The new Little Mermaid changes the ending in an important way

It’s the same line every single time. The Little Mermaid isn’t one of the famous ones — a lyric from “Part of Your World,” Ariel’s defiant “But Daddy, I love him,” or even one of Sebastian’s quippy asides. Triton, who realizes Ariel is happier on the land and gives her legs with his magic trident, says it at the very end of the film. Afterward, he turns to Sebastian and says, “I guess there’s just one problem left — how much I’m going to miss her.”

That moment has more impact than any other line in the movie, because it disrupts the conventional “happily ever after” narrative. A Disney story ending is not like other Disney stories. The Little MermaidThis is bitter-sweet. True love saves the day, and there’s a big wedding. Cinderella was able to escape her stepmother, but this isn’t the case with Cinderella. Beauty and the Beast’s Belle reuniting with her father, Ariel leaves behind her loving family for a new life — and she can never return to the way things were.

A new live action remake is set for 2023 The Little Mermaid keeps that line intact, but shifts the ending around it a bit in a way that overwrites the original movie’s sequel, The Little Mermaid II Return to the Sea. But as it turns out, that isn’t a bad thing.

[Ed. note: This post contains spoilers for the 2023 Little Mermaid, and also for Return to the Sea.]

Image: Disney

Triton is a strict, overprotective parent, but like many parents, he does what he does because he believes he’s keeping his daughter safe. But unlike most parents, Triton realizes that he made a mistake and corrects it. To give his daughter a chance at happiness, he must let her go. But still, he’s sad! It’s moving! The video shows how even the most rigid dads may be able to grow, and realize that what they really want might not match what their daughters actually want.

The idea that Ariel has to permanently break with Triton to achieve her dreams is emphasized again in the direct-to-VHS sequel, where she makes the difficult choice to cut off all contact with the undersea world to protect her daughter from Ursula’s vengeful sister. The movie is a sequel to the direct-to-VHS film. In it, Ariel makes a difficult decision by cutting off all contact with Triton in order to protect her daughter from Ursula’s vengeful sister. The Little Mermaid II Return to the Sea is one of the better Disney direct-to-video sequels, that era isn’t necessarily known for You can also check out our Facebook page. movies. But there’s a particularly poignant scene in this one, where a grown-up Ariel walks to the beach and dips her feet in the water, looking up to the sky and sighing that she misses her father.

Image: Disney

While screenwriter David Magee and director Rob Marshall preserve many things from the 1989 animated movie in their live-action version — including giving the “I’m going to miss her” line to Javier Bardem as Triton, who delivers it with as much tenderness and sadness as it deserves — they make a smart choice to tweak the ending so it isn’t as painful. In the end, the decision to change the ending is a smart one. It makes it less painful.

Ariel still gets married to Eric in the movie of 2023 but their ceremony is much less formal. The important thing is that they head off on a long sea journey together, indulging both of their desires for exploration, and hoping to extend diplomatic relations for Eric’s small island nation. As they’re on a rowboat, about to head out to their ship, Triton emerges from the water and looks gravely at Ariel and Eric. Triton assures Ariel they’ll always be there for her.

Image: Disney

It’s a small detail, but it still changes the ending considerably. Ariel doesn’t have to choose between worlds. Although she is more happy and comfortable in her human life, a small part of Ariel will remain as a Mermaid. Instead of saying goodbye to Ariel, this time the end feels like the beginning of a new chapter in her relationship with the undersea world. Marshall and Magee have sprinkled some fantasy conflict in this version between merpeoples and humans, but never really explored it. But that conflict makes an ending where Ariel doesn’t have to choose between worlds feel even more resonant.

There’s still a If you want to know more about this, please contact us. to dive into (ha) in a potential sequel. Possible sequels to these live action remakes are announced constantly. And it wouldn’t have to focus on giving Ariel a kid, or cutting her off from the mermaid world. Ariel and Eric’s relationship represents something new for both humans and merpeople, and their seafaring quest will certainly take them to uncharted waters, both literally and figuratively. The Sea ReturnsIt might not be possible to see it in real life, but the ocean is full of things that you can explore. This time, Ariel knows her father will always be there for her, now that he’s learned to let her go.