Emma Watson is in “final negotiations” to star in del Toro’s Beauty and the Beast

Variety has reported that Guillermo del Toro is set to direct the new adaptation of the classic tale Beauty and the Beast for Warner Brothers and Emma Watson – who portrayed Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter series – would be starring as Belle.

While the project has been green lighted by Warner Brothers, we must be faithful and state that Emma is only in ‘final negotiations‘ for the project. Additionally, del Toro has a long run of attaching himself to projects that never get off the ground, not to mention he has plenty of films he is expected to work on including The Haunted Mansion for Disney.

The initial reports were back in July 2011 that had Emma rumored to be involved and Denise Di Novi was adapting the screenplay alongside del Toro. However, there has also been reports from a few days ago, that Christopher Gans was preparing to direct the project with Vincent Cassel and Lea Seydoux in the lead roles.

So, while Beauty and the Beast seems to be a perfect film for del Toro and Watson, we just need to wait and see if this film will actually be produced or if this is just one more film attached to del Toro that never sees the light of day.

If the film is made, what are your thoughts on Emma in the role of Belle? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.