Belle

### Animators

James Baxter, Mark Henn, Michael Cedeno, Randy Cartwright, Ken Duncan, Doug Krohn, Anthony Wayne Michaels, Lorna Pomeroy-Cook, Michael Gerard, Mike Nguyen, Renee Holt and Kaaren Lundeen

### Portrayed By

Susan Egan (Musical)
 Emelie de Ravin (Once Upon a Time)
 Keegan Connor Tracy (Descendants)
 Emma Watson (2017 Film)

### Home

Her Cottage in French Village (Formerly)
 Beast's Castle

### Relatives

Maurice (Father)

**Belle** is the female protagonist of the 1991 film Beauty and the Beast.

Belle is the fifth official member of the Disney Princess line-up.

## Background

### Development

When production first started on Beauty and the Beast, Belle's characterization was initially slightly closer to that of the original tale, being slightly timid yet also caring. In the first draft, she also had to contend with two elder sisters who, similar to in the original tale, utterly hated her because she received more attention than them, especially regarding potential suitors. In the second draft, she largely retained the traits from the first draft, although she also had a sister named Clarice (whom, unlike her sisters in the first draft, genuinely cared for Belle's well-being) as well as a snobbish aunt named Marguerite (who would have been the movie's equivalent of Belle's wicked sisters from the original tale and first draft). However, after the 1989 storyboard reel was presented, then-Disney Chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg ordered it to be rewritten from scratch, both due to viewing it as too dark and dramatic, and because he envisioned a Broadway-like film with a "feminist twist" to the original tale. To accomplish this, he hired Linda Woolverton, who at the time had just started film screenwriting and her only other experience with Disney was writing some episodes of their various Saturday Morning cartoons. Woolverton based Belle on Katharine Hepburn's role of Jo March from the film adaptation of the book, "Little Women", and avoided using the Jean Cocteau film as a template for Belle and the film, even going as far as to avoid seeing the film. She also gave Belle a love of literature to show her open-mindedness. She also made sure to make Belle a feminist in order to have her stand apart from Ariel in The Little Mermaid, as she didn't want "another insipid princess", taking notes from the women's movement to create her character. Paige O'Hara requested that Belle, similar to Jerry Orbach's handling of Lumiere in the same film, possess a French accent, although unlike Orbach, Disney refused the request.

### Personality

Belle has gained a significant amount of intelligence over the years due to her love of books, which provided her with an elevated vocabulary, an active imagination, and an open mind. She is very confident and outspoken in her opinions and seldom likes being told what to do. Despite all this, she doesn't have very many friends. Her smarts and free-thinking attitude make her stand out from her fellow townspeople, who regard her as a little odd behind her beauty.

Belle appears less concerned about her or others' appearances and is able to look past appearances into their personality. This is how she manages to break the Beast's curse and bring love and laughter to the castle.

Belle is somewhat of a free woman for her time and resists being mistreated, undermined, humiliated, demeaned, or controlled by anyone, especially and specifically by Gaston. She does not appear to be receptive to Gaston's description of marriage together, such as having six to seven sons or rubbing his feet. Even when agreeing to live under the Beast's control, she acts independently.

Belle willingly listens to, takes advice from, and admires her father Maurice since, throughout most of her life, he's the only person who has believed in her unconditionally. She also considers the opinions and directions of the Beast, because, like Maurice, he is able to treat her as an equal (the Beast eventually learned how throughout the course of the film). Belle also seemed to have a good relationship with the bookseller, presumably because of his encouraging her to pursue her love of literature.

Belle's compassionate heart and warm nature also embeds in an impressively brave woman that neither listens nor cares about what the other townspeople say about her. She refuses Gaston’s wedding proposal and remains the only girl to resist his ‘charms’ due to his rude, sexist demeanour instead of mindlessly lavishing over him based purely on the physical. Her most triumphant moments in the movie are when she willingly trades her freedom for her father’s without much hesitation and manage to stand up against the Beast at certain points. However, like any human, Belle does fear things, such as wolves, Beast’s castle, family disappearance, etc. The Beast also at first, manages to make the situation of her predicament as a prisoner, never to see her father or dreams again, come crushing down in tears. Especially when her captor himself is a 10 feet, easily angered monster which commands her entire life. Nevertheless, the unconditional love Belle places to those close to her, including the Beast eventually, make her strong enough to risk her life for theirs.

Belle is quite stubborn when it comes to stating and upholding her opinions and maintaining her ideas. Even though she says that she dreams of adventure, she also states that she wishes for a friend who accepts her for who she is. This is because everyone in town criticizes her for doing her own thing and can't understand her, making her feel like she can't fit in. However, even when people give her a hard time, she never changes but comes to a better understanding of herself. This makes the biggest difference when she breaks the spell and charms the Beast just by being herself.

The Disney comic New Adventures of Beauty and the Beast, set a few years before the first film's events, implies that Belle didn't believe in the supernatural despite her love of fairy tales. This is evidenced while she explores a part of the Black Forest before encountering an owl and thinks that there aren't any mythical creatures in there. This is also supported in the film where she yells "this is impossible" in shock after accidentally bumping into the Wardrobe in shock upon discovery that Mrs. Potts and her fellow servants were living objects.

