Aladdin's Mena Massoud deletes Twitter over backlash to The Little Mermaid comment

15 May 2023, 17:32

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By Sam Prance

Mena Massoud is coming under fire over a remark he made about Disney's new live-action The Little Mermaid.

Aladdin star Mena Massoud is coming under fire after appearing to make a shady remark about Disney's The Little Mermaid.

Ever since Disney announced that they would be making a live-action version of The Little Mermaid, fans have been eager to see how they reimagine the beloved, animated movie. With an incredible all-star cast that includes Javier Bardem as King Triton, Melissa McCarthy as Ursula and Halle Bailey as Ariel, the new Little Mermaid looks set to be a standout film of 2023.

Now, the first box office projections are in and they're impressive. However, Mena Massoud, who played Aladdin in Disney's 2019 live-action Aladdin has joined the conversation and people are confused by what he said.

In fact, Mena has received so much backlash on social media that he's now decided to deactivated his Twitter account.

READ MORE: Halle Bailey says new Little Mermaid will be more "modern" than the original

On Friday (May 12), pop culture account The Hollywood Handle took to Twitter to compare the projected opening box office numbers for The Little Mermaid to what Aladdin made in 2019. They tweeted: "THE LITTLE MERMAID’ is tracking to earn $115M on its domestic box office opening weekend. In comparison, ‘ALADDIN’ earned $112M on its opening."

Noticing the tweet, Mena Massoud then responded to it, tweeting: "Our film was unique in that audiences went to watch it multiple times. It’s the only way we reached the billion dollar mark with our opening. My guess is TLM doesn’t cross the billion mark but will undoubtedly get a sequel."

People interpreted Mena's comments as a diss towards The Little Mermaid. One person tweeted: "I understand Mena Massoud is very angry that Aladdin didn’t get a sequel So am I🤬 Disney failed him knowing how hard it is4 Middle Eastern actors 2get work😔But 2shade #TheLittleMermaid A Black Actress lead Movie knowing how hard it is for us is equally fucked up😑………"

Another wrote: "Aladdin is my FAVORITE live action as of today! It was fun, magical, and everything the original Disney Aladdin was and more. It deserved its 1Billion earnings but I dont see why TLM doesnt deserve to accomplish the same. We're a disney family over here, no need to drag anyone."

Mena has since deleted the tweet and deactivated his Twitter account.

Many criticised Mena for taking aim at The Little Mermaid given that the film has already faced racist backlash for casting a Black actress as Ariel. Speaking to Edition about the racist backlash to her casting, Halle said: “Seeing the world’s reaction to it was definitely a shock."

However, she then explained that it was important for her to play Ariel because of the impact it can have on young Black girls like her. She added: "But seeing all the babies’ reactions, all the brown and Black young girls, really tore me up emotionally."

As it stands, Mena is yet to address the criticism surrounding his comments. We shall update you if he does.

Read more The Little Mermaid news here:

• The Little Mermaid director slams racist backlash towards Halle Bailey's casting
• Bridgerton’s Simone Ashley is set to appear in Disney’s live-action The Little Mermaid
• The Little Mermaid's Halle Bailey shares emotional response to young Black girls watching the trailer

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