If you’re thinking “this is way too soon for Disney and Lin Manuel Miranda’s live action Little Mermaid to be coming to theaters” you would be exactly right. But Disney isn’t the only place that can whip up a non-animated story about a girl with a tail and a love interest. This movie, featuring The Royals‘ William Moseley, is a direct adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen story, so while there’s no singing to be found here there’s also no worries about copyright infringement with the House of Mouse.
The movie, which also stars Shirley MacLaine, centers around a brother and sister traveling to Mississippi to report on a girl who could be the actual, original “Little Mermaid.” There are romantic overtones as well as a sinister looking circus that is definitely up to some shenanigans. While there might not be a singing crab or Ursula as a front-and-center foe, based on the trailer it looks to be a solid imagining of the world where Andersen’s story took place.
Anybody familiar with Andersen’s original stories — many of which were translated into animated stories — knows that they aren’t the happy-go-lucky affairs that Disney makes them out to be. In fact, the stories are pretty twisted. So this could go to some dark places if the filmmakers adapt the material straight.
(via Deadline)
