‘Beauty and the Beast’: Emma Watson explains why she chose to play Belle over Cinderella
Harry Potter actress Emma Watson will play Belle in Disney’s upcoming Beauty and the Beast live-action movie and the popular star was offered the role of Cinderella in Disney’s 2015 live-action film.
Watson told Total Film that the character Belle was more in line with her interests, in part because she saw Belle as a strong role model.
“I didn’t know they were going to make Beauty and the Beast at the time I turned down Cinderella,” she said. “But when they offered me Belle, I just felt the character resonated with me so much more than Cinderella did.”
Fans of her role in Harry Potter may find Belle a lot like her role in BATB.
“[Belle] remains curious, compassionate, and open-minded. And that’s the kind of woman I would want to embody as a role model, given the choice,” she went on to say. “There’s this kind of outsider quality that Belle had and the fact she had this really empowering defiance of what was expected of her. In a strange way, she challenges the status quo of the place she lives in, and I found that really inspiring.”
In the animated movie, Belle’s father, Maurice, is an inventor, but in the new film, Belle takes on that role.
“I was like, ‘Well, there was never very much information or detail at the beginning of the story as to why Belle didn’t fit in, other than she liked books,” Watson said. “Also, what is she doing with her time?’ So, we created a backstory for her, which was that she had invented a kind of washing machine, so that, instead of doing laundry, she could sit and use that time to read instead. So, yeah, we made Belle an inventor.”
Cinderella was played by Lily James in the 2015 live-action version and was incredibly successful.
Beauty and the Beast will directed by Bill Condon, who was behind the camera for the final two Twilight movies,
In BATB, Luke Evans plays Gaston, Josh Gad as LeFou. Kevin Kline plays Maurice, Stanley Tucci as Maestro Cadenza, the harpsichord; Audra McDonald as Madame de Garderobe, the wardrobe; Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Plumette, the feather duster; Hattie Morahan as the enchantress; and Nathan Mack as Chip, the teacup.
Beauty and the Beast comes out on March 17, 2017.
