Halle Bailey has arrived. And as she stepped onto the royal blue carpet for the premiere of The Little Mermaid, it’s safe to say jaws all over the world dropped. The movie’s star shimmered and shined from head to toe in a stunning custom silvery teal blue strapless gown by designer Valdrin Sahiti. Charmingly, the dress’s hem appeared to be fashioned to mimic a mermaid tale and the bodice mimicked seashells. She accessorized with statement bejeweled earrings and flashed a gorgeous smile for the cameras. Halle finished the look with, of course, a shimmering aqua blue manicure. In short, she simply transformed into her title role.
At the movie’s premiere, she opened up about how much the role in the film means to her. “This moment means everything to me, I’m so grateful to be here,” she told Deadline at the event. “I just feel really honored and I’m happy the day has finally come where we can all watch it.”
She also discussed how much impact even just the trailer had on young people. “It means the world to me, especially for the beautiful babies to be able to see a reflection of themselves,” she told the outlet. “I am just honored to be a part of this and be one of the princesses now because for me it was Brandi as Cinderella and then Anika Rose as Princess Tiana. So the fact that I am getting to continue this and live on this legacy is really exciting and I’m just grateful.”
Back in August of 2022, as buzz for the movie began to build, she related the ways in which she relates to the iconic mermaid and Disney Princess, Ariel. “Her sense of longing, her searching for herself, was something that I could resonate with,” she told Variety at the time. “She knew where she wanted to go, and she wasn’t going to let anybody stop her.”
“I want the little girl in me and the little girls just like me who are watching to know that they’re special, and that they should be a princess in every single way,” she added. “There’s no reason that they shouldn’t be. That reassurance was something that I needed.” The highly anticipated film opens May 26 in theaters.