makeover. The Little Mermaid was one of the most highly anticipated ones from the outset after Halle Bailey was announced to be playing Ariel.
Young girls, especially young Black girls, have been thrilled about the movie before it even hit theaters. Halle admitted in an interview with Good Morning America, seen below, that she’s humbled by every clip she sees of young girls celebrating her turn as the iconic mermaid.
“Seeing beautiful videos like this every day make me cry,” she said. “I’m just in a constant state of awe and so grateful that they are able to see themselves in a character like Ariel. I mean, we deserve to have representation, where we can look and be like, ‘Wow, I’m worthy, too! She looks like me!”