‘Little Mermaid’ Star Halle Bailey Says Representation ‘Means the World’ (Exclusive)

Halle Bailey was feeling honored and grateful as she hit the blue carpet for “The Little Mermaid” premiere in L.A. Monday night.

Halle, who plays Ariel in the new live-action version of the Disney classic, opened up to “Extra’s” Rachel Lindsay about what it meant to be there.

“This moment means everything to me,” she said. “I’m so grateful to be here, feel really honored, and I'm just happy… the day has finally come where we can all watch it.”

She also reflected on the importance of representation, saying, “It means the world to me, this moment, especially for the beautiful babies to be able to see a reflection of themselves. I'm just honored to be a part of this and be one of the princesses now, because for me it was Brandy as Cinderella... and Anika Noni Rose as Princess Tiana... So the fact that I'm getting to continue this and live on this kind of legacy is really exciting.”

Back in March, Halle told “Extra” she was in tears just watching a rough cut of the film.

The actress said she “was sobbing the whole time.” Bailey admitted, “I don’t know what to do with myself and it’s almost finished and it’s just very surreal.”

Bailey also noted that she gets emotional seeing the reactions of kids to the trailer, saying, “Even just talking about it or thinking about it, I start to just well up because it’s so special to me, to be able to see the reactions to something that I worked so hard on for so long… For them to like it and also just for them to see themselves on the screen, it’s so important. Representation. So, I’m just happy that I get to kind of be that person for them to look to.”