Stars Who Played Disney Characters in Live-Action Films

Several of Hollywood’s biggest stars have brought new life to Disney’s classic animated characters on the big screen.

Lily James’ role as Cinderella in the 2015 live-action film helped launch her to stardom. Dressed in the princess’ signature blue gown and blonde curls, the English actress dazzled while dancing the night away with Richard Madden’s Prince Charming. Stars such as Cate Blanchett and Helena Bonham Carter rounded out the cast as Lady Tremaine (a.k.a. Cinderella’s wicked stepmother) and the fairy godmother, respectively.

Emma Watson was originally offered the role of Cinderella but instead opted to play Beauty and the Beast’s bookish protagonist, Belle, in the 2017 movie. Through the use of motion capture and special effects, Dan Stevens completely transformed into Belle’s unlikely — and beastly — love interest.

Through the live-action remakes, cast and crew have been able to put their own spin on the Disney stories fans know and love. For example, Watson had the idea for Belle to take on her father’s love of inventing.

“I was like, ‘Well, there was never very much information or detail at the beginning of the story as to why Belle didn’t fit in, other than she liked books. Also, what is she doing with her time?’” she told Entertainment Weekly in November 2016. “So, we created a backstory for her, which was that she had invented a kind of washing machine so that instead of doing laundry, she could sit and use that time to read instead. So, yeah, we made Belle an inventor.”

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