Yahoo News Luke Evans: Emma Watson's Belle is strong, modern woman
He may play a narcissistic, testosterone-fuelled baddie in Beauty and the Beast, but in real life, Luke Evans was bowled over by Emma Watson's "brilliant" portrayal of Belle as a "strong, 21st century woman".
The actor takes on brutish love rival Gaston in Disney's live-action adaptation, and speaking to Digital Spy on the set of Noel Clarke's upcoming thriller 10 x 10, he said: "I'm very proud of her achievement in the film - not just her singing ability, but how she's portrayed Belle, and how she's brought her into a 21st century, strong woman."
The Girl on the Train star has a background in musical theatre and explained that, while singing as Gaston wasn't easy, it was a "total joy" to accomplish.
"I wouldn't say it was easy singing as Gaston, but it was very enjoyable," he continued. "I love singing, and Gaston's songs are so great, and they're huge numbers, and so funny. It was just a total joy."
He also made sure to give Emma plenty of support, and revealed that she put "a lot of work in" vocally to prepare for the classic role.
"I gave Emma a lot of encouragement," he recalled. "It's always good to give encouragement, and she put a lot into it too. Emma is wonderful at singing, she did incredibly well. It was so nice to see her finally sing the songs and I think she really enjoyed it.
"It's quite brilliant, what she's done with the role."
Beauty and the Beast's impressive cast also includes Ewan McGregror, Dan Stevens, Stanley Tucci and Emma Thompson.
Meanwhile, Luke will star opposite True Detective's Kelly Reilly in Suzi Ewing's first feature-length film 10 x 10 - written by Brotherhood's Noel Clarke.
The prolific filmmaker, actor and writer is producing the nail-biting drama with Jason Maza, his partner at Unstoppable Entertainment.
Noel added to Digital Spy: "It's a journey of two characters - and there's a twist. Everything is not quite as it seems - with where the characters are, and what's going on."
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