Given that its trailer shattered records back in November with almost 130 million plays in its first 24 hours, Disney must be very confident that it has another hit on its hands with next month’s Beauty and the Beast, and early tracking seems to support that, with pre-sales rivaling “those of a superhero movie.”
“With its dazzling new trailers, [Beauty and the Beast] is creating tremendous buzz among movie fans of all ages,” said Erik Davis in a statement, managing editor of ticket site Fandango (via Market Watch). “Its pre-sales rival those of a superhero movie.”
Davis went on to reveal that Beauty and the Beast is currently outperforming advance ticket sales on Finding Dory, which grossed $486.3 million domestically and over $1 billion worldwide last year.
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Beauty and the Beast is the latest live-action adaptation of Disney’s back catalogue; Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland grossed a whopping $1.025 billion back in 2010, while Jon Favreau’s The Jungle book earned $966.6 million last year.
Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” is a live-action re-telling of the studio’s animated classic which refashions the classic characters from the tale as old as time for a contemporary audience, staying true to the original music while updating the score with several new songs. “Beauty and the Beast” is the fantastic journey of Belle, a bright, beautiful and independent young woman who is taken prisoner by a beast in his castle. Despite her fears, she befriends the castle’s enchanted staff and learns to look beyond the Beast’s hideous exterior and realize the kind heart and soul of the true Prince within.
Beauty and the Beast is directed by Bill Condon (Dreamgirls) and sees Emma Watson as Belle alongside Dan Stevens as Beast, while the cast also includes Ewan McGregor as Lumiere, Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts, Luke Evans as Gaston, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Plumette, Stanley Tucci as Cadenza, Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, Kevin Kline as Maurice, Josh Gad as Le Fou and Audra McDonald as Garderobe. The film is set for release on March 17th, 2017.
