Director Guillermo del Toro has now departed the live-action film adaptation of Beauty and the Beast with Emma Watson in the role of Belle.

Deadline reports that del Toro has withdrawn from the Beauty and the Beast adaptation that he was set to helm for Warner Bros.

Harry Potter actress Emma Watson was set to star in the film and filming was to begin this year, so we’re unsure what caused Guillermo to leave the project as director, but he had already written the script and was set to produce alongside Denise DiNovi.

Fans may recall that Guillermo del Toro left The Hobbit back before it became a trilogy under director Peter Jackson. This doesn’t seem to be a total fracture like what was seen in that instance, but it’s still interesting that the director has decided again to leave a project that was in production.

Scheduling conflicts are said to be the main reason for del Toro’s departure, and we imagine Warner Bros. was set to get this adaptation going after it being in development for years. Emma Watson has previously said that she was mainly interested in the film due to del Toro being involved and said, “Guillermo is still so psyched about it. He’s been thinking about it so much.”

There were reports last week that del Toro was looking at starting the production of Pacific Rim 2, a sequel to his sci-fi film that was fairly successful back in July 2013.

We’re disappointed to hear that Guillermo won’t be directing WB’s Beauty and the Beast adaptation, especially with Watson starring, but it could be that he was ready to start on another film and WB wasn’t quite ready or willing to accommodate his scheduling needs.

Reports suggest that the studio is already looking to replace del Toro, so we’ll be sure to keep an eye out for any new directors that would do an equally amazing job with the unique adaptation.

Do you have any directors you’d like to see helming Warner Bros.’ Beauty and the Beast with Emma Watson as Belle?

Editor’s note: This isn’t to be confused with Disney’s project in which we reported Bill Condon was set to direct yesterday.