Disney Almost Had A Frozen Easter Egg In Beauty And The Beast, According To Josh Gad

Olaf in Frozen

Josh Gad's performance as Le Fou in Beauty and the Beast marks his second major role for Disney. Previously. Gad played the comic relief snowman Olaf in Frozen and it turns out the actor had an idea to make a nod to his previous character in his new film that never panned out. In fact, the reference was so perfect that it worked on two levels, as it would have been a reference to the original animated Beauty and the Beast as well as a reference to Frozen because of the actor in question. According to Gad...

"The Easter egg I fought for [director] Bill Condon to put in but we never did, there's a moment in the original where a bunch of snow falls on LeFou and he becomes a snowman and I thought, this could kill. It's a little meta but it could be great [For those who may have forgotten, Gad played Olaf, the snowman in Frozen].

In the original animated film, Gaston hatches a plot to have Belle's father committed as a way to force her to marry him. Gaston tells Le Fou not to leave Belle's house until Belle and her father return, and a frustrated Le Fou kicks something nearby and a large amount of snow then falls on him. The next time we see Le Fou is when Belle is helping her injured father into the house and Le Fou is now in the form of a snowman. This is what Josh Gad told People he wanted to do in the live-action Beauty and the Beast as well.

Le Fou as a snowman in Beauty and the Beast

We have to admit it would have been a great easter egg to see. Fans of the original Beauty and the beast would have likely recognized it. And while most fans of Frozen were probably aware that Josh Gad was the voice of Olaf the snowman, some, including the youngest in the audience probably were not. For them, it would be an easter egg that they wouldn't even realize was there until rewatching the film years from now, and those can be some of the most fun moments in film.

Of course, for the easter egg to work it would have required the script of this version of Beauty and the Beast to work a little differently. The interaction between Gaston and Maurice happens very differently in the live-action version, as such, there is no equivalent scene in the new movie.

It's too bad Bill Condon couldn't work the easter egg into the film. Maybe the animators will be able to work a Le Fou reference into Frozen 2.

Dirk Libbey
Content Producer/Theme Park Beat

CinemaBlend’s resident theme park junkie and amateur Disney historian, Dirk began writing for CinemaBlend as a freelancer in 2015 before joining the site full-time in 2018. He has previously held positions as a Staff Writer and Games Editor, but has more recently transformed his true passion into his job as the head of the site's Theme Park section. He has previously done freelance work for various gaming and technology sites. Prior to starting his second career as a writer he worked for 12 years in sales for various companies within the consumer electronics industry. He has a degree in political science from the University of California, Davis.  Is an armchair Imagineer, Epcot Stan, Future Club 33 Member.