‘Beauty and the Beast’ Live-Action Film Gets First Official Poster Bringing Back Iconic Object; Emma Watson Calls Singing as Belle “Nerve-Wracking”

‘Beauty and the Beast’ live-action film finally debuts its first official poster. It brought back an iconic object from the original Disney animated film. Meanwhile, lead actress Emma Watson admitted that singing on the new film for her role as Belle was “nerve-wracking”.

According to the Daily Mail, Watson recently shared the newest official poster for her upcoming live-action adaptation of the classic animated musical film ‘Beauty and the Beast’ under the direction of Bill Condon. Watson shared the poster on her official Facebook page. It was captioned, “Very excited to reveal the first teaser poster for Beauty And The Beast, exclusively for my Facebook fans! Hope you like!”

The poster brought back an iconic object from the original Disney film – a single red rose encased in an etched glass bell. The flower stands in front of what seems to be an open window against a backdrop of an old cityscape draped in snow.

In the Disney animated film, the enchanted rose signified both the Beast’s curse and his redemption. It was bestowed upon Beast – then a young yet arrogant prince - as a sort of ticking time bomb. The witch’s spell would break should he find love before the last petal falls. The enchanted rose has been a trademark symbol for the fairytale.

Watson is set to play the lead protagonist Belle, a naïve small-town girl and daughter to an eccentric inventor named Maurice. In the original story, Belle is famous for her beauty but is labeled as odd by society and is consequently ostracized for it. Belle constantly dreams of breaking free of her normal life in search of adventure until she discovers that her father has gone missing.

She ventures deep into the forest in search of Maurice. When she discovers that he is imprisoned by a fierce creature called the Beast, she offers her own life instead in exchange for his freedom. She becomes Beast’s captive but the two soon realize that they are falling in love with each other.

Watson’s character first appeared on Walt Disney Pictures’ animated-musical film ‘Beauty and the Beast’, released in 1991. She was originally voiced by American actress and singer Paige O’Hara.

The original Disney release earned $424.97 million worldwide against a $25 million production budget, according to Box Office Mojo. It received positive reviews as well as multiple accolades including Academy Award wins for Best Original Score and Best Original Song. It became Disney’s first animated film to be adapted into a Broadway musical.

Acclaimed composer Alan Menken returns to provide original material for Condon’s live-action adaptation. Meanwhile, Watson admitted that singing on the new film proved to be a “nerve-wracking” experience.

According to Wet Paint, she said, "It's so crazy. I was so excited. It was nerve-wracking for me because I've sung as a child in plays and I loved it, but I just hadn't done it in such a long time, it was like learning to ride a bike again."

‘Beauty and the Beast’ live-action film is scheduled to be released on March 17, 2017. It is directed by Bill Condon and written by Evan Spiliotopoulos and Stephen Chbosky. It is produced by Don Hahn, David Hoberman, and Todd Lieberman and co-produced by Steve Gaub, Jack Morrissey, and Greg Yolen.