Late last week we learned that Melissa McCarthy – and not Lizzo, for whatever insane reason – is in talks to play Ursula the sea witch in Rob Marshall's live-action remake of The Little Mermaid. Today, THR brings word that two more actors are in talks to join the cast of Disney's next big reimagining: Ya boy Jacob Tremblay and Awkwafina. As you can probably guess before I even mention it, Tremblay would be playing the role of Flounder, sidekick and BFF to Ariel, the eponymous mermaid. Awkwafina's involvement is a little more interesting, as the rapper-turned-actress is in talks to voice Scuttle, the seagull who often brings Ariel little gifts from the shore and has a habit of misunderstanding their use – like when he brings her a fork and tells her it's a "dinglehopper," which can be used to brush hair, or something. The late Buddy Hackett voiced Scuttle in the original animated film, and I'm kind of in love with the idea of casting Awkwafina in this part.
In addition to the classic songs by Alan Menken, the live-action remake will feature new songs co-written by Menken and Lin-Manuel Miranda. As noted last week, it's probably only a matter of time before Miranda himself joins the cast – probably as Sebastian, although the casting of Awkwafina proves Disney has some curveballs in mind. Maybe he can play one of Ursula's eels or something. The role of Ariel has yet to be cast, but I'm sure Disney will pick one of like, three famous redheads to do it. Probably Sophie Turner. Then we can have a truly modern Ariel who vapes.