Belle is quite witty and uses this trait to her advantage to outsmart people. When in an argument with the Beast, Belle held her ground and challenged each of the Beast's points with a cunning comeback, such as "If you hadn't frightened me I wouldn't have run away" or "You should learn to control your temper". Each of these statements left the Beast stunned and at a loss for words. Belle managed to think of these comebacks without much thought or hesitation. When Lumiere and Cogsworth attempted to lead Belle's curiosity away from the West Wing, she challenged them by saying the West Wing wouldn't be forbidden if the Beast wasn't hiding something in it, also briefly stunning them. Belle's logic may also have helped her save Maurice by realizing that something was going on in the castle that she wanted to find out. Soon, in the West Wing, she almost discovers the Beast's true identity, though she briefly forgets it in the end.

Belle has a strong sense of character and uses this trait in a variety of ways, often to her own advantage. On Belle's first night in the castle, following the "Be Our Guest" sequence, she develops an urge to explore the castle and asks for a guide. Observing Cogsworth's "authoritative" personality, she immediately knows that Cogsworth would be the best candidate. At first, Cogsworth is quite reluctant to the idea, but when Belle says she is sure he knows everything about the castle, he agrees. Similarly, she also has a strong sense of deductive reasoning, as she deduced from the animate objects' interactions that the castle in which she was imprisoned was enchanted without anyone telling her beforehand.

She is also implied to have deduced Gaston's true role in locking Maurice up. This, however, was contradicted when she exposed the Beast's existence to a congregated mob despite the high likelihood that they would turn and kill the Beast due to their current emotional state, as well as being shocked by Gaston and the villagers doing exactly that. This makes Belle feel so guilty that she resolves to stop Gaston and save the Beast, her true love.

Belle's personality transforms throughout the film. At first, she frequently dreams about a life of adventure and romance, not realizing that sometimes adventures might take a turn for the worse. As Belle begins to spend more time with the Beast and their relationship blossoms into a strong friendship, she begins to fall in love with him without realizing it.

### Physical Appearance

Belle is known throughout the village for her beauty, with one villager commenting that it has no parallel, but she isn't vain or concerned about her looks although she knows it. She is only too aware that her fellow citizens think of her as "odd" and "peculiar". Belle pays very little attention or concern to her appearance, unlike the very rude and arrogant Gaston.

Belle has long, brown hair, most often tied back in a low ponytail with a blue ribbon, and possesses captivating greyish gold eyes, full pink lips, rosy cheeks, a heart-shaped face, and a sculpted figure. One of her more distinct features is the strands of hair that are constantly slipping loose from her ponytail and falling in front of her face - she is often seen brushing them back into place when nervous or trying to be polite.

Throughout the film, Belle wears various outfits depending on the occasion:

Her primary outfit is a medium-length brilliant cornflower blue sleeveless dress with a white long-sleeved button-up shirt underneath, a white apron on her waist, a white petticoat, and brown ballet flats on her feet. Her hair is tied in a low ponytail adorned with a medium blue ribbon. When she goes to the Beast's castle, she wears a dark blue cloak. Belle's hair is loose twice in the film, the first time when the ribbon on her ponytail is torn off by one of the wolves, and the second when she removes the ribbon before finding the Beast during his fight with Gaston.

The day that Belle was gifted the castle's library, she wore a green dress (similar to the colour scheme of Ariel from The Little Mermaid) with a matching hair ribbon, a white petticoat underneath the dress and black ballet flats, and outside when she was tending to Phillipe and Sultan she added her traditional dark blue cloak.

When she was reading to the Beast, Belle wore a pink/rose dress (similar to Aurora's from Sleeping Beauty) with a matching hair ribbon, a white petticoat, and red ballet flats and when she was outside teaching the Beast to feed the birds she added a red cloak with white fur trim.

Her most elaborate and iconic dress is a golden ball gown with a simply designed bodice, wrapped off-the-shoulder sleeves, long yellow opera gloves matching her outfit, a gold wide-hemmed floor-length skirt made of 8 triangular panels and a multiple-layered white petticoat with scalloped edging on the hemline, and yellow high-heeled shoes. This is the dress she wears while sharing her first dance with the Beast in the "Beauty and the Beast" sequence, and their second dance after the curse is broken. With this outfit, she wears some of her hair in a neat bun, but the majority of it trails down her neck in a beautiful, flowing motion resembling a ponytail.

In Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas, Belle wears a long red winter coat with a white fur collar, belt, and folded sleeves while wearing her primary outfit. At the end of the film, set after the curse was broken, Belle wears a deep red rose dress which resembles the colour of a red rose with a matching deep red hair ribbon, a light-yellow lining connected to her bodice and the end of her dress skirt, a white petticoat, and deep red high-heeled shoes.

Overall, when she first enters the Beast's castle, her outfit wasn't adapted to the castle, but as the film moves on, her outfit started progressively shifting to more formal and elegant dresses, signifying her growing more attached to the castle and its inhabitants as the Beast reforms into a well-behaved gentleman.

## Film Appearances

### Beauty and the Beast

Belle is a beautiful young woman living in a small unnamed village in France. She first appears at the beginning of the film (after the prologue) as she emerges out of the cottage she lives in and heads to a bookstore in the village, aware that the villagers are noting her peculiarity and how she doesn't fit in with the rest of them due to her love of books and withdrawn nature. At the bookstore, Belle returns a book she has borrowed and takes the one she perceives as her favourite. While heading back home to the cottage, she is pursued by a conceited, arrogant, muscle-headed hunter named Gaston, who eventually stands in her way. Gaston takes the book from Belle, drops it into a mud puddle, and tells Belle to get herself out of reading and pay more attention to "more important things" like him. Just then, an explosion comes out from the basement of her cottage, prompting Belle to run back home.

