Meet Jessica Alexander, The Little Mermaid’s breakout star: the bisexual Gen Z actress plays Ursula’s human incarnate for 6 minutes in the Disney film, and sticks up for co-star Halle Bailey
- Despite being in the film for just 6 minutes, fans were gripped by Alexander’s captivating performance in The Little Mermaid, where she plays the human version of Melissa McCarthy’s character, Ursula
- The 23-year-old, London-born actress previously opened up about being bisexual, stuck up for Bailey amid backlash, and has multiple gigs on the go including upcoming TV show Fallen
Despite initial backlash, Disney’s latest live-action adaptation The Little Mermaid dominated the Memorial Day weekend box office in the US by opening at No 1 and reeling in US$117.5 million, according to Box Office Mojo.
In The Little Mermaid, Alexander takes on the role of antagonist Ursula’s human incarnate, Vanessa. The actress has been in the film industry for nearly a decade but her six minutes of screen time in The Little Mermaid has become her biggest movie role to date.
Here’s what we know about The Little Mermaid’s breakout star.
Jessica Alexander loved The Little Mermaid growing up
The 23-year-old actress hails from London and gave a shout-out to her home city by captioning an Instagram post “ldn girl”.
Alexander told Variety Radio Online that, growing up, Disney’s The Little Mermaid had a really special place in her heart as she used to watch the classic film at the beach all the time as a little girl.
“It’s timeless. It relates to everyone, really. I think everyone can relate to feeling a little displaced and wanting more at some point in their life,” she said.
She’s always known she was meant for the big screen
