Disney Plus Postpones ‘Beauty and the Beast’ Television Spin-Off

Disney Plus has delayed its live-action prequel series to Disney‘s 2017 film Beauty and the Beast owing to creative and scheduling issues, Variety has reported.

The eight-episode series was ordered by the streamer in June, 2021. It was commissioned as a prequel to the 2017 live-action adaptation by the same name that featured actors Emma Watson and Dan Stevens in the roles of Beauty and Beast, respectively.

The television spin-off has Luke Evans and Josh Gad reprising their roles as Gaston and LeFou, while Rita Ora was recently brought on board to play a fugitive with surprising abilities. The series also introduced Briana Middleton in the role of Louie’s stepsister, Tilly.

Shooting for the series was meant to begin from this summer, in Europe, but was delayed after certain creative elements were not ready. The scheduling issues that the delay would cause with the show’s cast, in amalgamation with weather constraints only propelled the decision to hold-off the series for the time being, the Variety report added.

It was developed, executive produced and written by Gad, Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz with each serving as a co-showrunner.

Evans was also meant to executive produce in addition to starring in the show.

He took to Twitter and confirmed the postponement. “Sadly, ‘Tis true. We tried to make it all work but under the gun it wasn’t meant to be… for now. These characters and this story will live on, but sometimes the best intentions & reality collide & nothing can be done.” “This is a very sad message for us to tweet. We are devastated. Goodbye, for now, from Gaston and Le fou,” Evans added in a separate tweet.

Disney made its first Beauty and the Beast film in 1991, which itself was an adaptation of Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont’s 1756 version of the fairy tale.

The spin-off is set in the iconic kingdom of Beauty and the Beast years before the Beast and Belle’s epic romance. It follows Gaston and LeFou as they set off with LeFou’s step-sister, Tilly, after a surprising revelation from her past comes to light, and sends the unlikely trio off on an unexpected journey filled with romance, comedy, and adventure.

Gary March, President and Chief Creative Officer at Disney Branded Television, had said in a statement, “For anyone who’s ever wondered how a brute like Gaston and a goof like LeFou could have ever become friends and partners, or how a mystical enchantress came to cast that fateful spell on the prince-turned-beast, this series will finally provide those answers…and provoke a whole new set of questions.”