The Little Mermaid has finally swept theaters to dazzle hearts and minds this weekend. The film sees Halle Bailey giving a breathtaking performance as Ariel in an adaptation of the 1989 film.
The original animated musical was a condensed watch at a meager 82 minutes. But as parents know, most of the Disney live-action adaptations have been longer in runtime.
For example, The Lion King was 30 minutes longer than the original 1994 film.
For parents, sitting in the theater for a lengthy time can be tiresome when restless kids are involved.
Knowing the runtime of the latest Disney epic helps in these parental dilemmas.
Here is The Little Mermaid runtime and an explanation of the change.
How long is The Little Mermaid 2023?
The new vision of The Little Mermaid is rather long for the story it’s trying to tell.
The film’s length has been the main consistent nitpick among critics.
The remake is almost an hour longer than the 1989 movie, and by that, we mean 2 hours and 15 minutes of a seafaring adventure.
Adding 20 minutes of previews provides a big trip to the movies for parents.
Many might ask themselves why a simple tale like The Little Mermaid has been stretched an hour.
Well, there are various reasons for this; some have to do with story and musical numbers.
Why is The Little Mermaid longer than the original?
The new reimagining of the Disney classic has three new songs. Some of these tracks build character and story, thus stretching the movie’s length.
The film also adds more detail to various subplots, such as the internal struggle in Prince Eric’s family.
Because of the expanded subplots and added songs, it takes a while to approach the central conflict. And this also means it takes time to reach the third-act climax.
What songs were added to The Little Mermaid?
Three new songs were crafted by composer Alan Menken and Hamilton’s Lin-Manuel Miranda.
One of these songs is called Wild Uncharted Waters, a musical number written for the character Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King). The song mirrors Ariel’s Part of Your World, as they both long for more.
Halle Bailey sings the second song titled For The First Time. The joyous number is performed while Ariel discovers a new life on dry land.
And the final song, The Scuttlebutt, is a playful bop performed by Awkwafina and Daveed Diggs. The reactions to this added song have been mixed.
The Little Mermaid might be longer than desired, but it has much to offer for families this weekend.
And despite any objections to a long stay at the theaters, hearing Halle Bailey sing makes it worth it.
The Little Mermaid is now in theaters.