Jodi Benson, The Original Ariel In "The Little Mermaid," Defended The Decision To Update Some Of The Movie's Song Lyrics

1 year ago 8

"It was a must, but it was done in a beautiful way, and I’m very, very thrilled with it."

Some songs in the upcoming The Little Mermaid remake may sound a little different for fans of the original animated film.

Halle Bailey as Ariel perched on a rock

That's because songs like "Kiss the Girl" and "Poor Unfortunate Souls" went through some lyrical revisions before making the final cut.

Halle as Ariel leaning on a table next to Prince Eric

Composer Alan Menken, who wrote the music for the 1989 film and worked on the remake, explained that the updated lyrics reflect a more modern Disney princess.

Alan in a recording studio

"There are some lyric changes in 'Kiss the Girl' because people have gotten very sensitive about the idea that [Prince Eric] would, in any way, force himself on [Ariel],” he told Vanity Fair.

He continued, "We have some revisions in 'Poor Unfortunate Souls' regarding lines that might make young girls somehow feel that they shouldn’t speak out of turn, even though Ursula is clearly manipulating Ariel to give up her voice."

It was all a part of modernizing the film, which star Halle Bailey has said "changed its perspective of just [Ariel] wanting to leave the ocean for a boy."

A closeup of Halle

"It’s way bigger than that. It’s about herself, her purpose, her freedom, her life and what she wants," she told Variety.

A closeup of Halle

As for how Jodi Benson, The Little Mermaid's original Ariel, feels about all of the changes, she says she's totally on board.

A closeup of Jodi

"We’re talking about starting our [voiceover] sessions in ’86," she told Entertainment Weekly. "It’s 2023, so we have to grow, we have to learn, we have to be aware of our surroundings."

Jodi in a recording studio

Jodi added that "we’ve got to be aware of our growth as humans and what’s important now and what maybe isn’t as important."

A closeup of Halle and Jodi

"Things change. We’ve got to roll with that...But you’ve got to have growth. It’s very important to stay relevant with where we are, what’s going on around us. We need to be aware," she said.

A closeup of Jodi

Jodi shared that she believes that director Rob Marshall and producer John DeLuca "have done a beautiful job of doing that" while "still paying tribute and honor to our original film."

A closeup of Jodi

"So the adjustments and the fine-tuning that they needed to do, it was a must, but it was done in a beautiful way, and I'm very, very thrilled with it," Jodi concluded.

Jodi on stage with children in Ariel costumes

You can read all that Jodi had to share here.

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