Once you've seen the live-action version of Beauty and the Beast it's hard to imagine anybody playing the arrogant Gaston but Luke Evans.
But the actor, who has also appeared in the blockbuster franchises The Hobbit and Fast & Furious, revealed on Sunday Brunch that he originally turned down the role several times because he wasn't sure it was right for him.
"I really wanted to be able to merge my singing career with my film career," he explained to hosts Tim Lovejoy and Simon Rimmer. "But I didn't know whether Gaston was the right role for that.
"One of my mates said, 'Mate, Gaston's a brilliant role'. One Sunday they came round and we watched it with the kids. I watched this character and thought I could do something fun with this.
"I'd already turned down the role three times. I thought maybe it was the Beast I should be playing but they'd already cast the Beast [who was played by Dan Stevens]. Then I thought, 'I'm going to make them love me then absolutely despise Gaston!'"
It's safe to say that he achieved what he wanted to.
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Evans has previously admitted that he came into the casting process "at the 11th hour" and said that it had been difficult to get into the role of Gaston.
"The casting director knew Gaston was for me," he said. "It was always going to be Gaston, but it was hard to get my head around because he's a freak of nature, isn't he? He's a larger than life man."
The actor has recently returned to singing, having performed on Strictly Come Dancing earlier this month and released an album of covers called At Last.
He explained that 80% of the songs he recorded for the album were originally sung by a woman, saying: "The songs sound completely different coming out of a man's mouth."
Shop Now - Luke Evans album At Last
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Reporter & Sub-Editor, Digital Spy Susannah is a freelance writer and sub-editor, specialising in the entertainment industry. She graduated in 2014, with a BA in English and American Literature and Creative Writing, and an MA in Creative Producing. She’s been writing for Digital Spy ever since, after first getting involved through work experience, and has written hundreds of stories for the site on a range of topics, from The Sims to Doctor Who. Susannah has also written for Reveal Magazine. Her special interests are soaps (her Mastermind subject would be 2000s Coronation Street), Marvel and Star Wars. She can also quote far too many lines from Friends and Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
