'Beauty And The Beast' Movie Casts Josh Gad Days After 'Frozen 2' Announcement

The cast of Disney’s upcoming live-action remake of “Beauty and the Beast” just added another cast member to its already impressive ranks. It looks like funnyman Josh Gad is in final talks to bring his particular brand of sidekick humor to the fantasy film.

The 34-year-old actor will join the cast as the character Le Fou, Gaston’s bumbling, but inexplicably loyal, assistant. The character was a creation of Disney for its 1991 animated classic and therefore did not appear in the French fairy tale that the story is based on, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Jesse Corti, who sounds shockingly similar to Gad if you ask us, originally voiced the character. In the cartoon version, he plays the secondary antagonist to Beast and Belle in the hopes of making Gaston, who he considers his friend, pleased with him. A good showing of the Le Fou can be seen in the video below.

Gad will join an already star-studded cast that includes Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast (who, spoiler alert, is also a Prince) and Luke Evans as the villainous Gaston. It looks like Gad will be playing the comedic relief alongside the very serious, and very scary, “Fast 6” star.

This has been a big news week for Gad, who joined Disney CEO Bob Iger on Thursday to announce that the studio’s mega hit “Frozen” was getting a sequel. Gad played the loveable snowman Olaf in the first film.

“We enjoyed making ‘Frozen Fever’ so much and being back in that world with those characters,” Gad said. “Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck have come up with a great idea for a sequel and you will be hearing a lot more about it and we’re taking you back to Arendelle. We are so excited about that.”

In addition, Gad will star in a new FX comedy "The Comedians" where he will play opposite comedy legend Billy Crystal. As Variety notes, the actor seems comfortable in sidekick roles having risen most prominently to fame by playing Elder Cunningham in the Broadway musical “Book of Mormon.”

Check out this clip of Le Fou in action and get excited to see Gad take on the very boisterous and clumsy character when Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” hits theaters in 2016.