The stars of the live-action film were set to reprise their roles as Gaston and LeFou in the musical series.
“This is a very sad message for us to tweet. We are devastated. Goodbye, for now, from Gaston and Le fou,” Luke Evans wrote on Twitter shortly after reports surfaced that Disney+ canceled the Beauty and the Beast prequel series, The Little Town, it had been working on.
Evans, who played Gaston in the live-action film, was set to reprise his role alongside Josh Gad as LeFou in an eight-episode musical series written and produced by Once Upon a Time creators Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis.
The news of the cancellation comes as the series was expected to finally start production this summer in the U.K. It even had recently added Rita Ora to the cast as an original character. According to Deadline, the project had been previously delayed after a number of creative elements were not finalized.
The decision to not move forward, the outlet reports, “was made for creative reasons, with the scripts and original music not coming together in the direction expected or running behind schedule.”
“Sadly, ‘Tis true,” Gad confirmed on Twitter. “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 [and] reality collide [and] nothing can be done.
In June 2021, Disney+ announced that the series was officially moving forward with newcomer Brianna Middleton added to the cast as LeFou's stepsister, Tilly.
As ET previously reported, “Set in the kingdom of Beauty and the Beast years before the events of the beloved musical, the series will follow Gaston and LeFou as they set off with Tilly after a surprising revelation from her past comes to light. The unlikely trio will go off on an unexpected journey filled with romance, comedy, and adventure, as they uncover mysteries of the past and face danger in the present.”
"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," Gary Marsh, president and chief creative officer, Disney Branded Television, said at the time.
Months prior, Evans seemed excited about the series while speaking with ET. He teased that it’s “a very different story” that’s “going to be very unexpected and [introduce] some wonderful new characters.”
While that series has been scrapped, Evans is set to play another villainous role in the live-action version of Pinocchio, coming to Disney+.
During the same conversation with ET, the actor said that the latest adaptation is “going to be a huge, huge movie.” In the film, directed by Robert Zemeckis, the actor will play the Coachman opposite Tom Hanks as Geppetto.
“I’m so proud to be part of another wonderful Disney live-action remake,” Evans continued, adding, “I was super honored to be offered to play the Coachman… I’m definitely going to have a lot of fun playing him, that’s for sure.”
RELATED CONTENT