Descending into the basement and coughing her way in, Belle finds her father, Maurice, who is about to give up on his latest contraption that he has built. Belle faithfully tells her father how she has believed he will get the machine working, win first prize at the fair, and become a world-famous inventor. Inspired by his daughter's beliefs, Maurice re-works on the machine, and once he thinks he has done fixing it, he gives it a test run. To both Belle and her father's surprise, the test run goes successfully. Belle waves goodbye to her father and wishes him luck as Maurice, riding on their horse Philippe, goes off to the fair with the invention.

The following day, Belle is happily reading when she hears a knock on a door. She uses the periscope, only to find that Gaston is on the porch, much to her dismay, but nevertheless lets him in. Gaston then dirties Belle's book for the second time and reveals that he wants to make her his little wife and the mother of six or seven handsome little boys; Belle is disgusted by this idea and slips away from Gaston who continues to approach her. As Gaston has Belle cornered at the door and is about to plant a kiss on her, Belle opens the door, causing Gaston to fall into a large mud pond outside. After a furious and humiliated Gaston leaves the cottage, Belle goes outside to feed the chickens, shocked in disbelief at how Gaston has asked her to marry him. Not wanting to be the wife of that boorish, brainless man, she runs off into an open field, where Philippe finds her, still hitched to the trailer carrying Maurice's invention, but without Maurice. Seeing Philippe without her father, Belle pleads for Philippe to take her to where her father is after unhitching Phillipe from the trailer.

Belle rides Philippe to a mysterious castle in the possibility of finding her father. She finds her father locked away in a dungeon and begs the master of the castle to free him due to his poor health, offering her own freedom in exchange for her father's, over the latter's protests. When the master agrees on the condition that she has to stay with him forever, she asks the master to step into the light, revealing himself to be a hideous Beast. Although Belle is terrified by the Beast's visage, and Maurice pleads for her to reconsider, she promises to remain as the castle's prisoner and the Beast fulfils his end of the bargain by immediately releasing and sending Maurice back to the village in an enchanted palanquin. The Beast is deeply moved by her beauty and affection towards her father and can't help but feel touched by her boldness and bravery, as well as feeling some remorse for not allowing Belle to say her goodbye to her father whom she may not see again. The Beast then shows Belle to her room where she is initially terrified by the décor and gargoyles. He allows her to go about the castle but warns her not to go into his lair, the West Wing, which he cryptically labels as forbidden. When the Beast brings Belle to her room, he orders her to join him for dinner before slamming the door shut and storming off. Belle throws herself onto her bed and breaks down in tears over being separated from her father forever and trapped in the scary castle by the Beast.

Later, Belle is visited by Mrs. Potts and Chip; she is shocked and surprised that a teapot and a teacup are alive (the Enchantress who turned the prince into a beast also transformed his servants into household objects) that she backs into a Wardrobe, who is also alive. She accepts tea from Mrs. Potts, and after the teapot and the teacup leave, the Wardrobe decides upon a dress for Belle to wear for her upcoming dinner with the Beast, but Belle declines just as Cogsworth - the head servant who was turned into a mantle clock, arrives to inform her that dinner is ready.

The Beast is enraged upon learning from Cogsworth that Belle isn't joining him for dinner, storms over to Belle's room and bangs on the door, ordering her to come out to dinner. The two then have a heated shouting match which results in the Beast finally granting her wish to be left alone again. Back in his lair, the Beast is shocked to find that Belle still grudges him for his mistreatment of her and Maurice, causing him to doubt if he will ever break the spell. Meanwhile, a little later, Belle, feeling hungry, emerges out of her room and makes her way to the castle's kitchen, where she meets Cogsworth, his assistant Lumiere, and Mrs. Potts, who all agree to feed Belle (despite their master's protests) and entertain her with a marvellous.

After the dinner show, Belle applauds the entertainers and servers for putting on a spectacular performance. Having figured out that the castle is enchanted and wanting to see more of the castle, Belle asks Cogsworth to show her around. Belle comes across a staircase leading to the West Wing during the tour, but Cogsworth and Lumiere stop her and coerce her from going into the room she is forbidden to step into by showing their library; however, her curiosity of the West Wing gets the better of her. Taking advantage of a brief distraction from the two servants, Belle enters the room and discovers it's beaten down, ransacked and sickly. There she sees a torn picture of a young man and a glowing rose. She takes the glass off the rose and tries to touch it. Just then, however, the Beast arrives and is furious at Belle for disobeying him. Belle tries apologizing, but the Beast screams at her to get out while destroying some of his own furniture in the process. Terrified as well as having had enough of the Beast's ferocious temper and the castle itself, Belle escapes the castle (rushing past Cogsworth and Lumière) and runs away. When the Beast calms down, he realizes his mistake too late and hangs his head in guilt and shame.

