Ewan McGregor is the latest in a long line of A-list talent set to join Disney’s star-studded Beauty And The Beast adaptation. The live-action riff on the studio’s 1991 animated smash kicked off production last week, so it stands to reason that the final casting announcements would begin to surface.
Per THR, McGregor is now in the last stages of sealing a deal to play Lumiere. It’s not described as a leading role – as they’ve all been secured – but it is a major supporting turn. Those of you desperate for more of McGregor’s sonorous delights, as witnessed in Moulin Rouge, should still find plenty to be happy about here. Lumiere is in the Prince’s employ as his head maitre d’, who is struck by the curse which befalls the Prince’s abode and transformed into a candelabra. He is set to perform as part of a larger musical chorus in several numbers and has snagged a solo turn in the now-iconic “Be Our Guest” tune.
If he locks down the part, McGregor will join a massive ensemble of British and American actors already hard at work, including Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast, Luke Evans as Gaston, Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts, Josh Gad as LeFou, Kevin Kline as Maurice, Audra MacDonald as Garderobe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as the renamed duster Plumette.
Directed by Bill Condon and penned by Evan Spiliotopoulos and Stephen Chbosky, Beauty And The Beast arrives in theaters on March 17th, 2017.
