Idris Elba Was Almost Gaston in ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ but He Wasn’t Because Fairytales Aren’t Real

Idris Elba is starting to become nearly as well known for the roles he might have played as he is for the ones he has. In addition to frequently being named a potential successor to Daniel Craig in the “James Bond” franchise — rumors that have finally been shot down, at least for now, with news that Craig will return — it seems that he was nearly in a much different movie: this year’s live-action “Beauty and the Beast” remake.

“I honestly love musicals. I auditioned for Beauty and the Beast. I really did, for Gaston,” Elba recently told People in an interview occasioned by his new film “The Mountain Between Us.” “I called and said, ‘Listen, I want in!’ So somewhere they have a tape of me singing.” For now, we’ll have to settle for his brief musical number in “Prometheus.”

Luke Evans went on to play Gaston — who, if the rumors are true, no one fights like or brags like — but Elba doesn’t hold it against him. “No, only a little bit. No! I love you Luke, you know that,” he joked.