Melissa McCarthy is starring as the slippery sea witch Ursula in the upcoming reboot of The Little Mermaid – and the actor has now revealed that her character has drag queen roots.
One of pop culture’s best-loved and queer-coded villains, Disney’s evil sea witch Ursula will be played by Melissa McCarthy in the upcoming live-action remake of The Little Mermaid – and if the latest glimpse of the film is anything to go by, it looks as though McCarthy’s new incarnation will be living up to the watery wonder of the animated classic.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, the Bridesmaids and Nine Perfect Strangers star confirmed that she “100 per cent” took inspiration from drag queens for her turn as the voice-stealing villain, before revealing that her characterisation of Ursula goes even deeper than that.