ABC Signature Studios is developing a prequel to 2017's Beauty and the Beast feature film for the Disney Plus streaming service.
The series is said to explore the origin stories behind Gaston and LeFou, with Once Upon a Time creators Eddy Kitsis and Adam Horowitz serving as showrunners along with Josh Gad, as first reported by THR. The story will be based on scripts written by Gad, Kitsis, and Horowitz.
Things are still in the early development stages at the moment, but word is it takes place a good amount of time before the events of the 2017 film. Gad and Luke Evans, who played starring roles in the 2017 movie, are reprising their roles for the limited series. It isn't clear which, if any other members from the movie's cast are returning for the Disney Plus series, but it sounds like there's a good chance a few of them will make cameo appearances.
Accordingly, the series will be a musical spanning six episodes. Fabled Disney composer Alan Menken is in talks to work on the new Disney Plus series. Menken's work includes The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Pocahontas, and both the original Beauty and the Beast and the 2017 live-action remake.
Upon release in 2017, GamesRadar+ praised Beauty and the Beast for the strong performances of Evans in the role of Gaston, Gad as Gaston's flamboyant sidekick LeFou, as well as the supporting cast.
No word yet on a release date for Beauty and the Beast on Disney Plus, but we'll keep you abreast of any new details as they come.
