TYLER, Texas — The live-action remake of the beloved Disney classic 'The Little Mermaid' continues to soar at the box office.
Locally, the film is making a splash at Time Square Grand Slam in Tyler. The theater says the movie was one of their biggest debuts of this year.
"It was a really big hit for us and one of the biggest films so far for the summer," said vice president of marketing Blake Simpson "Whenever we have these family-friendly movies, we do really well with them because it targets both kids and adults, so those do the best for us."
'The Little Mermaid' is also jumping into the deep end at the Tyler Swim School.
"We have a swim instructor that loves 'The Little Mermaid' and is actually 'a mermaid' and since we hired her, she's been discussing the movie and starting a mermaid club," said Sarah Horlacher, instructor at Tyler Swim School.
Swim instructor Rachel Huff is behind the creation of the Mermaid Club. It's one of the newest programs for independent swimmers who want to learn how to swim with the notable mermaid tail.
"It wasn't until I saw The Little Mermaid remake that I felt that push to come out into the community and try something new," said Huff. "Everyone's welcome, and we're especially hoping for people of color to join and try something new and get some good learning out of it."
Huff says her goal for this program is to not only inspire young kids to swim like Ariel, but to encourage non-swimmers within the Black and urban communities to take swimming lessons early.
"I think that it's just our time to come out and shine and not to let anything stop us, especially being a minority, to come out and enjoy the water," said Huff. "I hope kids have fun learning something new and that most importantly, you can believe in your dreams and swim like a mermaid."
The Mermaid Club will teach swimmers advanced swimming techniques like the dolphin kick used along with the butterfly stroke while wearing a mermaid tail.
The swim school is currently accepting applicants for children ages 3-17. To learn more on how to join call the Tyler Swim School at 903-595-1222.
To learn more about the school's beginner swim classes, click here.