It seems Disney is remaining undeterred about its live-action adaptations of animated classics.
For every box office misfire like the live-action Moana (2026) and Snow White (2025), there's always the chance that they'll set the box office afire, as with the live-action Lilo & Stitch remake (2025).
As such, there are a number of exciting projects on the way, including Tangled, Lilo & Stitch 2, and Bambi - plus, a number of projects in active development such as a live-action Hercules, The Princess and the Frog, and Gaston.
For the latter, we have a rumor from former Hollywood trade reporter turned blogger Jeff Sneider, who states that the new Tom Cruise, Glen Powell, is in talks to star as Monsieur Gaston, aka the Town Hero and The Greatest Hunter in the Whole World.'
Powell most recently starred in The Running Man (2025), Twisters (2024), a sequel/reboot, and Top Gun: Maverick (2022).
According to the report from Sneider, he'll also star in a live-action prequel of 1991's Beauty and the Beast animated film, which focuses on the villain. The Gaston project was officially announced in December 2025, with Dave Callaham (Shang-Chi) set to pen the script. There is no director attached,
Also in Sneider's The Insneider Blog is a report that the Prince Charming movie, which had Chris Hemsworth attached to star, has been put on the shelf.
The project was officially announced in October 2024 with Paul King attached as director. Simon Farnaby and Jon Croker were set to co-write alongside King
However, The Insneider report states that King is more interested in tackling the forthcoming Fred Astaire biopic, which has Spider-Man: Brand New Day's Tom Holland attached as the lead.'
It's also worth noting that Hemsworth was "in talks" meaning that he had yet to officially sign on to star in the project.
Many Disney fans complained that Hemsworth (43) was too old for the role and as more time passes, their argument will only strengthen.
Stay tuned for more updates as the first night of D23 recently wrapped up yesterday evening, but there will be more exciting news and rumors that emerge over the remaining events and panels from the weekend-long festivities.