While it looked as though
Disney had finally found their Prince Eric for the upcoming Little Mermaid remake, it’s now been reported that their search is still on.
Last month, it was claimed that Harry Styles was in the running to star as the romantic lead in the forthcoming live-action version of Little Mermaid, playing Ariel’s love interest.
However, a “source close to the star” has told PA that while Disney did approach the former One Direction singer about playing Prince Eric, he eventually made the decision to turn them down.And needless to say, fans who had been excited at the prospect of seeing Harry in the role of the dreamiest of all the Disney princes have been left more than a little disappointed at the news, particularly as reports circulated just hours earlier suggesting he had signed on for the role…I really wanted to see Harry playing prince Eric but he declined the roleI’m-pic.twitter.com/EJzU1EEiHF— my (@xhmzsx) August 14, 2019this is....... traumatizing 😭 https://t.co/NyAddpXoyz— ♡ snitchery ♡ (@babysnitchery) August 14, 2019right so going from “harry styles confirmed to be prince eric” to “anything is yet to be confirmed” all the way to “harry styles has denied the role of prince eric” all in a matter of hours has been the worst form of heartbreak i have ever experienced pic.twitter.com/3F0Xo2z7wM— em (@misses_em) August 14, 2019harry styles turned down the role of prince eric and i would just like to say i am simply devastated thank you that is all— isa ♡ (@isa_svt) August 13, 2019“Harry styles respectfully declined the role of prince Eric” bye that’s enough twittering today pic.twitter.com/kAcRq1SXCW— 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐚 (@Lora_Stylesss) August 13, 2019i have no reason to live now https://t.co/OyIzQw9l4Wpic.twitter.com/wtDCpZHhci— princess♡˖✧*。 (@princesstiddies) August 13, 2019All men ever do is disappoint me https://t.co/3E0Q5kq0Fh— gabs ♡ (@gxbriellev) August 14, 2019harry styles turning down the role of prince eric? im devastated 😔💔— doro deck (@dorcthy) August 14, 2019i woke up seeing a source saying Harry got the role as prince Eric only to see that he turned it down AND I AM BEYOND DEVASTATED??????— peach (@heshedgie) August 13, 2019god really never lets me have anything good huh https://t.co/3XWqCxpquF— ash ⚡️ (@ashleythecarrot) August 14, 2019we went from “Harry Styles is confirmed to be playing Prince Eric in Disney’s The Little Mermaid!” to “Harry Styles is not confirmed to be playing prince eric... Yet.” to “Harry styles has turned down the role of Prince Eric.” pic.twitter.com/p5aKfM7lVg— ⁎˳✧༚ (@harrysflower) August 13, 2019And with Harry out of the frame, there have been a few suggestions about who should get the part...me omw to convince timothée chalamet to play prince eric since harry styles turned it down pic.twitter.com/fi439dmWyz— kae (@WIZKAELIFA) August 14, 2019So, do we get our hopes up and go into a deep sadness or do we now look for the next Prince Eric... my suggestion is
Shawn Mendes #ShawnMendes#PrinceEric#littlemermaid@ShawnMendespic.twitter.com/YEzZbyMBvj— RYAN MELHADO BURKE (@RyanMBurke0795) August 13, 2019Listen, I was all for Harry Styles as prince Eric... but I’m even more for Jordan fisher as prince Eric. He’s attractive, he can sing, dance and act... I’m just saying pic.twitter.com/ttOeToB3WM— Cutie._._yoongi (@juliahasissues) August 14, 2019now that harry styles is out of the picture... let’s discuss jordan fisher for prince eric PLEASE pic.twitter.com/KScsn3NCqn— georgia (@spimanhoco) August 13, 2019ASHER ANGEEEEEL https://t.co/qUrVUEqGY5— mar (@spideystorms) August 13, 2019since Harry turned it down, can we talk about Timotheé Chalamet for the role of Prince Eric?, I could really imagine him as the perfect actor to play the role... like look at that pretty face, the curls, the eyes and plus a great actor and has been nominated once in Oscars!!😍❤ pic.twitter.com/RVfYjevneO— ✲HᗩᑎLᑌ✲ (@wogehondesu) August 14, 2019harry styles wont be playing prince eric.. sad :( ... anyways jordan fisher is there ✨— 𝒾𝓂𝒶𝓃 (@happilyiman) August 14, 2019Harry Styles declined Prince Eric role so there’s a rumor that they wanted to cast Dev Patel, Timothee Chalamet or Gavin Leatherwood. Why not cast Taron Egerton? pic.twitter.com/YKlCTzP0d6— Makoi ni Dr. EmDee🐺🏳️🌈 (@instantmaki) August 14, 2019Well since Harry styles turned down the role for prince Eric for the little mermaid, here’s another suggestion @Disney 🥳 pic.twitter.com/VoIxpMOTaK— Marcia 💜 (@jinkookshoseok) August 13, 2019Disney’s upcoming Little Mermaid will see Grammy-nominated artist Halle Bailey in the lead role of Ariel, while Awkwafina and Jacob Tremblay will reportedly voice Scuttle and Flounder, respectively.
The role of the villainous Ursula is also one that people have a lot of opinions about, with Oscar nominee Melissa McCarthy supposedly the frontrunner for the sea witch role.
Although it seems fans won’t be seeing Harry Styles on the big screen any time soon, it has been suggested he could be back with new
music soon, after being snapped filming a new music video in Mexico.
His self-titled debut album topped the
UK charts in 2017, as did lead single Sign Of The Times.MORE DISNEY... What Do The Original Lion King Animators Think Of The Remake? The Little Mermaid's Halle Bailey Brushes Off Backlash Over Her Casting Disney Finally Confirms Plans For Streaming Service And There's A Lot To Get Excited About