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WIRE Buzz: The Little Mermaid lands Prince Eric; Shrine welcomes Jordana Brewster; more
The live-action remake of The Little Mermaid has finally crowned its Prince Eric.
The part will go to British actor Jonah Hauer-King — the result of a months-long search for the right actor, which continued well after the rest of the cast was set over the summer. The actor went to multiple auditions, eventually winning out over Krypton star Cameron Cuffe, per The Hollywood Reporter.
Hauer-King recently starred in A Dog's Way Home, and can currently be seen in the BBC's war drama World on Fire. He'll star alongside Halle Bailey as Ariel, Javier Bardem as King Triton, and Melissa McCarthy as Ursula.
Like most of Disney's live-action remakes, they'll feature all the original songs along with some new ones, courtesy of the original Little Mermaid composer Alan Menken and Mary Poppins Returns' Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Next up, Jordana Brewster has joined the cast of Shrine.
The film is based on James Herbert’s 1983 horror novel, and the Fast & Furious actor will star opposite The Walking Dead's Jeffrey Dean Morgan, according to Deadline. No details on her role are available just yet, but the story involves a disgraced journalist who uses what's assumed to be miracles to resurrect his career — although it turns out they're from a less-than-heavenly source.
Evan Spiliotopoulos has written the screenplay and will direct as well as produce alongside Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert. Brewster, meanwhile, will return as Mia in the ninth installment of the Fast & Furious franchise, coming May 22, 2020.
Finally, Sterling K. Brown reveals that he will not be singing a tune in the upcoming Frozen II, as was originally planned.
In an interview with Yahoo!, Brown, who plays Lt. Destin Mattias in the sequel, said the song "had to be reconceived" once it seemed like it no longer fit with the larger story.
"Originally, he was in the forest by himself, isolated, and only had himself to talk to," Brown explained. "So I would have scenes where I talk to myself and the whole thing, and then someone like Anna would chime in and I'd be like, 'I didn't say that. Did I say that?' It was interesting interplay because I'd never heard another voice."
The song aside, the Black Panther actor will still play a key role in the animated follow-up and has even kept his hopes up about getting to belt out a tune in the future.
"Hopefully in less than six years, when Frozen III comes along, you'll get a chance to check out the vocal stylings."
Frozen II opens everywhere Nov. 22.
