You know the line in Disney’s animated Beauty and the Beast about crazy ol’ Maurice? In the upcoming live-action adaptation of the 1991 film, that comment is more likely to apply to Belle. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly (EW), Emma Watson says she wanted to create more of a backstory for Belle and give more of an explanation about why she doesn’t fit into the provincial town. So, they made Belle the inventor in the scenario–a mad, wacky inventor.

On point? I think so. It would be a missed opportunity if they didn’t use the live-action movie to update the character. Watson discusses the switch in this video from EW:

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It’s so very Belle to come up with an invention that will give her more time to read. But Belle’s desire to create and learn isn’t only about her hobbies. She has bigger ambitions. The interview gives some context to why the villagers treat her like such an outsider. She has the nerve to attempt to broaden her horizons, and they’re suspicious of intelligence. That kind of attitude feeds into “The Mob Song” mentality later in the film. Gaston leverages the villagers’ fear of the unknown.

All of this makes me more interested to see what else changes and/or gains depth in the live-action Beauty and the Beast. I’m also a sucker for the grand visuals that have been teased, and more of those visuals are on display with new images from the film over at EW. The gallery is accompanied by quotes from Watson about going through Belle boot camp, Gaston, and the common ground between Belle and Beast.

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Is it March 17 yet? The release date needs to hurry up and arrive.

Head to the comments and tell me what you think about this expanded inventor backstory for Belle.

Images: Disney