Just when fans thought that Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” could not get more exciting, they tap Grammy-nominated singer Ariana Grande and Grammy-winning artist John Legend to perform the film’s theme song.
The singers have been confirmed to play a rendition of the iconic titular song “Beauty and the Beast,” which will be featured in the upcoming live-action film due to hit theaters in March.
The enchanting ballad, originally performed by Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson, has reaped numerous awards such as an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, and a Grammy Award among others upon its release in 1991. The song was sung by Angela Lansbury, who voiced Mrs. Potts in the animated film.
Ariana Grande first hinted her collaboration with John Legend earlier last week when she posted a grainy selfie of herself in the recording studio, along with an emoticon of a wilted rose, an obvious reference to the animated film.
Fans will remember that the 23-year-old songstress even sang the film’s theme song in one of her guest appearance on “The Late Night Show with Jimmy Fallon,” wherein she even mimicked Dion’s vocal range.
Legend then, in turn, shared a selfie of himself inside the recording studio and tagged Grande further fueling rumors that the two are working on something special.
Following their social media hints, Ron Fair, the song’s producer, confirmed the collaboration in a statement to ABC.
Fair added that creating a revival from an award-winning piece and singers such as Dion and Bryson is definitely a big shoe to fill in, but Legend and Grande can definitely pull it off, bringing a fresh new take to the song, but keeping the classiness of the original.
Legend’s wife Chrissy Teigen is more than excited to hear the latest rendition of the Disney classic, especially when she knows their daughter Luna will enjoy it.
The 31-year-old host tweeted that she’s heard the version of her husband and Grande and says that it is unbelievably beautiful. She adds that their daughter is a lucky girl because her dad sings songs that she will truly appreciate.
Teigen then shared a short clip of herself playing the song on the piano. She said that she just learned how to play the song in a day.
The “Beauty and the Beast” soundtrack will be released on March 10, a week shy of the live-action film’s release. However, fans hope that Grande and Legend’s version of the titular song will be released earlier.
The film is expected to carry out memorable songs from the 1991 classic such as “Be Our Guest,” “Something There,” ‘The Mob Song,” among others.
Three new songs have been written for the live-action adaptation and it will not involve songs featured in the Broadway musical version.
Disney’s “Beauty in the Beast” will star Emma Watson as Belle and Dan Stevens as the titular Beast. Joining them are Ian McKellen, Ewan McGregor, Emma Thompson, and Nathan Mack, who voices iconic characters Cogsworth, Lumiere, Mrs. Potts, and Chip, respectively.
Luke Evans, Josh Gad, and Kevin Kline also stars as the antagonist Gaston, his sidekick Le Fou, and Belle’s father Maurice, respectively.
The film, directed by Bill Condon, will see a live-action retelling of the tale as old as time Disney classic. Much like 2015’s “Cinderella,” the film will be taking the flow of the 1991 animated film with fewer alterations.
Filming began in May 2015 and ended in August the same year. The film is slated to be released on March 17 in standard, Disney Digital 3D, RealD 3D, and IMAX 3D formats.