[SPOILER ALERT - The backstory of Belle's mother is revealed ahead!] As fans of Disney's 1991 BEAUTY AND THE BEAST well know, there is little mention of Belle's mother or an explanation for her death in the animated classic. According to today's The Hollywood Reporter, the studio's live-action adaptation of the film will include a new subplot featuring a flashback to Belle's early days and an explanation for her mother's demise.
The site explains: All is revealed in the enchanted castle, when the Beast (
Dan Stevens) shows Belle a magical book given to him by the woman who cursed him. The book can take any human to anywhere in the world simply by thinking of it - but since the Beast is not human at the time, he's stuck there, left to look at the world he can no longer experience. When he invites her to place her hand on its pages and wish to be somewhere else, she closes her eyes and chooses "the Paris of my childhood."
Soon, they're exploring her home from when she was a baby, and that's when they discover a beak-shaped mask, which was worn in the 18th century by doctors treating those with the plague. A flashback then shows Belle's mother (
Zoe Rainey) in her last days, begging a young Maurice (
Jolyon Coy) to take baby Belle away so they both can have a chance to live. That's how they end up in that "poor provincial town." Belle later reassures Maurice about the truth he was never able to discuss.
Read the article in full here
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST hits theaters on March 17th.
Photo courtesy of Walt Disney
