The story behind Shaggy's Sebastian costume in 'Little Mermaid' live special

BURBANK, Calif. -- ABC's "The Little Mermaid" live special made a splash with elaborate sets and costumes, but the show left some wondering how Shaggy could go "Under the Sea" in a Sebastian costume that didn't include the beloved character's crab claws.

The singer, whose real name is Orville Burrell, donned an all-red ensemble that included red boots, red denim and a red leather jacket but no claws on Tuesday evening. Some wondered why Shaggy's costume was relatively simple, especially when compared to Queen Latifah's intricate Ursula costume and the mermaid tails worn by Auli'i Cravalho and others.

One viewer even noticed that audience members seemed to be waving prop claw hands as they danced along to the show.

While viewers speculated, Robert Mills, ABC's senior vice president of alternative series, specials and late-night, took to Twitter during the show to set the record straight about what Shaggy was and wasn't wearing -- and why. As it turns out, the singer's original costume did, in fact, include claws, but they "looked ridiculous" and presumably were scrapped, according to Mills.

And for those who needed to see it to believe it, Mills later followed up with a photo showing Shaggy posing in the all-red Sebastian ensemble he wore during the live show plus the two claw gloves Mills had mentioned.

Shaggy ultimately ended up taking the stage in red fingerless leather gloves that matched his jacket in place of the claw pieces.

The Walt Disney Company is the parent company of this station.