'Beauty and the Beast': Paige O'Hara, Voice of Animated Belle, Sings Emma Watson's Praises
Before Emma Watson, there was Paige O’Hara. The Broadway actress and singer voiced the role of Belle for the 1991 Disney animated classic Beauty and the Beast. So how did she feel about watching a new Belle step into the yellow ballgown? Speaking with Yahoo Movies at Disney’s D23 Expo, O’Hara said that she absolutely loved the live-action Beauty and the Beast — though there was one new character detail that made her envious. Watch the interview above.
“One thing that Emma got to have that I didn’t, that I really was jealous of, is that I wanted to be the inventor too!” O’Hara told Yahoo Movies. “I loved that Belle was the inventor.”
O’Hara added that she was thrilled with the casting of Watson in the role that she created. “I loved her interpretation,” the voice actress said. “She’s just such an intelligent, sweet actress, and I just thought she was wonderful.”
She also revealed that her friend Robby Benson, the voice of animated Beast, “loved what Dan Stevens did with the Beast.”
The original Belle will get a chance to reprise her role in Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2, which contains a scene that brings together all of the Disney princess voice actresses for the first time. Along with O’Hara, Mandy Moore (Rapunzel in Tangled), Anika Noni Rose (Tiana in The Princess and the Frog), Kelly Macdonald (Merida in Brave), Auli’i Cravalho (Moana), Jodi Benson (Ariel in The Little Mermaid), Irene Bedard (Pocahontas), and Linda Larkin (Jasmine in Aladdin) were all at D23 to promote the sequel (in theaters Nov. 21, 2018).
Paige O’Hara Flashback: Revisit Her Facebook Live Chat With Yahoo Movies From Fall 2016:
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