Harry Styles was first choice for Prince Eric in The Little Mermaid, says filmmaker

Rob Marshall directorial The Little Mermaid stars Halle Bailey as Ariel and Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric. However, the male actor wasn't the first choice of the filmmaker for this role. Marshall revealed how they offered the character of Prince Eric to Harry Styles but the pop singer passed on it as he wanted to pursue another world career-wise.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the director said, "We met with him. He was lovely. What a wonderful guy, but at the end of the day, he really felt like he wanted to go off and do the movies that he ended up doing, which were sort of darker.” Marshall also stated how Styles and other "young musical individuals," who are breaking into the film industry, frequently do not want to be seen as simply singers. 

More on Harry Styles' acting career

Styles declined the role of The Little Mermaid but accepted roles in the LGBT drama My Policeman and Olivia Wilde's Don't Worry Darling. Compared to the Disney audience, which is geared towards families, both projects were more made for adults. On the other hand, Jonah Hauer-King was selected to take on the role of Prince Eric. The actor has previously played Laurie Lawrence in the 2017 television adaption of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women and the family adventure movie A Dog's Way Home.

Talking about his music career, Harry Styles had a very successful year with his record breaking album Harry's House and a sold out world tour. The artist also took home two Awards under the categories Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album at Grammys this year.