When we say we’ve been waiting a long time for Disney‘s live-action premiere of The Little Mermaid, we mean it. In fact, it’s been so long since we first started a countdown to a theatrical experience with Flounder, Sebastian, Ariel, and Prince Eric that one of the main characters underwent some life changes from the first day of filming and now.
Jacob Tremblay, who plays Flounder — Ariel’s number one sidekick — was younger when he first began voicing the adorable blue and yellow fish; that meant one thing, in particular, was very different than it is now. Tremblay opened up with People, remarking that it was easier to sing as Flounder a few years ago because he hadn’t fully undergone the obvious vocal changes that happen during the journey through adolescence.
“Luckily, I hadn’t fully hit deep-voice puberty yet. It was still quite easy for me to do a higher range.”
He continues by saying that during re-records, he actually noticed he had to hit a higher pitch during some of the spoken scenes, and he was unsure if he’d be able to do the same if it came to re-recording songs or singing completely new ones.
“If I were to try to do that now, it would not sound very good. I find it hard to not have voice cracks in regular conversations. I couldn’t imagine. What’s funny is that we did a little bit of re-records not too long ago, and this was when my voice had changed a little, and I had to pitch my voice up high. Luckily, they didn’t have me doing any songs, but if they did, oh boy, I probably wouldn’t have been able to do it.”
While he was glad it wasn’t an issue at the time, it leaves space for fans to wonder what would happen if The Little Mermaid gets a sequel; would Tremblay have to work hard to hit higher notes to keep the adorable and higher range of vocal and singing notes, or would they be able to work movie magic to keep Tremblay as Flounder even if a sequel happened a few years down the line?
With rumors that a sequel is already almost a given and the fact that Tremblay’s voice certainly won’t be getting any higher, it’ll be interesting to see where the future of the character goes. Fans are also hoping that Flounder’s big splash in theaters is enough to solidify him as a fan-favorite character for decades to come. Tremblay is undoubtedly a talented actor, but the first looks at Ariel’s bestie have certainly drawn mixed reviews from excited audiences.
You can soon see and hear Tremblay’s Flounder in The Little Mermaid as our favorite sea-dwellers swim into theaters on May 26.
