Aladdin (the live-action version) is out and making nice coin, and The Lion King (the new animated remake of the old animated original) is waiting patiently in the wings. So this isn't particularly a shocker:
Melissa McCarthy is in early talks to play the villain Ursula in its live-action/CGI adaptation of The Little Mermaid, Deadline has confirmed. No deal has been done, but it would be the latest piece in place for the project, part of Disney’s reboots of its animated classics ...
Rob Marshall, who helmed Disney’s sequel Mary Poppins Returns last year, is directing Little Mermaid, which will feature Alan Menken and Howard Ashman’s songs from the original 1989 animated feature (“Under the Sea” won the Oscar) and new tunes from Menken and Lin-Manuel Miranda. ...
People who complain, "Disney shouldn't be remaking its classic animated features! It just isn't DISNEY anymore!" ...
Well, yeah. Walt died fifty-three years ago, and under the leadership of Robert Iger, the company has turned into a sprawling, Berkshire-Hathaway style entertainment conglomerates, with theme parks and copious real estate, with movie studios and cartoon studios and (very soon) big fat streaming services.
So anyone who doesn't think Disney is the Disney of old, they're right. It's now a colossus who's main occupation is the minting of money. And to that end, the animated library has proven to be a veritable gold mine. and sure. There's the occasional misfire. But does anybody think The Mouse will give up on rehashing its long-form cartoons when the redoes have been so very, very profitable?
Not freaking likely.
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