Odessa A’zion has made a huge splash following Marty Supreme, as she can now bill herself as a BAFTA-nominated actress for the rest of her days. A’zion will almost certainly become a more in-demand actress following her success here, but it turns out that she took a swing at an even bigger role a few years ago that even she admits she completely bombed.
Walking the red carpet for the Oscars this past weekend, Odessa A’zion was asked by Variety about her worst audition, and she didn’t even have to think about it. It turns out A’zion auditioned for the live-action remake of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, but she completely screwed up the song. The actress explained:
I sang ‘Part of Your World.’ I was so nervous that I forgot the lyrics to ‘Part of Your World’ while I was singing it. And then, because I was doing it in Ariel’s voice — like a princess voice — they’re like, ‘Just do it normal.’ [And] I couldn’t do it normal. I’d memorized it in that voice.
Forgetting the words to a song is going to be rough in any situation when you need to have them memorized, but to be fair, that alone probably didn’t kill the audition for Odessa A’zion. It was probably clear that she was nervous, and that’s understandable. A lot of people auditioning to play Ariel were probably nervous. It was a big part in what was sure to be a big movie.
However, A’zion being unable to sing “Part of Your World” normally probably didn’t do her any favors. One imagines the people in the audition wanted to hear her natural voice, and if they were unable to do so, then they wouldn’t be able to really judge how she’d sound. Still, I can totally understand why she practiced the song sounding like Jodi Benson, the original voice of Ariel. If you’re auditioning to play a live-action version of a Disney Princess, you use one of the all-time great Disney Princesses as a model. Of course you do.
A’zion confirmed that she never heard a word back after her audition, and certainly didn’t get a call back. The role of Ariel in the live-action remake would ultimately go to Halle Bailey, who most critics and fans praised. The film did reasonably well at the box office, although it is generally seen as a financial disappointment, as Disney clearly expected it to be one of the billion-dollar live-action remake blockbusters.
Considering A’zion’s star is now on the rise, she’d probably have a decent shot at a future Disney live-action remake if she wanted to go after one. Although if the memory of her previous attempt makes her never want to go through that again, I would completely understand.
