Disney looking to create a live-action spinoff of Beauty and the Beast’s Gaston

Disney is developing a live-action Beauty and the Beast spinoff centered on its iconic villain, Gaston, signaling the studio’s interest in expanding the fairy tale’s universe. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that the feature film is in early development, with plot details still under wraps. 

Dave Callaham wrote the latest draft of the script, following an earlier version by Kate Herron and Briony Redman, while Michelle Rejwan is attached as producer. The project builds on the legacy of Beauty and the Beast, originally adapted from a French fairy tale and released as an animated film in 1991. 

The film became Disney’s highest-grossing animated release at the time, and earned six Academy Award nominations, won two Oscars, and made history as the first animated movie nominated for Best Picture. The story follows Belle, a young woman who agrees to live with a cursed prince transformed into a beast, who must find true love before time runs out. 

Richard White voiced Gaston in the animated version. Disney later released a live-action adaptation in 2017, directed by Bill Condon and starring Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast, and Luke Evans as Gaston. That film was a massive success, grossing more than $1.26 billion worldwide.

Everything to know about Gaston in Beauty and the Beast

Oh, Gaston. #BeautyandTheBeast pic.twitter.com/mrmrYoDDnb

— Beauty and the Beast (@beourguest) June 27, 2017

Gaston is a fictional character and the primary antagonist of Disney’s animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991), voiced by Richard White. He is portrayed as an arrogant, ruthless hunter whose unreciprocated love for Belle drives him to attempt to kill the Beast after realizing Belle cares for him. 

Gaston serves as a foil to the Beast, reflecting the vanity and selfishness the Beast once embodied before his transformation. The character was created specifically for Disney’s adaptation by screenwriter Linda Woolverton, as the original fairy tale lacked a strong villain. 

Gaston replaced an earlier concept involving a female relative of Belle and evolved from a harmless aristocrat into an obsessive and aggressive suitor. Physically handsome yet morally repulsive, Gaston represents exaggerated hypermasculinity, contrasting outward charm with inner cruelty. 

Craving a little extra Gaston in your life? Then here's a deleted scene from the Beauty and the Beast​ DVD! Out to own on June 6th pic.twitter.com/3D2L2SJEoX

— Luke Evans (@TheRealLukevans) June 2, 2017

Disney initially struggled with animating a handsome villain, a first for the studio, before animator Andreas Deja modeled Gaston’s look on attractive soap opera actors to subvert the Prince Charming archetype. 

Some of White’s operatic traits also shaped the character. Critics generally responded positively to Gaston, noting that his lack of supernatural power makes his villainy feel realistic and relatable, though some consider him less memorable than earlier Disney villains.

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