In the woods, she and Phillipe encounter a pack of frightening and savage wolves, who chase after her and the horse. The wolves quickly catch up and knock Belle off Phillipe. Belle takes a tree branch to use as a weapon, but the wolves bite it in half when she attempts to hit them, rendering her helpless and defenceless in no time. Just as she is about to meet her apparent demise, the Beast arrives and attacks the wolves, rescuing Belle and forcing the animals into retreat after flinging one of them, possibly the alpha, into a tree hard enough to knock it out, if not kill it by breaking its spine on the trunk, terrifying the other wolves into fleeing in fear. However, a wolf manages to injure him in the process before they flee in terror of his wrath. Coming to realize that the Beast has saved her life, Belle chooses to help the Beast - who has collapsed from exhaustion and his wounds - back to the castle over running away and leaving him in the woods to suffer. While she tends to the Beast's wounds, the two then get into another heated argument about who was at fault (including Belle ignoring the Beast's orders of not going to the West Wing), with Belle winning the argument by ordering him to control his temper, overcoming her fears and conquering his ferocious temper. She then thanks to the Beast for saving her life, to which the Beast, realizing the good deed he has done while noticing her kindness, starts feeling good inside himself.

As a token of his appreciation, the Beast, at Lumiere's suggestion, shows Belle the castle's enormous library, which strikes her interest so much that he gives it to her as a gift. In return, Belle helps him act more like a gentleman, and the two eventually form a healthy friendship, bonding over suppers, reading, and playful outings in the snow. Over time, the Beast falls deeply in love with her but fears that she will never love him in return. On a special night, however, an evening date is conceived, and the two eventually fall in love, though neither expressed their feelings verbally. After a waltz in the grand ballroom, Belle expresses the longing for her father and wishes for a way to see him once more. The Beast tells her that there is a way and shows Belle a magic mirror, which is capable of showing anything the user wishes to see. Belle asks the mirror to show her father, and it reveals Maurice to be lost and sick in the woods, apparently dying, a sight that shocks and worries her. With no choice, the Beast grants Belle freedom for the safety of her father. As a way to remember him, he hands her the mirror, which she accepts before thanking him for his kind gesture and departing in haste.

After returning to the village with her rescued father, Monsieur D'Arque, the head of a mental asylum, arrives to apprehend Maurice because of his claims about the Beast. It's soon revealed that Gaston was behind the asylum's arrival, in hopes of forcing Belle to marry him in exchange for her father's freedom. Belle refuses, and Gaston goes ahead with taking Maurice to the asylum. Thinking fast, Belle fetches the mirror and begs for it to show her the Beast, then turns the mirror to the villagers to reveal his existence, proving Maurice's sanity. Unfortunately, as she assures the intimidated crowd that the Beast isn't dangerous, Gaston senses Belle's romantic feelings for the creature and mocks her for being in love with a monster, to which Belle angrily retorts by labelling Gaston as the real monster, making him snap. Out of spite and jealousy, Gaston snatches the mirror from Belle, declaring that she is just as crazy as her father, convinces the villagers that the Beast is a threat, and rallies a mob to attack the Beast. Shocked, Belle tries to stop Gaston from going through with his plans, but he perceives that she is against him and has her and Maurice locked in their cellar to prevent them from warning the Beast. After the mob's departure, Chip (who stowed away in Belle's satchel) uses Maurice's wood-cutting invention to free them, allowing them to rush to the castle on Philippe.

Belle arrives at the castle while Gaston takes on the Beast and attempts to stop the former from hurting the latter. The Beast, seeing Belle return, summons up the strength to fight back while Belle rushes into the castle and up the stairs. Arriving at the balcony, she calls to the Beast and reaches out for him to take her hand. Just as the Beast takes hold of Belle's hand, and they embrace each other, a jealous Gaston stabs the Beast in the back, causing the Beast to jerk backward in pain, which then causes Gaston to lose his balance and fall to his death. Belle manages to grab hold of the Beast and pull him up onto the balcony. The Beast smiles at seeing Belle, who ensures all will be well with their reunion at hand. Unfortunately, the weak Beast can only express gratitude overseeing Belle one last time before he dies in her arms, succumbing to his wounds. Belle begs him not to leave her and, sobbing over the Beast's dead body, admits her love for him mere seconds before the last petal falls from the enchanted rose.

As Belle continues sobbing over the loss of her love, shimmering beams of light fall onto the Beast. The Beast's body then begins to float in the air and is enshrouded in a fog. Belle watches mysteriously as the Beast's fore-paws, hind-paws, and furry head respectively transform back into hands, feet, and head of a Prince. The Prince then turns to Belle, who initially looks at him sceptically but then recognizes him from the torn portrait's blue eyes. The Prince and Belle share their first kiss, a kiss of true love, which subsequently breaks the additional spell placed on the castle and its inhabitants: the dark, scary castle is restored into its original, shining state, all the Prince's servants are transformed back into humans, and the Black Forest surrounding the castle was transformed back into the beautiful forest it was before. The film ends with Belle and the Prince dancing in the ballroom with her father and his servants watching happily.

### Beauty and the Beast: Enchanted Christmas

A midquel taking place during the winter segment of Beauty and the Beast; this is the story of Belle's attempt to bring back to the castle the one ceremony the Beast hates most: Christmas. At the point the movie is supposed to take place, Belle still considered herself a prisoner in the castle, and wasn't truly friends with the Beast at that point, though she had begun to accept him. This takes place not too long after she was saved from the wolves and after the Beast gave her the library as a gift. She had started to warm up to the Beast a little and was more willing to reach out.

Belle is first seen walking through the castle in a pleasant enough mood when she runs into Chip, Lumiere, Cogsworth, and Mrs. Potts. Belle asks Chip about today, and he doesn't know. She informs him and the others that it's the day before Christmas, to which Lumiere quickly cuts off before encouraging her to go out on the castle grounds.

