When Disney first announced a remake of its 1991 classic, Beauty and the Beast, there was a bit of skepticism on if it wasn’t best to leave things as they were. Many of the world’s population had their childhood shaped by some of these Disney characters.
Then again, Disney has a reputation for excellence. And so, in faith, we waited and were graced by the remarkable live-action remake. Beauty and the Beast (2017) went on to be the highest-grossing live-action movie of 2017. With a budget of $225 million, it was a box office hit grossing $1.264 billion.
It’s no easy feat to bring one of the world’s most popular fairytale stories to life. To this end, here is the iconic cast for 2017’s Beauty and the Beast live-action movie.
Belle (Emma Watson)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
Emma Watson is Hollywood’s sweetheart and can practically do no wrong in the eyes of her fans and admirers. Starting her professional acting career as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter movie series, there has always been a sense of innocence in her acting style.
No other was perfect to be cast as Belle in a live-action Beauty and the Beast remake. While most of the story and characters stayed the same, Belle’s life before meeting the Beast was slightly tweaked. Besides knowing she loved reading books from the original animated movie, there needed to be a backstory that’ll make sense in a live-action movie.
Like her father, she became an inventor who designed a type of washing machine to afford her enough time to read. Belle goes in search of her father and finds herself in a mysterious castle. She meets the Beast, and both will fall in love and help break the enchantress’s curse.
Beast (Dan Stevens)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
What’s a Beauty and the Beast storyline without the Beast? With motion capture, Dan Stevens plays the character of Beast. Beast gets transformed when he meets an enchantress who places a curse on him.
She leaves him with a rose flower, telling him to find love and receive love before all the petals fall from the flower. Beast would eventually find love in Belle.
Gaston (Luke Evans)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
Luke Evans plays the main antagonist, Gaston. Gaston is a handsome, arrogant, and narcissistic skilled hunter who wants to marry Belle. However, the more she refuses to love him, the more he feels the need to have her.
When he discovers Belle has fallen in love with the Beast and not him, he jumps on an opportunity to mobilize the villagers to kill the Beast.
Maurice (Kevin Kline)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
Kevin Kline plays the character of Maurice, Belle’s father. While going to the market, Maurice gets lost in the forest and flees into the nearest castle to escape attacking wolves. But, unfortunately, he’s kept prisoner by the Beast.
When his horse returns home without him, Belle sets out to find him. She pleads with the Beast to swap places with her father. Maurice is released and tries to mobilize the villagers to help free his daughter Belle.
LeFou (Josh Gad)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
Josh Gad plays the character of LeFou, Gaston’s closest friend and ego booster. He loves animals, but although illiterate, he’s not one to always agree with Gaston’s decisions.
When Gaston abandons him, he teams up with the servants in Beast’s castle. LeFou realized almost too late how egoistic and unkind Gaston was.
Lumière (Ewan McGregor)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
The Scottish actor, Ewan McGregor, plays the character of Lumière. Lumière is Beast’s charming maître d’. With the enchantress curse, Lumière gets transformed into a candelabra.
Cadenza (Stanley Tucci)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
Tucci plays Cadenza, the neurotic maestro and composer in Beast’s castle. The enchantress’s curse turns him into a harpsichord. Cadenza is also the husband of Madame de Garderobe.
Madame de Garderobe (Audra McDonald)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
What’s a neurotic maestro without his singer? Audra McDonald plays Madame de Garderobe, a world-class opera singer in the Beast’s court. She’s also the wife of Cadenza. She’s transformed into the ever-cheerful wardrobe character.
Plumette (Gugu Mbatha-Raw)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
Gugu Mbatha-Raw plays and provides the voice-over for Plumette. Plumette is a maid in Beast’s castle and the love interest of Lumière. But, unfortunately, the curse transforms Plumette into a feather duster.
Cogsworth (Ian McKellen)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
Ian McKellen is known for playing the roles of Magneto in X-Men and Gandalf in the film adaptation of The Lord of the Rings. He takes on the character of Cogsworth in this movie.
Cogsworth is the stern-looking butler in Beast’s castle. As the butler, he also doubles as the head of the castle’s staff. The character gets transformed into a mantel clock by the enchantress’s curse.
Mrs. Potts (Emma Thompson)
Credit: Beauty and the Beast
Every castle needs housekeepers and one to control its affairs. Emma Thompson portrays and voices the adorable Mrs. Potts, who gets transformed into a teapot by the curse.
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