Live-Action Movie Musical BEAUTY & THE BEAST Planned by Disney for 2011/2016? — Page 8

As far as I can tell, this is no longer based on the Menken, Ashman and Rice musical, but a loose adaptation of Disney's version (which is influenced by the French Expressionist film version).

So whether or not Belle can sing may be a moot point.

They recently said that it will be based on the Broadway show. (From a couple pages back)

"Watson can act. She's shown so much growth over the years. Look at her performance in 'Perks of Being a Wallflower'. Even though I did not think 'Noah' was a great film, her character and performance were some of the few things I liked in the film. She has also played a bookworm before. If she can sing, then I'd be fine with her playing this role."

I never said she can't act. She just has a very limited acting range and she would be all wrong for Belle. Even in PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER, she was the weakest of the 3 and her accent was all over the place. I haven't seen Noah.

Emma Watson would be incredible as Beauty and the Beast (granted that she can act). I think the thing that makes Emma so great is that (acting wise) she can be graceful and elegant but also strong and confident which I think is essentially Belle. A lot of the other princesses lean more on the sweet and innocent side but in my opinion, Belle is much stronger and wiser than a lot of the other princesses.

I don't know if Chris Pine would do another musical so soon, but if he did, he'd be truly fantastic as Gaston I think. It seems from the ITW clips that he can be charming and slimey as well. If not him, Jake Gyllenhaal would also be great too.

As for the Beast, I would KILL to see Hugh Jackman as the Beast. The only reservation I have is him coming across way too old for Emma post-transformation. Josh Gad is an inspired choice for Le Fou and I'd be fun to see someone like Alan Cumming play Maurice.

Emma Watson is a very gifted actress. Her turns in THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER and THE BLING RING were fantastic, and she was one of the few watchable things about NOAH even when she had an awful character. I think she could play Belle with the right amount of strength and drive. However, Watson did pass on CINDERELLA, so I wonder if she's just not interested in playing a Disney character.
Anna Kendrick will stay far away from this, though she'd be perfect in the role.
Watson would make me happy as would Evan Rachel Wood.

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I agree, my dream role for Laura is Cathy Ames in an East of Eden musical