Diving into The Little Mermaid's Online Ratings
Daniel Ryan - 6th June 2023
The 2023 remake of The Little Mermaid, recently released in cinemas, has sparked significant controversy and divided opinions on social media platforms. One particular point of contention revolves around the casting of Halle Bailey, a talented performer of colour, in the lead role. Some individuals have raised concerns about the legitimacy of the film’s ratings on popular movie rating websites.
Before the release of any trailers, social media was rife with negative comments and outrage directed at the remake. Some individuals, particularly older adult males, vehemently objected to the decision to change the skin colour of the mermaid character - the film was going to fail. While it is understandable that some fans may have reservations about alterations to the source material, the anger and hostility displayed have reached the point where they’re over the top. Here is a film primarily for children, and these adults are objecting that they will never watch it because of the skin colour of the lead actor playing a fictional, non-human character.
Some social media critics of the remake argue that their opposition is rooted in changes to the original Hans Christian Andersen story. However, it is worth noting that the animated Disney adaptation also significantly deviated from its source material. In Andersen’s tale, the mermaid remains nameless, with no hair colour mentioned, has her tongue severed, and experiences excruciating pain while walking in human form. Marrying the prince, she would earn part of a soul, but he does not reciprocate the mermaid’s love and marries another woman, leading to her tragic demise - she turns into sea foam. The mermaid then became one of the goddesses of the air, earned an immortal soul, and after 300 years, she would go to the kingdom of heaven. A remake is usually a creative evolution of previous work, offering a fresh interpretation, and both Disney movies appear to do just that.
Facebook’s algorithm keeps choosing to show me some terrible posts about this movie, and as I interact with them by clicking on them to read more (because of both my skeptical curiosity and my disappointment), I keep being served more of the same hatred. I’ve also been keeping a close eye on social media reactions about The Little Mermaid remake. As the release of trailers and promotional materials has progressed, online bullying and subtle (and some not-so-subtle) racism has become prevalent in the comments, including some awful images:
In my opinion Disney doesn’t have a great track record for their remakes, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. But I was surprised to see a 95% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes (with 5000+ ratings) when the movie was released. Detractors pointed out the “all audience” rating at 56%, and accused Rotten Tomatoes of deleting some ratings.
It is important to understand the context of these ratings, and the measures put in place by platforms like Rotten Tomatoes to counter manipulation attempts. By default, audience scores use verified audience members if possible. But what is a verified member? Rotten Tomatoes, for example, introduced a verified audience score in 2019, exclusively counting individuals with verified ticket purchases. This move was intended to mitigate review bombing, and to ensure more reliable audience ratings. Thus, the verified score provides a more accurate reflection of genuine audience reactions.
Over on IMDb, The Little Mermaid remake currently holds a rating of 7.2/10, with a message displayed on the page indicating that unusual voting activity has been detected, leading to an alternate weighting calculation being applied. IMDb’s FAQ page clarifies that safeguards are in place to combat attempts at manipulating ratings, acknowledging that some individuals try to inflate or deflate scores. Consequently, the displayed weighted rating considers these countermeasures and ensures a fairer representation of user opinions. IMDb doesn’t share what it does under the hood, but if I had to guess (as a software developer), I would say that new accounts with only one rating probably won’t be weighted as highly in their total score.
Cinemascore gave the movie an A (93–96%). The website polls a statistically significant number of opening night moviegoers. This score backs up the Rotten Tomatoes 95% user rating - suggesting that those who actually watch the movie generally enjoy it.
Metacritic’s Metascore, based on critic ratings, is 59/100, whereas its user rating score is 2.2/10. Metacritic does not employ verification, or mention any specific safeguards, for its user ratings, which could explain the significant difference in its ratings from other websites.
Claims of rigged ratings for the 2023 Little Mermaid movie lack substantial evidence, and appear to primarily be fueled by discontent surrounding the casting decision. Am I a shill for this movie? As a 36-year-old man, I have no natural inclination to watch this particular film, but I acknowledge that a movie not tailored to my demographic can still hold its own merits. Though, if my niece is interested, I may make an exception. Viewers seeking a different portrayal of a mermaid character can always watch the 2018 film The Little Mermaid, which features a white mermaid. However, it is worth mentioning that this adaptation received very unfavourable ratings from reviewers and critics, and almost certainly wasn’t review-bombed.