The Little Mermaid breaks Disney Plus streaming records to become one of its most-watched debuts

The Little Mermaid capitalized on its already impressive box office earlier this year to break records for Disney Plus. The live-action remake of the animated classic managed to wrack up 16 million complete views after just five days on the platform.

This makes it Disney’s biggest debut since the release of Hocus Pocus 2 last year. Box office commentator Luiz Fernando even noted that it outswam Star Wars spin-off Ahsoka's debut as well, which had 14 million complete views.

The results are a big success for The Little Mermaid, which already accumulated $569 million worldwide at the box office. Starring Halle Bailey as Ariel, the remake follows much of the original storyline that sees a curious mermaid make a deal with an evil sea witch called Ursula (played by Melissa McCarthy) to live on land. However, there were some big changes from the original, including several new songs added and an inflated runtime.

Reviews were largely positive too, with Total Film giving it four stars. In our review, we called it a "fun, fresh reimagining". Reviewer Molly Edwards had particular praise for Bailey’s performance, writing. "Halle Bailey shines as Ariel, the curious, headstrong young mermaid who's lovesick for the surface world. Her soaring rendition of 'Part of Your World' is the goosebump-raising pearl in the film's oyster."