Up-and-coming British actor Jonah Hauer-King (Little Women, A Dog’s Way Home) has landed the role of Prince Eric opposite Halle Bailey’s Ariel in Disney’s live-action remake of the animated classic The Little Mermaid.
Hauer-King has been linked to the role back in September, after former One Direction singer Harry Styles reportedly turned down the opportunity to join the film, having being offered the part of Prince Eric the previous month. Krypton star Cameron Cuffe was also reportedly in the running and tested alongside Hauer-King.
The Little Mermaid is being directed by Rob Marshall (Mary Poppins Returns) from a script by David Magee (Finding Neverland) and will see Bailey and Hauer-King joined in the cast by Melissa McCarthy (Can You Ever Forgive Me?) as Ursula, Awkwafina (Crazy Rich Asians) as Scuttle, Jacob Tremblay (The Predator) as Flounder, Daveed Diggs (Blindspotting) as Sebastian and Javier Bardem (Everybody Knows) as King Triton.
Although it’s without a confirmed release date, The Little Mermaid is expected to swim into cinemas at some point in 2021.