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‘The Little Mermaid’ Returns Under The Sea With Record-Breaking Runtime

Disney’s animated classic The Little Mermaid explored life under the sea, but it seems there’s still plenty more stories and details to uncover. The live-action remake starring Halle Bailey will bring viewers on a prolonged trip to Ariel and Eric’s (Jonah Hauer-King) kingdoms, as it’s set to run a lot longer than the original.

The Little Mermaid Runtime

According to AMC, the reimagined feature comes in at 135 minutes, which is almost an hour more than the 84-minute runtime of the original. This puts it as the longest running live-action remake to date, with fellow Disney Renaissance films Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin trailing behind with 129 and 128 minutes respectively. Cruella is the only other live-action from the House of Mouse that sits above the two-hour mark, but it’s a little of a special case — rather than a direct remake, it featured an entirely new backstory centred around the titular Cruella De Ville (Emma Stone).

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The extended runtime is a clear indication that director Rob Marshall will be expanding significantly on the world and lore, though it’s unclear just how many new elements are going to be (re)introduced to Ariel’s origin story.

Apart from Bailey and Hauer-King, Disney’s The Little Mermaid also stars Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, Javier Bardem as King Triton, Daveed Diggs as Sebastian, Awkwafina as Scuttle, Jacob Tremblay as Flounder, among others. It will bow on 26 May, with some of its original song lyrics revised to include consent.