Neurodivergent (Headcanon) Alley: Prince Eric (The Little Mermaid)

*With Ariel, I mainly focused on the live-action remake but pointed out that much of what I said held true for the original animated film as well. With Eric, though, I’m just talking about the live-action movie.*

I’ve already talked about my love for the way the live-action Little Mermaid fleshes out Eric’s character and expands upon Ariel’s romance with him, and in my Neurodivergent (Headcanon) Alley post for Ariel, I mentioned the “Autistic4Autistic” view of their relationship. To the latter point, I have to say, no lies detected. Ariel and Eric’s romance isn’t great in this film just because Eric has added nuance as a character; it’s great because they’re different from other people in the same way and can feel that about each other.

Like Ariel, Eric has a deep obsession that nobody else seems to understand. He too is fascinated by other cultures—while Ariel is entranced by the human world, Eric chases the experience of sailing to as many ports as he possibly can, learning other ways of doing things and acquiring goods that his small island has never seen. He explains to his mother that he doesn’t want the island to be left behind, that he wants to find new things that will benefit them and lead them into the future, and to be sure, that’s part of it. Eric is a considerate guy who wants to help others. But there’s also something humming beneath his skin that needs this. He’s drawn to exploration, and he can’t bring himself to stop no matter how much his mother demands to the contrary. He has a collection very similar to Ariel’s, and when she comes to the palace, this is how they first bond: with Ariel expressing curiosity toward the collection that means so much to Eric and with him happily infodumping to her about the things he loves.

I interpret Eric as probably AuDHD (Ariel could be an AuDHDer as well, now that I think about it,) because in addition to throwing over societal expectation for the sake of his special interest, he’s also incredibly novelty-seeking. As I said, he loves adventure, exploration, and learning new things. He’s very kinetic and can be impulsive, such as climbing out onto the bowsprit to fix something, heedless of Grimsby’s protests of danger.

He also does fairly well socially. Others find Eric’s obsession with other cultures odd, but he fits in well with the ship’s crew and enjoys mingling with them. Of course, the fact that he’s a prince probably bestows some extra goodwill on him, but he’s genuinely charming and charismatic. However, there are some social things that make him stand out a little. When he gets on something, he is on it, like a broken record, and no one can really get him off that topic. And he’s not really one for hiding his feelings. When he realizes that Ariel doesn’t speak and thinks this means she can’t be the young woman who saved him from the shipwreck, he’s still kind and gentle with her, but he can’t disguise his kneejerk disappointment.

Thinking about it, you could argue that Eric’s neurodivergent traits help shield him (partially) from Ursula’s enchantment. She does use Ariel’s voice to entrance him, but while Eric is pretty plainly hypnotized in the animated movie, Eric in the live-action film is never fully under her control. Even as he prepares to announce his engagement to “Vanessa,” he looks around for Ariel and feels confused about what he wants. The magic is telling him one thing, but his mind and heart are telling him another. And honestly, going, “I may be under a spell, but this doesn’t make sense to me,” is such an autistic-ass thing to do. Despite being under Ursula’s thrall, he keeps questioning it, and he keeps being pulled toward the person he has a true kindship with. Neurodivergent love wins out!

Relationship Spotlight: Eric & Ariel (The Little Mermaid)

*Spoilers for the live-action remake.*

As you may have guessed from the photo, I’m mostly talking about the live-action version of this pairing today. I certainly enjoy Ariel/Eric in the original film—they’re cute and fun—but live-action Ariel/Eric is where it’s at. The Little Mermaid joins the Disney remake trend of expanding on the central romance, giving the leads more time to get to know each other, flirt, and connect. I was already a big fan of Belle/the Beast and Aladdin/Jasmine, so their live-action counterparts just gave me even more of them to adore. But in this case, the remake takes this relationship from one that I like to one that I love.

In my review, I mentioned that one of the best additions the new film makes to the story is the way it fleshes out Eric’s character, and that’s crucial to fleshing out the romance. He’s still the lively, adventurous prince of the original, still the kindhearted soul who returns to a burning, sinking ship to save a trapped dog. In both versions, Ariel falls in love with him at first sight, and since she’s a human-obsessed teenage girl getting her first real look at a nice, handsome human boy, you can understand why.

But beyond that, the new film shows how Eric is a kindred spirit of Ariel’s. Just as she’s fascinated by the human world, he’s drawn to countries and cultures outside of his small island. He too has a collection of “treasures” he’s acquired, odds and ends from his travels. Like Ariel, he cherishes all these objects, even the ones he doesn’t understand—she has to show him how to blow into his conch shell. They’re also both familiar with having a loving but overprotective parent who doesn’t really understand them. Eric tries to impress under his mother that the new resources and techniques that he can acquire and learn about in the wider world will improve the lives of their subjects on the island, but his mother, fearing storms and shipwrecks, wants to keep him close to home.

As such, when Ariel makes it to the surface, it’s already so much more than “she loves him because she’s hot and charming.” (And again, it’s not accurate to say she “gave up her voice for a man.” She longed to be human before she ever met Eric.) He’s excited to meet her but deflates when he realizes she can’t speak, thinking it means she couldn’t be the girl who saved him from the shipwreck and sang to him on the beach. However, he remains gentle and kind to her, assuring her that she can stay at the palace for as long as she needs. It’s not long after that they spend hours looking at his collection and poring over his maps together, that Eric takes Ariel into town and she about bursts with happiness at exploring the human world, that they take a romantic boat ride together while Sebastian and co. sing “Kiss the Girl.”

Their unspoken courtship is sweet and nerdy, quick but somehow leisurely at the same time—love always races to be born, yet time seems to slow down when two people are in it. I also really like that, even though Ursula has taken Ariel’s voice, she still communicates. She uses actions and gestures to be an active participant as Eric shows her his collection, and whether she’s discovering a local dance or intimating that she’d like to go on a boat ride, her curiosity and interest is always clear. I enjoy the clever way that she tells Eric her name.

Even though Eric is convinced that Ariel isn’t the girl who saved him, he’s drawn more and more towards her anyway. His obsession with tracking down the girl with the captivating voice starts to cool. There are moments where he seems to catch that ardor waning and tries to reignite it, but at a certain point, it becomes more about what he thinks he’s supposed to do rather than what he truly wants. No, what he wants is to know the lively, adventurous girl in front of him, the one who delights in new experiences and shares his passions. Their connection is so strong that, after Ursula disguises herself and enchants Eric with Ariel’s voice, a part of him keeps trying to pull himself back.

On a final note, I love that Grimsby is quickly positioned as totally Team Ariel. Something of a human counterpart to Sebastian (although he’s unaware of the urgency of the situation,) Grimsby just wants what’s best for Eric, and as he sees how the prince is bonding with Ariel, he gently helps him to let go of the idea of his mystery girl. When Ariel’s sea friends crash Eric and “Vanessa’s” engagement party and the ring goes flying, Grimsby sees it on the ground and kicks it away. There’s a good man!