‘The Little Mermaid’ Makeup Artist Pushes Back On Criticism Over Ursula’s Look: “I Find That Very Offensive”
Peter King, the makeup artist behind Ursula’s look in The Little Mermaid, is pushing back on the backlash he has gotten.
King has been under heavy scrutiny from the LGBTQ+ community over the makeup Melissa McCarthy sports in the live-action film directed by Rob Marshall. With Ursula being inspired by drag queen Divine, some believe that it should’ve been someone in the queer community doing the makeup or giving life to the sea witch.
When asked about the controversy around McCarthy’s look as Ursula, King told Insider in an interview, “I find that very offensive. Why can’t I do as good a job as a queer makeup artist?”
“That’s ridiculous. That’s trying to claim it and that’s fine, if that’s what they wanna do, but don’t put people down because they’re not what they want it to be,” King added.
The makeup artist who has worked on features like The Lord of the Rings saga, Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi and Spider-Man: Far from Home, said he didn’t understand the negativity around his work.
“I personally don’t get it. Yes, I’m very old now, so that’s fine, I get that too, but, you know, a makeup artist or makeup designer could design makeup, they don’t have to have an attachment to the nature of what they’re doing,” he said.
King said that he “discussed everything” with McCarthy and they both bonded over “how much we love drag queens and drag makeup and stuff.”
McCarthy started off as a drag queen herself performing in NYC under the name Miss Y.
Source: Deadline
