Aimee Walker
An AI artist is being slammed on social media for ‘whitewashing’ The Little Mermaid trailer by replacing actress Halle Bailey.
Twitter user @vandalibm shared footage of the edited trailer, reportedly by @TenGazillioinIQ, that had turned Ariel into a white mermaid.
The tweet, according to screenshots taken by Daily Mail before the account was suspended, said: “He fixed The Little Mermaid and turned the woke actor into a ginger white girl.
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“He says he can fix the whole move comes out with 4x A6000 in 24 hours. It’s over for wokecels.”
Reportedly, they went on to say that it was for ‘educational purposes’ and not meant to be seen in a ‘racist way’.
“I am just amazed by high-IQ friend who works with Artificial Intelligence and the stuff he can make, and wanted to show people his field of study,” they allegedly said.
Shortly after the posts were uploaded on social media, there came a backlash.
Related Article: Little Mermaid Star Halle Bailey Says Playing Ariel ‘Changed Her Life’
One tweeted: “You know guys, you were kinda asking to be suspended at this point for basically whitewashing a real human being.”
Another added: “Wow people wasted no time whitewashing Halle in the new The Little Mermaid teaser – just straight up racist.”
“Racists whitewashing the actress who is the live-action Ariel for Little Mermaid are showing just how racist they really are!” a third fumed. “I’ll support the film so #HalleBailey gets a top-grossing box office film! Eat it! Racists are pathetic.”
The Little Mermaid trailer racked up over 1.7 million dislikes on YouTube after it dropped over the weekend.
Related Article: Little Mermaid Being Black Makes Scientific Sense, Marine Biologist Says
When discussing how she came to be cast in the Disney film, Bailey admitted to People magazine that it could be ‘overwhelming’ at times.
She told the publication: “Sometimes it can be overwhelming to take the character that everybody has loved and known for years and make it your own.
“But I just listened to the little girl that’s in me, and I listen to her and make her happy and then I know if I put my all and my passion and everything into it that I’ll give it my best. And I feel like I did.”
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