With the countdown to The Little Mermaid entering theaters less than a month away, the promotional campaign for Disney’s highly-anticipated live-action remake is in full swing. Ahead of its release, Halle Bailey stuns in Fendi Haute Couture for the cover of V Magazine’s V142 Summer 2023 edition. Lensed by fashion photographer Rob Rusling and styled by Anna Trevelyan, Halle Bailey strikes an ethereal pose wearing Fendi Haute Couture on the cover.
Rocking the best looks of the couture season, Bailey’s shoot features pieces by Chanel, Armani Prive, Dior, Valentino, Schiaparelli and Jean Paul Gaultier by Haider Ackermann. Complete with accessories by Bulgari’s high-jewelry offerings, the real-life siren’s mermaid shoot gives an “aquatic ethereal” aesthetic.
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Photographer Rob Rusling notably used the help of AI technology with artist Nik Gundersen to imagine the underwater world seen in Bailey’s cover story.
“For me, the idea was to try and make a story that felt like a true couture fashion story, but one that just happened to take place in this magical underwater universe…I want people to get lost in the majesty and magic of both the underwater universe and Halle.”
Social media users fawned over the gorgeous cover.
V Magazine heard our prayers! Halle Bailey in Fendi Spring Haute Couture 23 on the cover! pic.twitter.com/iAalWj60Nf
— LOUIS (@LouisPisano) April 27, 2023
“These photoshoots are absolutely gorgeous, and one of the best fantasy-themed magazine covers I have ever seen,” one Reddit user said.
“Gonna think of that Halle Bailey V Magazine shoot for a long time; I’m sorry it was so good,” another Twitter user added.
Gonna think of that Halle Bailey V Magazine shoot for a long time I'm sorry it was so good
— linda (@itgirlenergy) April 27, 2023
The intimate interview comes as the film is bound to become the biggest of her career. Speaking to V, the 23-year-old revealed how she prepared to star in such an iconic role and how landing the role of Ariel helped her embrace her independence and personal growth.
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Formerly home-schooled, the “Do It” singer shared that she was “always surrounded by people to hold me, to carry me.” Hence, the experience of tackling the daunting role of Disney’s beloved mythical princess alone was jarring.
The actress spent a year and a half filming out in London, which isolated her from the family she so frequently surrounded herself with — particularly her sister, Chloë Bailey, who she noted was “like a second mom” to her.
“…this was the first project that I did by myself,” she said. “When I found out I was cast, it was this shock of suddenly finding out that I’d have to move to London — and then the pandemic happened. So suddenly, I found myself in London isolated by myself, the borders were closed, the world was shut down, and my family couldn’t even come visit me.”
However, Bailey noted that the loneliness of suddenly being thrown into her independence made her relate even more to the character of Ariel.
“I found that a lot of my time in London was that I was feeling the exact way Ariel was feeling in the beginning of the story. It was my first time away from home… ” Bailey told V.
The experience further allowed The Little Mermaid actress to explore who she was alone.
“I felt stripped bare, and I had to find that strength within myself. But, I believed in myself and that there was something greater for me — something greater on the other side of fear and the unknown,” she said.
Bailey concluded that she’s proud of the journey that filming took her on in discovering herself, someone completely different from the person she was before filming the re-imagining.
“I honestly can say wholeheartedly that when I first started filming, I don’t think I knew my strength completely as an individual, as a young woman venturing out on her own… ” she said.
“I remember at the end of filming, I felt like a completely different person. Even watching the little teaser and trailers come out, I look at them, and I’m like, ‘Wow, do I know her anymore?’ Like to me, that’s a different girl.”
The Little Mermaid swims into theaters worldwide May 26.