At Chip's suggestion, Belle decides to go ice skating. After grabbing a pair of ice skates and a coat from the rack, she heads outside, where she finds the Beast just walking around. She bids him a good morning which causes him to lose balance on the ice and fall. Belle goes to check on him, and the two get into an awkward conversation about him slipping.

After putting on her skates, Belle begins skating, inviting the Beast to join her. Beast is reluctant at first, but Belle shows him the basic steps of skating, and eventually, he starts trying.

Belle watches as the Beast gets better at skating, much to her amusement. With his improvement, the two started skating together. Things seem to go well until interference from Fife causes them to slide into the snow after he grabs the Beast's cape. Belle and Beast emerge from the snow, and Belle cheerfully makes a Christmas angel. She shows it to the Beast, but he sees his own monstrous shape in the snow, gets enraged by it, and storms off in a fury. As he goes, Belle doubts if she should keep trying to reach him as it seems he is now worse than he was before, though Mrs. Potts tells her not to lose heart.

Later, Belle walks with Chip through the halls and asks him about the Beast's grumpy disposition. She is surprised when Chip tells her that the Beast is always that way, even at Christmas. She's even more surprised when Chip asks her about Christmas, telling her about the great traditions that occur on the holiday. One tradition she mentions; presents; gets Chip excited, and she tells him that everyone receives a present on Christmas, including the Beast. Chip asks Belle what she plans to give the Beast, and she doesn't really know him well enough to know what he would want. At Chip's suggestion, Belle decides to give the Beast a handmade storybook. As she makes it, she hopes that her story will help the Beast overcome his sorrows and pains and, hopefully, they will understand each other better. After she completes the story, she picks up Chip, confident that the Beast will like his gift, and assures him that they will have Christmas in the castle.

Later, Belle is washing dishes with the enchanted objects in the kitchen, where Cogsworth immediately rejects the notion of having Christmas due to the Beast forbidding it. Belle responds, saying Christmas can't be forbidden by anyone. Cogsworth tells her that Christmas is a painful reminder of the Beast's past and that bringing it back would only torture him even more, but Belle believes that it would actually do him some good. Cogsworth continues to reject, but Belle, Lumiere, Mrs. Potts, and Chip bring up the Christmas feast, with Belle mentioning cranberry sauce. Eventually, Cogsworth agrees, and Belle suggests decorating the castle. Lumiere tells her that he knows someone who can help.

With Lumiere and Chip in hand, Belle travels up one of the castle towers to the attic. There, she and the two are greeted by a series of enchanted Christmas decorations lead by a Christmas angel named Angelique. After some flirting, Lumiere introduces her to Belle as the castle decorator. He then tells about their plans for a Christmas celebration, but Angelique refuses, not wanting to get disappointed again. Belle pleads with her help then, for they need her help to decorate the castle before Christmas, but Angelique still refuses, saying that nothing will change, but Belle believes it will.

After several attempts to get the Beast to agree, the Beast finally approves of the idea and allows Belle to prepare for Christmas, though he still bears a grudge, for Christmas is the day the Enchantress cast the spell on him and the castle residents.

Belle goes out into the woods with advice from Forte to get a suitable tree for Christmas, but she falls into thin ice and almost drowns. Fortunately, she is rescued by Beast, who is enraged at her because Forte told him earlier that she was trying to escape from him again.

Belle is then thrown into the dungeon to rot by an angry Beast who accuses her of her betrayal. Cold and demotivated, Belle was almost about to break down into sadness, until the Beast's servants, including Angelique, visit her in the dungeon to comfort her, while they sing a song to cheer her up. The Beast then finds the book that Belle had written for him earlier in the West Wing and decides to set Belle free, and they both continue to prepare for Christmas. But Forte doesn't give up there, even going as far as to attempt to bring the whole castle down with Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in order to prevent the spell from breaking, as it can't if everyone is dead. Fortunately, the Beast stops him in time by crashing his keyboard to pieces. Sadly, the Beast mourns the loss of his old friend, and Belle comforts him.

Later, Belle, Beast, and the castle servants proceed with the Christmas celebrations just as planned, much to the former's happiness.

The viewers are soon taken back to the actual Christmas taking place, and Belle is presented with a gift from her husband: a rose.

### Belle's Magical World

In this movie, Belle is the only human character. She meets three new enchanted object friends, named Webster, Crane, and Le Plume, and is about to solve problems in all four segments. The film serves as a sequel to The Enchanted Christmas, taking place before Gaston's death. Because the segments of the movie were originally intended to be used for a TV series, Belle had a slightly darker complexion than usual. Only this time, she is shown to be very different from she was later in the chronological story. She is more naive, stricter, and still defiant of the Beast's rules, while easily being brought down by the things that go wrong in the castle.

In the first segment, "The Perfect Word", a falling out between Belle and Beast leads to the banishment of the aforementioned servants, Webster, Crane, and LePlume, forcing Belle to rush out and rescue them.

In the next segment, "Fifi's Folly", it's Lumiere's anniversary with Fifi, yet he doesn't know the proper way to confess how he truly feels. Belle assists him by taking the role of Fifi and practicing what he's going to do for their date. Fifi sees the two and believes Lumiere is leaving her for Belle. Eventually, all is straightened out.

In "Mrs. Potts' Party", Belle strives to cheer up a depressed Mrs. Potts, whom she has notably come to look like a motherly figure, though the rivalry between Lumiere and Cogsworth causes trouble. This segment was also included in Belle's Tales of Friendship.

