A new TV spot for Disney’s Beauty and the Beast has surfaced, offering up a few bits of new footage. While it’s not a ton of new-ness, this is certainly of the year’s most anticipated films, so every little bit is noteworthy. Dreamgirls, Kinsey, and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn filmmaker Bill Condon directs this live-action adaptation of the classic story, with Emma Watson and Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey) filling the lead roles of Belle and the Beast.
Disney has, surprisingly, solidified a pretty stellar track record when it comes to mining its animated classics for live-action updates. Cinderella was a lush, endearing fairy tale; The Jungle Book pushed technology boundaries to wondrous results; and Pete’s Dragon was an unendingly compassionate, humanist take on the “boy befriends a dragon” story. So they’ve earned the benefit of the doubt, but Beauty and the Beast offers the biggest test yet as it’s a film that’s beloved and remembered fondly by an entire generation of relatively young moviegoers. It was also the first animated film to ever land a Best Picture nomination, so these are big shoes to fill.
The film’s trailers thus far have impressed, as does this brief TV spot. The production design is gorgeous, and while I’m still waiting to be wowed by the CG-effects that bring the Beast to life, Condon looks to have at least nailed the tone and aesthetic.
Check out the new TV spot below. The film also stars Luke Evans, Josh Gad, Kevin Kline, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Ian McKellen, and Emma Thopmson. Beauty and the Beast opens in theaters on March 17th.
Here's the official synopsis for Beauty and the Beast:
Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” is a live-action re-telling of the studio’s animated classic which refashions the classic characters from the tale as old as time for a contemporary audience, staying true to the original music while updating the score with several new songs. “Beauty and the Beast” is the fantastic journey of Belle, a bright, beautiful and independent young woman who is taken prisoner by a beast in his castle. Despite her fears, she befriends the castle’s enchanted staff and learns to look beyond the Beast’s hideous exterior and realize the kind heart and soul of the true Prince within. The film stars: Emma Watson as Belle; Dan Stevens as the Beast; Luke Evans as Gaston, the handsome, but shallow villager who woos Belle; Oscar® winner Kevin Kline as Maurice, Belle’s eccentric, but lovable father; Josh Gad as Lefou, Gaston’s long-suffering aide-de-camp; Golden Globe® nominee Ewan McGregor as Lumiere, the candelabra; Oscar nominee Stanley Tucci as Maestro Cadenza, the harpsichord; Oscar nominee Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, the mantel clock; and two-time Academy Award® winner Emma Thompson as the teapot, Mrs. Potts.
Directed by Oscar® winner Bill Condon based on the 1991 animated film, “Beauty and the Beast” is produced by Mandeville Films’ David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman, with eight-time Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken, who won two Academy Awards® (Best Original Score and Best Song) for the 1991 animated film, providing the score, which will include new recordings of the original songs written by Menken and Howard Ashman, as well as several new songs written by Menken and three-time Oscar winner Tim Rice. “Beauty and the Beast” will be released in U.S. theaters on March 17, 2017.
