Part 7/10:
One Twitter user, later suspended due to the backlash, posted a deepfake video transforming Bailey back into a white Ariel, prompting heated reactions. Supporters of the cast and critics of AI editing argued that such modifications are a dystopian extension of cultural erasure—weaponizing AI to rewrite a fictional character’s racial identity.
Hypocrisy and Double Standards in Racial Portrayals
Commentators have pointed out the hypocrisy ingrained in these debates. Hollywood frequently changes the racial portrayal of characters—swapping white characters for Black actors or vice versa—while claiming that reverse changes are “racist” or “appropriation.”