In the fourth and final segment, "A Broken Wing", Belle finds a wounded bird and takes it in. She spends most of her time hiding it from Beast originally until he grows to like. After a while, another problem brews as the bird are healthy once more, but Beast wants to keep it for its singing. Belle convinces him to let it free. In the end, they become closer, and their intense romance buds anew.

### Ralph Breaks the Internet

In Ralph Breaks the Internet, Belle appears alongside the other Disney Princesses as netizens in Oh My Disney. Working as a cast member, Belle and the princesses meet-and-greet with net users. On one particular day, the backstage room of the princesses is infiltrated by a glitch named Vanellope von Schweetz; Belle is seen reading a book when Vanellope arrives. Belle jumps into action in defence, believing Vanellope to be a threat, and arms herself with her book. Belle lays down her defence when Vanellope claims to be a princess as well. When Pocahontas asks Vanellope what kind of princess she is, Belle and Rapunzel ask her if she has ever been kidnapped or enslaved. Though she has not, Belle (along with other princesses) relates when Vanellope reveals that she does not have a mother.

Shortly after, the princess becomes enamoured with Vanellope's "gown", and switch into more comfortable modern attire to match. Belle dons a yellow tank top with a black silhouette of the Beast's head that reads "BFF" (meaning "Beast Friends Forever"), golden pants, and brown ballet flats. While lounging, Belle continues reading her book. Ariel, meanwhile, expresses her excitement over wearing a shirt (and briefly asks Belle what the clothing is called). She starts to break into song, but Vanellope's confusion cuts her off. As Vanellope has never had a song, Rapunzel advises her to sing about what she desires most. Vanellope's song about a steering wheel is less than stellar, but Belle tries to avoid any criticism and asks if the steering wheel that Vanellope mentioned is a metaphor. Vanellope explains that she's being literal. As the princesses prepare to get back to work, Merida tries to send some advice in an unintelligible Scottish accent; in during which means, Belle makes an awkward face.

During the climax, Belle and the princesses leave Oh My Disney after the Internet is taken over by a virus. After the virus has been neutralized, the princesses spot Wreck-It Ralph plummeting from the air. Belle, Ariel, Tiana, and Cinderella use their gowns as parachutes to safely descend Ralph to the ground, where the princesses are able to formally meet and befriend him.

## Television Appearances

### House of Mouse

Belle made cameo appearances in many episodes of the House of Mouse television series, usually seen wearing her peasant outfit (though she did wear her gold dress in Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse and "Dining Goofy").

In "The Stolen Cartoons", Donald Duck accidentally served Lumiere as Belle's evening meal, much to the latter's confusion.

In "Mickey and the Culture Clash", Belle attempted to read a book that Mickey was balancing on his head, but her hand was slapped away by Mortimer Mouse. She then asked what the commotion was about and was informed by Clarabelle that Minnie was looking for someone more sophisticated than Mickey. It was the only time she spoke in the show.

In "Ask Von Drake", Belle was seen sitting with Beast during Disney character head count. In "Jiminy Cricket", when Jiminy mentions the possibility some characters may not have children, the camera pans to Belle and Beast. Belle can also be seen in recycled crowd shots, cheering alongside Mrs. Potts and Chip.

Belle also appeared aside Beast in Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse, and in some crowd shots in Mickey's House of Villains.

In the series, Ariel's voice actress, Jodi Benson took over as the voice of Belle, although Paige O'Hara did reprise her role as Belle in Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse.

### Sofia the First

Belle made a guest appearance in the episode "The Amulet and the Anthem".

She teaches Sofia that actions speak louder than words when apologizing about her bragging as it didn't break her croaking curse by singing "Make It Right".

In "Forever Royal" when Sofia is battling Vor inside her amulet, Belle appears to Sofia in spirit form along with all the other princesses who have been summoned to help Sofia in her times of need, and they encourage her to be brave and strong for they all believe in her.

## Live-Action Appearances

### Musical

A Broadway musical adaptation of the film premiered on Broadway on April 18, 1994, at the Palace Theatre with Susan Egan as the original Belle. Since then, many actresses including Deborah Gibson, Toni Braxton, Andrea McArdle, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Christy Carlson Romano, and Ashley Brown have played the role on Broadway. The show closed on July 29, 2007, at the Lunt-Fontanne Theater with Anneliese van der Pol as the show's final Belle.

Overall, Belle's role was the same as in the film, although some differences included Belle politely refusing Gaston's hand in marriage instead of tricking him into falling into a mud pool, joining Lumiere and dancing along with the dishes and silverware during the Be Our Guest musical number instead of just sitting at the dining table and merely observing the spectacle, and her being injured by the Beast when she entered the West Wing before fleeing instead of merely being scared off. Additionally, her role is expanded in the musical with songs "No Matter What" (cut in touring productions), "Home" and "A Change in Me".

Belle is also without Philippe in the stage version, instead of knitting a "lucky" scarf for Maurice to wear during his trip to the fair. Maurice is attacked by wolves before becoming a prisoner within the Beast's castle. His scarf is lost in the woods, and eventually found by LeFou. When LeFou is spotted in town with the scarf, he reveals to Belle the whereabouts in which he found it, prompting her to search for her potentially endangered father.

When given the library, Belle also reveals "King Arthur" to be amongst her favourite stories.

