As fans of the original Beauty and the Beast will remember, the film taught enchanted viewers everywhere an important lesson in finding ‘the beauty within’; when Belle first clapped eyes on the Beast, she was horrified. But, over time, their feelings for one another changed – and it wasn’t long before they were reading aloud together in front of a roaring fire, dancing up a storm in the ballroom, and singing duets in the snow.
Come the end of it all, Belle realizes that she’s in love with the Beast – regardless of his rugged and fearsome exterior – and she tells him as much. Then… poof! He swiftly turns into a blue-eyed human with a mane of strawberry-blonde hair, and the curse is lifted.
The live-action version – starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens as the titular lovers – is set to tell the same story, albeit with a feminist twist.
However, despite the plethora of trailers and posters released by Disney over the past few months, we’ve only ever seen Stevens in his most beastly form.
Until now, that is.
Two months ahead of the movie’s release, Disney has shared a handful of brand new posters, and they’ve gotten fans très excited.
From Belle to Cogsworth (Sir Ian McKellan) to Lumiere (Ewan McGregor), we get the chance to see everyone in their human form – including the Beast. Or, as he’s seemingly named in this film, The Prince.
Check it out:
Another film, another blonde Beast. Go figure.
Stevens is dressed in a powder-blue suit, which is very in keeping with all the pomp and prosperity of aristocratic French fashions of the 18th century. And the former Downton Abbey star completes his regal look with an intricate hairstyle, ruffled sleeves, a cygnet ring, all the brocade, and a steely look into the near-distance.
Watson previously confirmed that Stevens’ Beast will be very different to that of the original – and far more suited to her own character’s new feminist backstory.
Speaking at a Facebook Live chat about the upcoming movie, Watson explained: “The Beast that’s in our version is incredibly kind of witty.
“He has this very dry, English sense of humour that Dan [Stevens] doesn’t have at all.”
The writers of the live-action remake have also hinted that, unlike the original film, the Beast will have much more screen-time in his original human form.
It is unclear whether this will take place in the form of flashbacks, or after the curse has been lifted.
Either way, perhaps this will help combat the regrets felt by Glen Keane, the original #Disney artist for the Beast of 1991; he has said in that past, that writers asked him to make the human version of the Beast look a “little off”.
This, it was hoped, would make audiences wish for the original beastly Beast back – and it definitely worked on him, as Keane said: “I wish he could have stayed the Beast.
“In fact, I did have us record a line at the end of the movie where Beast and Belle, the prince – who knows what his name is. I mean you know his name was Beast – were dancing. And I knew that the audience was going to be disappointed that here was – what happened to our Beast?
“So I had them record Belle saying, 'do you think you could grow a beard?' See? You’re laughing. It was a good idea. It’s not in the movie. We should have put it in there. Yes.”
Beauty and the Beast is due to hit cinemas 17 March 2017.
Images: Disney
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