When Disney announced its anticipated live-action remake of The Little Mermaid, it had been rumoured that pop star-turned-actor Harry Styles was in the running to play Prince Eric opposite Halle Bailey's Ariel.
However, those rumours were squashed in 2019 when it was reported that Styles turned down the role, and Jonah Hauer-King was cast as the Disney prince instead.
The former One Direction star later stated that he didn't want to be part of that world because he was planning a tour, but The Little Mermaid's director Rob Marshall has said that Styles also wanted to take on some "darker" roles.
Related: The Little Mermaid's Halle Bailey gets praise from original Ariel
"We met with him. He was lovely. What a wonderful guy. But at the end of the day, he really felt like he wanted to go off and do the movies that he ended up doing, which were sort of darker," the filmmaker told Entertainment Weekly.
Styles ended up starring in Olivia Wilde's psychological thriller Don't Worry Darling alongside Florence Pugh last year. He's also cameoed in Eternals, and starred in LGBTQ+ period drama My Policeman opposite David Dawson and Emma Corrin.
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Marshall continued: "For a lot of young musical people like Harry, you're trying to carve your way and you don't wanna be seen as a singer, necessarily.
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"That's why he was really looking to do something not in the musical genre, to really stretch himself.
"It was really a fun idea to play with, but in the end, I always think things happen for a reason. I'm so happy to have two young, new people in the film."
Marshall recently explained how his live-action remake makes a big change from the 1989 animated original.
"[Ariel] doesn't give up her voice for a guy – that's something that was sort of baked into that original," he explained. "That's not how we play it in our film."
The Little Mermaid will premiere in UK and US cinemas on May 26.
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Social Executive, Entertainment Portfolio After completing her joint honours degree in Journalism and English Literature at Cardiff University, Iona joined Digital Spy as a Content Production Intern in 2022, where she wrote across both news and features, specialising in TV and movies. Following her internship, Iona continued contributing to the site as a freelance reporter, becoming social executive for the Hearst UK entertainment portfolio in summer 2025. Iona now leads the DS social channels, covering red carpets with stars such as Paul Mescal, Austin Butler, and more.
