Not all villains look ugly on the outside. In Beauty and the Beast's case, while the eponymous Beast is eventually revealed to have a kind soul underneath his monstrous appearance, the movies true antagonist is the normal-looking Gaston. The upcoming live action remake is keeping this element intact, and according to Gaston's new actor, Luke Evans, the red-garbed braggart sinks to levels few Disney characters (namely villains) will ever find themselves. As he put it:
He gets as dark as any Disney character could possibly get.
Luke Evans briefly chatted with Empire about Disney's upcoming re-telling of Beauty and the Beast, and just like his animated counterpart, the live action Gaston will be a truly despicable character. However, this iteration of the hunter has a little more depth compared to the one from the 1991 animated movie. While still the comic relief, Evans also mentioned that Gaston was a soldier in the past, but his true colors will show when his advances towards Belle, the main protagonist, go unrequited. Evans continued:
This is a man who, for the first time in his life, hasn't got what he wanted.
Those who've seen Disney's original Beauty and the Beast movie know what happens to Gaston by the end of the story, but it will be interesting to see how the remake expands upon the character, specifically making him into an even more deplorable bad guy. At least it's confirmed he'll still be belting out at least one tune, as "Gaston," the ode to his "greatness," is one of the returning songs.
Along with Luke Evans' comments, Empire provided an exclusive photo of Gaston attempting to charm Belle with flowers, which the actor was kind enough to share on his Twitter page. And yes, we also can't help but notice how large his neck is.
Just like its predecessor, next year's Beauty and the Beast will follow Belle, a young woman who loves to read and dreams of adventure. Her aspirations for the latter will finally be fulfilled when she is taken prisoner within the Beast's castle to free her father. While there, she'll befriend the enchanted staff members and fall in love with the Beast as she gets to know the man underneath the fur and claws. Unfortunately, Gaston will eventually interfere by attempting to take Belle for himself and hunt down the Beast "at any cost." Aside from Luke Evans, the cast includes Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast, Ewan McGregor as Lumiere, Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts, Kevin Kline as Maurice, Josh Gad as LeFou, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Plumette, Audra McDonald as Garderobe and Stanley Tucci as Cadenza.
Beauty and the Beast will cast its spell in theaters on March 17, 2017.
