The Little Mermaid is a beloved classic, and its new live-action adaptation has been a topic of much discussion. One of the memorable sequences from the original animation was left out from the new adaptation, and director Rob Marshall has explained why.
In an interview with IndieWire, Marshall was questioned about the decision to remove the sequence in which Sebastian escapes from the chef in the musical number “Les Poissons.” He stated that it felt like a distraction from the story and that it would look very strange to see an animal fight a human in a photorealistic animation.
Marshall explained that it is an animated concept and would look like a Saturday cartoon. It also had nothing to do with the story and was a complete vacation from history. Marshall thought that it would be impossible to make it work and cut it for these reasons.
In the original animation, when Ariel first steps on the ground, Sebastian is captured and taken to the kitchen to be prepared into food. The sequence sees him run away from a chef who happily sings about preparing dishes made from marine animals. In the new version, the crab simply escapes from the cage and climbs up to the young woman’s room.
Although it removes a small moment that highlights how terrifying consuming marine animals could seem, the live-action adaptation has other ways of illustrating how strange human customs are to the characters. But the lyrics of “Under the Sea” maintain the lines that recall this moment.
Aside from this sequence, the adaptation remains almost completely faithful to the original story’s sequence of events. The giant, monstrous version of Ursula is still present in the climax of the film, which may have been difficult to make believable in live-action.
The Little Mermaid is now in theaters, and fans can decide for themselves whether the adaptation met their expectations. The live-action adaptation faces tough competition in theaters, with highly anticipated summer blockbusters like Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and The Flash.
