Jodi Benson Says The Disney Princesses Have A 'Posse' Together

Jodi Benson, known as the voice of the Disney Princess, Ariel, from the 1989 animated film, "The Little Mermaid," is opening up about how close she and the rest of the original Disney Princesses are to one another.

The actress revealed they are all part of the "Princess Posse."

Benson recently opened up about a tight-knit club she is part of alongside all of the original Disney Princesses, including Paige O'Hara, who provided the voice of Belle in "Beauty and the Beast" (1991), Linda Larkin, who provided the voice of Jasmine in "Aladdin" (1992), and Irene Bedard and Judy Kuhn, who both provided their voices to Pocahontas in "Pocahontas" (1995).

"We have a charming club, a 'Princess Posse, ' that I love being part of. I have text messages with my dear fellow princesses, with Paige [O'Hara] and with Linda [Larkin] and Irene [Bedard] and Judy [Kuhn]," she told PEOPLE. "It is fun to be part of this exceptional club, and to be one of the traditional princesses is a dream come true. To be moving forward into my 38th year working and loving on Ariel and communicating her heart to people, I love my job."

Benson added, "I love going in the studio, and I get to sing my song every week, almost onstage with work — and never get tired of singing it. Those are all the beautiful blessings that come with my job."

The original Ariel voice was thrilled when Jodi Benson discovered that Disney decided to remake the 1989 Disney animated classic into a live-action film.

"I've been part of the Disney family for so long; I completely trust our company. I do," she told the magazine. "I had no hesitation that it was going to be breathtaking. And as soon as I heard Rob Marshall would be steering the ship, I knew we were in great hands."

Regarding Halle Bailey taking on the new role, Benson could not be more proud of the 23-year-old. "Halle [Bailey] 's interpretation of Ariel is wonderful," Benson said after she saw the movie. "I loved everything that she did with the film. I love the acting, the singing, and just the pure spirit. Her beautiful love for the character comes through. It's just a beautiful, beautiful performance."

She continued, "The casting has been done perfectly with all the characters. You just have to get to the heart of the character — that's the most important thing."

Benson also spoke out on the carpet at the press event of "The Little Mermaid" on Bailey taking on the role of the iconic Disney Princess, explaining, "Her pure spirit, her joy, her love, her unbelievable vulnerability, her authenticity, her bravery, her courage… it's just beautiful. It's just a beautiful telling of the Ariel story. I'm so proud of her!"

Disney's live-action "The Little Mermaid" hits theaters on May 26, 2023. The film will star Halle Bailey as Ariel, Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric, Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, Javier Bardem as King Triton, Daveed Diggs as Sebastian, and Jacob Tremblay as Flounder.