‘Beauty And The Beast’ Star Dan Stevens Reveals Sweetest Compliment He Has Ever Received

Dan Stevens was catapulted to fame after he starred in the British TV drama “Downton Abbey.” But after a few years of doing the show, he decided to pursue a career in movies and somehow found himself starring as the Beast in Disney’s latest live movie adaptation, “Beauty and the Beast.”

It was a great opportunity for the actor to star in the film alongside “Harry Potter” alum Emma Watson, and during the movie’s press tour, Stevens received the sweetest compliment in his career, according to The Daily Mail.

A woman, who is around 96 years old, came up to Stevens and compared him to an actor of her generation.

“She said I reminded her of [actor Stewart] Granger from ‘The Man In The Grey,’” he said. “I had to look it up, but it was one of the sweetest compliments I ever had, and I subsequently became a fan of ‘The Man In The Grey.’”

As far as compliments go, Stevens also has a lot to shower on Watson, who plays Belle in the movie.

“She’s an avid reader and I just learnt she’s been leaving books on the subway in New York and London, and writing a little note. Spreading ideas that way is great — she’s a fascinating girl,” he said.

Watson is also the UN ambassadress to gender equality, and she is hoping people, especially men, would change their perceptions about female role models.

“If I asked a young boy what superhero they looked up to, I feel a lot fewer would say a female one or would ever use an example of a female one, than in reverse, which is a shame because I feel like we need to live in a culture that values and respects and looks up to and idolizes women as much as men,” she told Entertainment Weekly. “I hope that — I think — that’s starting to slowly change, but it is something that does actively need to be addressed.”

“Beauty and the Beast,” directed by Bill Condon, will hit cinemas on March 17.