LOS ANGELES, Aug 1 — A pink wave seems to have swept through the fashion and beauty worlds with the release of the Barbie movie, July 21. But it’s the red hair of Ariel, the feisty Little Mermaid, that’s currently making waves on beaches the world over. Even celebrities, like Megan Fox, have succumbed to the hottest hair trend of the moment, which (already) has millions of views on social networks.

She’s the talk of the town, right now! Barbie reigns supreme over... just about everything since the release of her eponymous movie, directed by Greta Gerwig. In fashion, beauty, food and, of course, film, the 29-centimeter doll is imposing her style and iconic bright pink colour on the street and on social networks alike. The phenomenon is such that the #Barbie hashtag has reached over 16 million views on Instagram, and almost 68 billion views on TikTok — and that’s not counting its variants like #Barbiecore, which has already scored over 800 million views on the Chinese social network. Yet there’s one area in which the global icon isn’t dominating trends. Indeed, it’s not her platinum blonde hair that everyone wants right now, but that of a Disney princess: Ariel, the Little Mermaid.

Summer of audacity

Make no mistake about it, Barbie’s platinum blonde colour remains a surefire favourite this summer. According to beauty industry booking tool Fresha, its partner salons saw an 83 per cent increase in requests for this colour between June 19 and July 19, 2023, compared to the same period last year. Still, the fact remains that the flamboyant red sported by the star of The Little Mermaid — released two months earlier than Barbie — seems to be more popular in this summer season synonymous with boldness and extravagance. Between pink, red and ginger, the Disney princess’s hair colour has caught everyone’s imagination, starting with celebrities and public figures.

Known for her long brown hair, which highlights her piercing blue eyes, the American actress Megan Fox has recently opted for a more flamboyant mane, seemingly inspired by that of Ariel. While she hasn’t opted for a bright red shade, the Transformers star has turned to a more fiery hue, which she regularly matches with outfits inspired by the Mermaidcore trend, featuring fishnet, shells and mermaid dresses, also influenced by the release of Rob Marshall’s movie. And she’s not the only one. While Halle Bailey, star of the Disney remake, has now returned to her natural colour, she too long adopted the dazzling red of the famous mermaid.

Even more recently, the American actress and model Emily Ratajkowski decided to swap her brown shade for a brighter, gingery red. Here again, the shade is reminiscent of the Disney aquatic heroine’s (almost) natural hue. And stars are far from the only ones to have succumbed to the trend. The proof can be seen in pictures on the Chinese social network TikTok, where the hashtag #Arielhair has already scored over five million views. This is reflected in the scores of photos of users posting flamboyant colours and cascades of curls reminiscent of the iconic Hans Christian Andersen fairytale character. It now remains to be seen whether Barbie, whose movie is currently a box-office smash, can catch up and maybe even put platinum blonde on the fashion agenda as the hottest hairstyle of the fall. — ETX Studio