A couple of fun new tidbits about Disney’s live-action Beauty and the Beast have surfaced in recent days.
First, we’re learning that Belle (played by Emma Watson) has an updated backstory to serve an expanded character. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Watson reveals that the princess-to-be is an inventor just like her father Maurice. This is to explain why she never fit in with other people around town.
“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. 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.”
When we see Maurice in the early part of the film he’ll be creating music boxes, which give Belle glimpses of the world. There’s a purpose to this: She hasn’t traveled because she wants to stay by her father’s side.
“Kevin Kline as Maurice, is making all these music boxes that have to tell the story of Belle not traveling,” set decorator Katie Spencer told EW. “She’s overprotected in a way, by her father, because she’s lost her mother. So, we’ve made all these music boxes that represent different countries of the world, so she can see what she’s missing.”
On the castle half of the tale, another recent EW report includes fun comments from Sir Ian McKellen, who plays Cogsworth. In his chat with the magazine, McKellen says he came up with a song for the clock.
“When we were in the studio, I kept singing what I thought should be a rather good addition to the score.”
He sang to EW, “‘My name is Cogsworth!/And I’m a clock!/Tick-tock!’”
“But I’m afraid I didn’t get my own song, so I just joined in the big number, ‘Be Our Guest,’” he added. “I think perhaps I have a couple of lines on my own, I’m not quite sure how it will all work out. But to be surrounded by Audra MacDonald and the two Emmas all singing out was all just thrilling.”
Use the Cogsworth song, Director Bill Condon, use it!
Beauty and the Beast hits theaters this March.