Which is exactly the problem. Because that is all they are churning out anymore, senseless and unneeded remakes.
And I really don't know of anybody "obsessing" that she is black, other than from a story aspect it simply makes no sense. In fact, most of the story simply makes no sense as their casting was all over the board. And yet another remake, like Pinocchio, Lady & The Tramp, Dumbo, Peter Pan, Mulan, and the dozen others in the pipeline for the next few years.
And remakes as a rule tend to have a rather interesting history. Just look at Kite, or Rollerball, Flatliners, Charlie's Angels, Taxi, Point Break, Nightmare on Elm Street, Get Carter, The Mummy, Red Dawn, Godzilla 1998, The Wicker Man, Hellboy 2019, The Pink Panther, The Day the Earth Stood Still,, Chips, I can go on and on and on.
Remakes in general have really only done alright when they were relatively low budget affairs. Then when the theatrical run was finished they could sump them to VHS or DVD in the hopes of actually making a profit. However, physical media is now dead, and they are shoveled to streaming services. And when Disney owns the streaming service, that means they are getting no more money.
Remakes in general rarely perform all that well. The early Disney live action did good, because it was a new idea. But now almost a decade into that trend, they are old and boring.
And this can be seen in that they are already starting to hedge their bets. Lilo & Stich was supposed to be released for theaters. But in the wake of the losses in the remakes it is now going straight to D+. Just as Lady & the Tramp, Pinocchio, and Peter Pan. At least some are starting to realize that the remakes are likely not going to make money like they had hoped when they announced them, and I bet half will be cancelled before production starts. And most of the rest will be shoveled to D+.
Now it only remains to be seen if they will actually try to create original content again, or simply dump out more of the same trash.
To be honest, I could not care less what color the mermaid was, or any of the cast. It is just another sign that they have lost all sight of what it is the audience really wants. And it is not message movies that is to be foisted off on either the Right or Left wings. It is supposed to be entertainment that is to entertain the majority of the audience.
Oh, and in case some missed it, a few years ago Disney decided to film a stage production of Hamilton for theatrical release. But that was cancelled for some reason, and it went straight to D+. With little promotion or marketing needed, as it was essentially filler content that only cost them $12 million. At least they did not go the route of Universal, and dump around $250 into the production and marketing of "Cats", only to see it tank with around $75 million in the box office.
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