Disney adapting Beauty and the Beast from its animated format into live-action is a tall order considering the huge fan base the 1991 animated film has. But considering that Disney has found huge success in their live-action remakes, it comes as no surprise that the studio would give this one the same treatment. And like those previous films, they usually come with a huge ensemble. With Emma Watson and Dan Stevens playing the title characters, the film needed actors who could fill the roles of the massively muscular and massively egotistical Gaston and his adorably bumbling sidekick LeFou.

So Luke Evans and Josh Gad took on the roles, and did so beyond our expectations. The two have such great chemistry, and have a wonderful duet in the new rendition of “Gaston.” You can check out our video of the two singing the song alongside the film’s composer Alan Menken. Plus find out what they had to say during the film’s press junket about what it takes to be a villain and their experiences working with their horses.

Beauty and The Beast
Director: Bill Condon
Screenwriter: Stephen Chbosky, Evan Spiliotopoulos
Cast: Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Kevin Kline, Josh Gad, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Audra McDonald, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Ian McKellen, Emma Thompson
Distributor: Walt Disney Studios
Rated PG | 129 Minutes
Release Date: March 17, 2017

Never let it be said that Walt Disney Studios does not put any effort into their live-action adaptations of their animated classics. It’s easy to assume that they are simply trying to milk a lucrative trend that they have created, especially with the success of films like Cinderella and The Jungle Book, and to a lesser extent Maleficent and Alice in Wonderland. So it only makes sense that Disney continue that tradition with a live-action adaptation of Beauty and The Beast. But unlike the aforementioned titles, Beauty and The Beast is so much closer to its animated counterpart that it feels like a rehash of it just with a few additional scenes for some extra exposition. Plus there are also some new songs from Alan Menken. So the film ends up being more like a musical than any of the other films that came before it.

The only problem is that it’s all those extra scenes act more like filler than actual exposition. All it really does is elongate the film to unnecessary lengths. But there is a very bright side to all of this. The new renditions of the songs are perfect, and even some of the new songs had me swooning for repeat listens. Check out my full review below.

Disney has found huge success in adapting their classic animated tales into a live-action film. From Cinderella, The Jungle Book, and to a lesser extent Maleficent and Alice In Wonderland, the studio will continue to mine their vault to continue to deliver one hit after another. But they have a tall order with Beauty and the Beast, as that probably has the largest fanbase for any Disney animated film. Starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens as the title characters, audiences can expect to see an almost mirror image in this live-action adaptation, plus some additional storytelling and some brand new music.

During the film’s press junket, we got to sit down with our fellow journalists to talk to director Bill Condon, music composer Alan Menken, and film stars Audra McDonald and Gugu Mbatha-Raw about what it was like to bring everyone’s favorite Disney movie to life and the pressures that come with it. Check it out here below what they had to say.

In the past few weeks, the Disney marketing team has been releasing clips for Beauty and the Beast. These clips are not spoilers considering that it had Emma Watson singing “Belle” and Josh Gad singing “Gaston.” So these clips are just pure nostalgia in a sense that it reminds us of why we loved the animated film so much.

Now we are getting yet another clip which recalls the first moment that Beast (Dan Stevens) asks Belle over for some dinner. Check it out below.

Disney’s upcoming adaptation of Beauty and the Beast will bear some similarities to its animated counterpart, but there will also be some things that make it unique as well.

Of course, we were going to get some new songs. But some characters will go through some changes as well. LeFou (Josh Gad) has been confirmed to be the first Disney character who is gay. More on the story below.