Little Mermaid director Rob Marshall reveals Harry Styles turned down the role of Prince Eric

Little Mermaid director Rob Marshall has revealed that Harry Styles turned down the role as Prince Eric in the upcoming live-adaptation of the film. After years of speculation the live action remake of the 1989 Disney classic was confirmed with Rob as director and Halle Bailey as Princess Ariel. Fans quickly put the ‘As It Was’ singer firmly at the front of the queue to play Prince Eric. There was even a petition! 

It would've made complete sense with Harry’s dashing good looks, floppy dark hair and chiselled jawline - all he needs is a white shirt and blue trousers and calf high boots (which I’m sure he already owns). And yet it was not meant to be. 

As much as the fans tried, it was actually the singer who turned down the role. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly film director Rob Marshall said "[Harry] really felt like he wanted to go off and do the movies that he ended up doing, which were sort of darker."  The role eventually went to Little Woman actor Jonah Hauer-King, who does look very much like Prince Eric. 

The former One Direction singer instead chose to focus on ‘Don’t Worry Darling’ - where he met and started dating director Olivia Wilde - and ‘The Policeman’. Sadly this may have been a huge mistake for Harry as both films received poor reviews and his acting skills were criticised even more. 

The Evening Standard wrote, “[Don’t Worry Darling] lacks originality and Styles is miscast.” The film saw more drama during the promotional tour for the movie than the actual movie itself. There was a rumoured feud between director Olivia and actress Florence Pugh who did as little promo work as possible, plus a video clip of Harry ‘spitting’ on co-star Chris Pine (#Spitgate) that went viral - although this was denied and put down to camera position making it look that way. 

Harry’s performance in The Policeman was not much better as the Guardian explained “Harry may look like a movie star but as a performer he is “unsure of his ability as we are.” Ouch!

Of course The Little Mermaid was a safe bet he would’ve been praised for his good looks and singing. I understand that he wanted to move away from singing - even in films- to be seen as a serious actor but sometimes a safe bet is a better option.