### Sing Me a Story with Belle

From 1995 through 1999 on both Disney Channel and in syndication, a series titled "Sing Me a Story with Belle" aired from the Disney-MGM Studios in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Actress Lynsey McLeod portrayed Belle, who was the owner of a book and music shop in France in her commoner costume.

### Disney Sing Along Songs: The Twelve Days of Christmas

Belle and the Beast make a brief appearance in the Christmas themed video Disney Sing Along Songs: The Twelve Days of Christmas, specifically during the final song "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". They can be seen dancing with each other amongst other Disney characters and Christmas carollers.

### Beauty and the Beast: A Concert on Ice

In 1996, CBS premiered a television special of the animated movie and its Broadway musical performed on ice by two-time Olympic Gold Medallist Ekaterina Gordeeva as Belle and Olympic Gold Medallist Victor Petrenko as the Beast. Their singing voices were provided by Susan Egan and James Barbour. The songs included were "Gaston", "If I Can't Love Her", "Be Our Guest", and "Beauty and the Beast".

### Once Upon a Time

Belle is a primary character of the hit ABC fantasy television series Once Upon a Time. Belle is the only child and daughter of Sir Maurice, whose town will be destroyed in the Ogre Wars. Rumpelstiltskin offers to protect them if Belle becomes his servant forever. Her father and her fiancée Gaston (Sage Brocklebank) refuse to agree to his terms, but Belle accepts the deal. Over time, the pair fall in love, and Rumpelstiltskin asks her to go out and buy straw, expecting that she won't return. On the road, she meets the Evil Queen Regina and learns that true love's kiss will break any curse, including the one on Rumpelstiltskin. Belle returns to the castle and kisses him, and he starts changing back into a human. However, he learns that she met the Queen and becomes convinced that she is a spy; this stops the transformation. In his rage, he rejects her love and locks Belle in his dungeon. He then breaks all of his dishware, except the cup that she accidentally chipped. He throws her out of his castle, stating that his power is more important to him than she is. She admonishes him for not believing that she loves him and promises that he will regret it when he is left with an empty heart and the chipped cup. She then leaves and he doesn't see her again. Belle is later seen giving advice on love to Grumpy then known as Dreamy.

Her storyline in the Enchanted Forest involved Mulan in one episode. The two of them hear of a fiery monster causing trouble in the Enchanted Forest. Belle hunts it down and douses it with water. The monster then writes "save me" on the ground. Belle uses fairy dust to help the creature and it turns back into its true form, Prince Phillip. He thanks Belle for saving him and reveals to her that Maleficent cast a spell over him to keep him away from his true love Aurora. Belle then introduces Phillip to Mulan and leaves them to help her true love, Rumpelstiltskin. However, soon after she is taken prisoner by Regina. In another episode, Hook goes to Belle's jail cell after hearing that she could be Rumpelstiltskin’s weakness. He asks her to help destroy him, but she refuses to do so. Hook then knocks her out and leaves.

According to the Queen, Belle was allegedly shunned by her town for her association with Rumpelstiltskin and was imprisoned and tortured until she threw herself off a tower and died. However, this is later proven false by her existence in Storybrooke, where Regina keeps her locked in a secret room underneath the Storybrooke Hospital.

She is eventually released by Jefferson. He tells her to find Mr. Gold, who is actually Rumpelstiltskin, and to tell Gold that Regina held her captive. She finds Gold but doesn't remember who he is. When the curse on Storybrooke is broken, she regains her memories and professes her love for Rumpelstiltskin. He then takes her to his shop, where she makes him promise he won't kill Regina. After Gold releases the Wraith to seek out vengeance on Regina, Belle storms out of the pawnshop, frustrated by his play on words. Later, she comes back to him, where he shows her the chipped cup and she says she will stay with him as "he's a monster".

At the beginning of "The Crocodile", Belle has a dream that Mr. Gold turns into Rumpelstiltskin/The Dark One and throws a pickaxe into Leroy's chest. When she wakes up, she sees Mr. Gold in the basement of his house doing magic. The next morning, Belle asks him what he has been doing. Mr. Gold just says, "Magic is Power."

Later, her father, Moe/Maurice sends Smee to "kidnap" her, so she could see her father but Moe finds out she still loves Mr. Gold. To fix this "little" problem, her father handcuffs her to a mining trolley and rolls it down a hill, so she can have her memories erased (because when a person crosses the town border, they lose all memory of their true selves). She is rescued by Mr. Gold, Prince Charming/David Nolan, and Red Riding Hood/Ruby. However, once she is rescued, she says she doesn't want to see Mr. Gold and Moe ever again.

Mr. Gold gives Belle the key to the Storybrooke Library and then explains everything from being a coward to Baelfire. He starts to go but Belle stops him, wanting to go with him for a hamburger at Grannies, to which he happily agrees.

Sometime later, Archie is supposedly killed by Regina. Belle, along with the other townspeople, attends Archie's funeral where Mary Margaret gives a eulogy in remembrance of him. Afterward, Belle meets up with Mr. Gold in which he happily tells her the option for crossing the border works. She expresses wishes to go with him, but he regretfully says the option is only enough for one person. She heads to the library, later on, to sort through books and notices a stranger standing in the corner and recognizes him as the man who broke into her cell in the Evil Queen's palace, Captain Hook. In a state of panic, she runs from him but is unable to escape the building. Belle pushes a bookshelf, which topples and pins him to the floor as she scurries into the elevator. Pulling out her cell phone to call Mr. Gold, she is able to tell him about the man trying to kill her, but when she attempts to give more details, Mr. Gold is unable to hear her through the bad reception. Belle doesn't return to the library until Mr. Gold operates the switch to open the elevator shaft.

