Exclusive: Mykal-Michelle Harris, Taye Diggs and Lynne Southerland talk Disney Jr ’s Ariel
Inspired by “The Little Mermaid,” the series Disney Jr ’s Ariel will debut on THURSDAY, JUNE 27, on Disney Junior (9:00 a.m. EDT/PDT) and air on Disney Channel later that day, with an initial batch of eight episodes available on Disney+ the following day, FRIDAY, JUNE 28.
Set in the Caribbean-inspired fairytale kingdom of Atlantica, the series follows young mermaid princess Ariel (Mykal-Michelle Harris) as she embarks on underwater adventures with her family and friends, including King Triton (Taye Diggs), Ursula (Amber Riley), Flounder (Gracen Newton) and mer-friends Fernie (Cruz Flateau) and Lucia (Elizabeth Phoenix Caro).
Geared towards preschoolers and their families, each episode features two 11-minute stories that highlight themes of community, self-expression, curiosity and resourcefulness and celebrate the multicultural elements of the Caribbean through music, food, festivals, fashion, language and folklore.
Recurring cast members include Yvette Nicole Brown as Aquatica, Melissa Villaseñor as Navi, Ron Funches as Delfino, Kevin Michael Richardson as Sebastian, Parvesh Cheena as Ravi, Danni Washington as Tantie Chantale, Alanna Ubach as Cristina Cuttles, and Dana Heath and Jessica Mikayla as Ariel’s twin sisters Ayanna and Alanna, respectively.
“Disney Jr.’s Ariel” is executive produced by Lynne Southerland and is produced by Wild Canary in association with Disney Jr.
Eleven-year-old actress Mykal-Michelle Harris is known for her role in “Raven’s Home,” and also appeared in Cheaper by the Dozen (2022), Mixed-ish (2019) and Big Little Lies (2017).
Diggs is a veteran actor of stage and screen, breaking out on Broadway in 1996 as part of the original cast of Rent and on film in 1998’s How Stella Got Her Groove Back. He’s gone on to star in dozens of TV shows, films and musicals since and previously guest-starred as a voice actor on the Disney Junior series Doc McStuffins and Elena of Avalor.
Blackfilmandtv.com's Wilson Morales talks to Mykal-Michelle Harris, Taye Diggs and executive producer Lynne Southerland about Disney Jr ’s Ariel
