Though “Cruella” is the latest Disney film to test the hybrid Disney+/theatrical release model, the live-action film starring Emma Stone debuted with a solid $26.5 million after the long Memorial Day Weekend in North America. And while we don’t know how much the film earned on Disney+ (at $29.99 per purchase), it’s clear the studio has a hit on its hands, which leads to the inevitable question, “What’s next?”
READ MORE: ‘Cruella’: Emma Stone Struggles To Redesign This Unfashionable Origin Story [Review]
Well, speaking to Variety, “Cruella” star Emma Stone, along with co-star Emma Thompson, talked about which Disney villain they’d like to see get an origin story film next. And if Stone had her way, she thinks Ursula, the half-woman/half-octopus baddie from “The Little Mermaid,” is the obvious choice. For the actress, she thinks Ursula would be interesting to explore because Disney has yet to dive deep into the origins of a non-human villain yet.
“She’s an octopus and the world you would get to live in, like Ursula’s parents and what happened there,” Stone said. “You’ve never really seen a non-human Disney villain be explored in that way.”
Jokingly, Thompson added, “The parents keep giving her a shirt that only has four arms. They really mess her up with that from a very early age, so she’s constantly trying to fit two arms into each hole. That would really mess you up, wouldn’t it?”
Obviously, if you’re a fan of the Mouse House, you know that Melissa McCarthy is set to play Ursula in the upcoming live-action version of “The Little Mermaid.” And we could possibly get a hint as to what the villain’s childhood was like in that feature. However, as stated above, when Disney sees “Cruella” earn some solid box office, you have to assume the studio is going to look at which villain is primed for an origin story solo film.
“Cruella” is in theaters and on Disney+ Premier Access now.
