‘Beauty And The Beast’ Star Emma Watson Explains Why She Gave Up Cinderella Role For Belle

“Beauty and the Beast” star Emma Watson recently revealed why she decided to give up the role of Cinderella for Belle.

While speaking with Total Film, the 26-year-old actress said that she feels more connected to Belle than to the other Disney princess. Watson added that she thinks Belle is the better role model of the two. “I didn’t know they were going to make ‘Beauty and the Beast’ at the time I turned down ‘Cinderella.’ But when they offered me Belle, I just felt the character resonated with me so much more than Cinderella did,” she said.

Talking about Belle, Watson said that she loves the fact that the character is always curious, compassionate and open-minded. “That’s the kind of woman I would want to embody as a role model, given the choice. There’s this kind of outsider quality that Belle had, and the fact that she had this really empowering defiance of what was expected of her,” she said.

Watson also pointed out how Belle doesn’t conform to the status quo and how she isn’t swayed by other people’s differing opinions about certain things.

Meanwhile, the upcoming “Beauty and the Beast” film will have minor differences from the original animated movie and story book. In the film, Belle is an inventor just like her father, Maurice. However, in the book and the animated movie, Belle was just a young girl who loves to read books everyday.

While speaking with People, director Bill Condon also dished on the differences, saying, “In the original film she’s someone who loves reading, and in this film, she’s equally concerned with teaching other girls how to read,” he said.

“Beauty and the Beast” is slated to hit theaters in the United States on March 17.