Ahead of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration, airing Thursday at 8 p.m. on ABC, producer Jon M. Chu confirmed the special will feature a tribute to Angela Lansbury, who died in October. Lansbury voiced Mrs. Potts in the original 1991 animated feature
“We definitely do a nod to her for sure. How could we not pay tribute?” Chu tells Variety.
The Crazy Rich Asians filmmaker also teased “some great cameos,” including Paige O’Hara, the voice of the original Belle and Composer Alan Menken.
The two-hour reimagining of the Disney classic, taped in front of a live audience, mixes animation and live-action and stars H.E.R. as Belle and Josh Groban as The Beast.
The cast also includes Shania Twain who will play Mrs. Potts; Martin Short as Lumiere; David Alan Grier tackling the role of Cogsworth; Broadway star Joshua Henry playing Gaston; Schitt’s Creek actor Rizwan Manji portraying Gaston’s sidekick LeFou; and musical theatre actor Jon Jon Briones, who’ll take on the role as Belle’s father, Maurice. Rita Moreno will serve as narrator.
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