Ian McKellen to play Cogsworth in Disney’s live-action Beauty and the Beast

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Bill Condon is assembling quite the cast for his live-action remake of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST; so far we've got Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Emma Thompson, Kevin Kline, and possibly Josh Gad. Now we have another name to add to that list as Variety has revealed that Ian McKellen has joined the film in the role of Cogsworth, the Beast's loyal butler who finds himself transformed into a clock. After years of playing mutants, wizards, and several fantastic roles out of Shakespeare, playing a sentient piece of furniture should be a snap.

They've hardly begun and yet I'm already growing tired of Disney's current trend of turning all their animated classics into live-action films; DUMBO, WINNIE THE POOH, THE JUNGLE BOOK, MULAN, and PINOCCHIO, it's all a bit much. There's no denying that they'll be successful but I just don't feel overly excited about any of them. You're a real Eeyore Kevin. One thing I am rather curious about is how they'll handle all these walking talking appliances in a live-action world; the character designs in the 1991 film are so memorable but I'm not sure how successfully they would cross over. I suppose we'll have to wait and see.

Production of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is slated to get underway later this year for a March 17, 2017 release.

Which Disney live-action remake are you looking forward to most?

Source: Variety

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Based in Canada, Kevin Fraser has been a news editor with JoBlo since 2015. When not writing for the site, you can find him indulging in his passion for baking and adding to his increasingly large collection of movies that he can never find the time to watch.