Halle Bailey says 'The Little Mermaid' backlash taught her resilience

Halle Bailey says starring as Ariel in 'The Little Mermaid' taught her resilience. The actress learned to 'block out the noise' amid racist backlash and feels more confident heading into her new romcom, 'You, Me & Tuscany'.

Actress and singer Halle Bailey says starring as Ariel in Disney's 2023 live-action remake of The Little Mermaid taught her "how to block out the noise" and stay grounded amid public scrutiny, according to People.

Bailey, 26, described her role as Ariel as "a beautiful experience" and said the attention -- including online racist backlash to her casting -- helped her develop resilience. "I feel like it taught me to listen to myself and the good voices inside. I learnt how to block out the noise," she said.

An 'Eye-Opening' Experience

Bailey reflected on the experience as eye-opening, "It was actually freeing to be in the middle of this conversation where so many different opinions were coming in, and they were so opposite from one another," the You, Me & Tuscany star said. "I felt like I was watching myself inside a cup, seeing how people react to it," Bailey added, as quoted by People.

The Rob Marshall-directed film starred Bailey alongside Jonah Hauer-King as Eric, Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, and Javier Bardem as King Triton.

Applying Lessons to New Roles

Bailey, who rose to fame with sister Chloe as R&B duo Chloe x Halle, said her early exposure to the industry helped her maintain perspective. "Growing up in the industry can really develop your sense of self, and for me, it keeps me grounded in a way. I know for some people it's the opposite but I just always think to myself, 'None of this is real.' "

Ahead of the release of her new romcom You, Me & Tuscany, costarring Rege-Jean Page, Bailey told People she has learned not to take audiences' reactions personally. "It's nice that we get to be on screen and play make-believe and people go to the theater and -- they love it or they don't," she said, as per the outlet.

"The Little Mermaid showed me the ropes," she added. "I was so grateful to be a part of it. And I feel more confident this time around because I'm like, Oh, I know what I'm getting into."

Bailey described stepping into leading roles in Hollywood as "kind of a new world for me... So I'm grateful that it's going the way it is," according to People.

You, Me & Tuscany, directed by Kat Coiro and written by Ryan Engle, hits theaters Friday. (ANI)

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