‘Beauty and the Beast’ Is Returning to Select Theaters for Awards Season
Wonder Woman and IT made a huge impression at the box office this year, but both failed to overtake 2017’s biggest hit: Beauty and the Beast. Released back in March, Disney’s blockbuster reimagining of its animated classic is still the highest-grossing film of the year, and as we wade into the prestigious waters of awards season, the studio is making sure that voters don’t forget about it.
Beauty and the Beast is returning to theaters, but there’s a catch — or two. Disney is exclusively re-releasing the film in New York and Los Angeles for one week only. Beginning on December 1, Beauty and the Beast will play at the AMC Empire 25 in New York and the AMC Century City theater in Los Angeles (both cities are home to prominent critics and awards voting groups). Per Deadline, members of the following groups can attend the screenings for free by presenting the relevant membership cards: AMPAS, BAFTA, ACE, ADG, ASC, CAS, DGA, HFPA, MPEG, MPSE, PGA, WGA, CDG and VES.
Directed by Bill Condon, Beauty and the Beast reimagines the animated classic with a vibrant blend of live-action and CGI. The film stars Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast and erstwhile handsome prince, Kevin Kline as Belle’s father Maurice, Luke Evans as the dastardly Gaston and Josh Gad as LeFou. Featuring the voices of Ian McKellen, Ewan McGregor, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Emma Thompson and Stanley Tucci, Beauty and the Beast grossed $1.26 billion worldwide and had the biggest opening weekend of 2017.