Chloe Moretz to Play ‘The Little Mermaid’ for ‘Love, Actually’ Writer

Our dreams were crushed earlier this year when Sofia Coppola exited Working Title’s live-action version of The Little Mermaid, and while we’ll never get to see what dreamy magic Coppola may have worked on her adaptation, it’s still happening without her — but now it has a leading mer-lady with Chloe Moretz diving in for the live-action update on the classic fairy tale, with a screenplay by Richard Curtis.

Although Working Title has yet to find a director to replace Coppola, Variety reports that they’ve tapped Richard Curtis to pen the screenplay for the film, based on Hans Christian Andersen’s classic story. Moretz has reportedly been the frontrunner for the leading role since Coppola was attached, and it’s rumored that the director was hesitant to move forward with the project partially due to Moretz’s casting.

Moretz is a talented young actress whose skills are sometimes misused as she’s so often typecast as pouty, rebellious and “edgy” characters. The Little Mermaid offers her a chance to show off a softer side…maybe. Andersen’s original story about the nameless little mermaid is dreamy and dark, while Disney’s classic animated version portrayed its lead character (Ariel, of course) as rebellious and impulsive. It’s unclear how closely Curtis’ screenplay will hew to Andersen’s original work.

Curtis is best known for Love, Actually and Four Weddings and a Funeral. He recently wrote and directed Trash, starring Rooney Mara. Moretz can be seen next in the YA movie The Fifth Wave, as well as Brain on Fire, based on the award-winning memoir. She also has a leading role in Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising.