Halle Berry and Halle Bailey snap photos together after being mistaken for each other

‘Little Mermaid’ star has often been mistaken for Oscar-winning actor due to similarities between their names

Halle Berry and Halle Bailey have poked fun at the similarities between their names in the ultimate photo-op.

The 57-year-old actor and the 23-year-old singer took to Instagram on 26 February to share photos they took together at a recent LA Galaxy vs Inter Miami soccer game. “When two Halles link up,” the Catwoman star captioned the joint Instagram post, adding: “Truly adore you @hallebailey.”

In the first photo, Berry wrapped her arm around Bailey as the Little Mermaid star smiled for the camera. The second photo showed the pair exchanging a hug, while they posed for a selfie in the third image.

“I was living for this moment!!” wrote The Color Purple star in the comments section. “Thank you for being so kind to me you’ve made my life.”

Fans were instantly ecstatic that the two stars had finally shared photos together on social media, after famously having their names mixed up in recent years.

“I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS MOMENT!!!” one Instagram user commented.

“This moment was inevitable,” another person said, while a third user wrote: “Oh how I love this moment, the meeting of the Halles.”

“Two iconic Halles in one picture,” said someone else.

Bailey has recently risen to fame as a singer and actor, known for being one-half of the R&B duo Chloe x Halle, alongside her sister Chloe Bailey. In 2023 alone, she starred as Ariel in Disney’s live action remake of The Little Mermaid, as well as the movie musical adaptation of The Colour Purple. Throughout her rising stardom, however, that hasn’t stopped people from mistaking her for the Oscar-winning actor.

When it was announced in 2019 that the Grown-ish star was cast as the lead in the live action Little Mermaid film, many people believed it was actually Berry who would be playing Ariel. In response to the mix-up, Berry shared in a post to X, formerly Twitter: “In case you needed a reminder... Halles get it DONE. Congratulations @chloexhalle on this amazing opportunity, we can’t wait to see what you do! #TheLittleMermaid #HalleBailey.”

Bailey chimed in, writing: “This means the world. Happy to share names with you… love you lots.”

Back in 2021, another fan mistakenly responded to a post from Berry and wrote that they “can’t wait to see you under da sea,” alongside a mermaid emoji.

“…wrong Halle lol,” Berry replied at the time. “I can’t wait to see her too though!”

During an appearance on Live with Kelly and Mark in March 2023, Bailey finally revealed the origin behind her name, after hosts Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos commented on how closely her name resembles the Monster’s Ball star.

“My family, we’ve always loved Halle Berry. I mean, she’s amazing,” Bailey said, when asked whether her parents “contemplated” the similarities while naming her. “And originally, when I was a baby, they wanted to name me Hailey but my last name is Bailey. So that wouldn’t have worked.”

“They ultimately decided Halle, and it’s very similar to Halle Berry,” she continued. “But there’s no one else I would rather have a similar name to because she’s so cool.”

The actor also shared details about her first ever interaction with Berry, which took place at the 2023 Academy Awards ceremony.

“She was so kind to me. I was like: ‘Oh my gosh, I love you!’” Bailey said, recalling their encounter. “She’s been always really supportive to me over social media, so we’ve had a few inbox interactions but that was my first time meeting her. And she’s like, an angel.”