Reunited, they hurry back to the pawnshop together. On the way there, Belle demands to know Mr. Gold's history with Hook. Hesitantly, he finally tells her Hook stole his wife, Milah, from him years ago. When she asks what happened to his wife, Mr. Gold can only say that she died. When Mr. Gold's cloak is stolen by William Smee, Mr. Gold wants to get back. He gives her a loaded gun to keep in case she ever needs to use it to protect herself. While Mr. Gold is away, Belle goes back into the library. There she finds a knot left behind from Hook and searches through her books about it. Reading the books, she realizes the knot comes specifically from a ship.

Heading to the harbour, she looks up at the seagulls and is surprised to see one of the lands and stand on something invisible. Suspecting something is there but can't see it, Belle takes a pinch of dust and throws it over, revealing stairs leading up to an invisible ship. She goes up the steps until she passes a barrier that leads her onto the ship's visible deck. Belle opens a door below deck and discovers Archie tied up. She uses a sword to cut him free and urges him to get back to town. Then, she proceeds to rummage around the shelves hoping to find Baelfire's cloak. In her distraction, she had put down the gun, and just then, Hook makes himself known to her. She lunges for the gun, but Hook is faster. He threateningly points the gun at her forehead, and while they converse, he reveals to her a truth Mr. Gold didn't tell her, that he killed Milah by ripping out her heart. Belle still believes in Mr. Gold and asserts that she knows he has changed and has good in him even knowing this. She hits him with a rowing paddle and runs away to the above deck while taking the cloak with her.

Mr. Gold shows up to save Belle and proceeds to beat Hook bloody with his cane. Belle pleads that they should leave, but Mr. Gold can't contain his anger at Hook's presence. Finally, he stops when she reminds him of the hope she had in believing he changed and that if he has, to walk away right now. They leave Hook's ship.

That night, Mr. Gold and Belle are at the town border. He uses the potion on himself and steps to the other side of the borderline while his memory stays intact. Belle is very pleased the potion will allow him to find his son. She promises to wait for him in Storybrooke. The heartfelt moment is interrupted when Belle is suddenly shot and pierced in the shoulder, causing her to trip and fall over the border into Mr. Gold's arms and thus lose her memories. Hook is then revealed to be the shooter, stating that now Gold knows how it feels to lose someone he loves. Mr. Gold yells her name in anguish, but she stares at him in confusion, asking, "Who is Belle?"

She is in a frantic and frightened state after she becomes amnesic. Mr. Gold is worried about her injuries, so he magically heals them. Belle is confused and asks him how he did it. An ambulance arrives at the scene and takes Belle to the hospital. While lying in the hospital bed, Mr. Gold tries to trigger her memory with true love's kiss. It's unsuccessful, and Belle screams at Mr. Gold.

Later, Mr. Gold arrives at the hospital with the chipped cup, which he magically charmed. He gives it to Belle in hopes that she remembers her past from the Enchanted Forest. The plan doesn't work. Belle is confused and unsure when he mentions magic and tries giving the cup back to Mr. Gold, but he insists she tries. Belle becomes angry and throws the cup, shattering it to pieces. She asks him to leave one final time, and Mr. Gold finally leaves her room in tears. For the time, Belle remains in the hospital until she gets a call from Mr. Gold, who tells her that he knows she doesn't remember who she is, but that she was a beautiful woman who loved an ugly man and adds that she creates goodness in people. Belle begins to tear up at his words, but he hangs up before she can respond. She is then visited by Regina, who is displeased to hear Mr. Gold will help her. Thinking quickly, she bends down to pick up an item and instead conjures a little red card of the town bar, The Rabbit Hole, and asks if it belongs to. Though Belle says no, Regina suggests she should take a better look at it. Belle glances down at the card, exclaims she remembers who she is. In reality, Regina gave her false memories to replace the memories she lost as Belle. With the false memories, she assumes a new personality and a new name, Lacey.

In the final episode of Season 2, Grumpy gives Mr. Gold some magic from the Blue Fairy to help restore Belle's memories. Mr. Gold restores the chipped cup and pours the magic into it. Belle drinks from the cup and her memories come back. After Henry Mills is kidnapped Mr. Gold decides to go rescue him and tells Belle to look after Storybrooke while he is gone.

In Season 3, Belle had been appearing to Mr. Gold as a vision to guide him through Neverland, but it's eventually revealed that she is actually Peter Pan's shadow in disguise. Back in Storybrooke, the real Belle has a difficult time accepting that Rumpelstiltskin is gone. Then, with the help of the Dwarfs and the Blue Fairy. She casts a protection spell over the town. Sometime later, Belle meets Ariel. Belle questions Ariel as to why she has come to Storybrooke to which Ariel replies she came from Neverland on a mission for Mr. Gold. Belle is then shocked, and relieved Mr. Gold is alive, and Ariel tells Belle Mr. Gold needs him to save everyone.

The two head goes to Mr. Gold's shop where Belle is able to use the Sand Dollar given to her by Ariel from Mr. Gold to find the item capable of defeating Pan. However, after finding the item which has turned out to be Pandora's Box they are ambushed by John and Michael Darling now working for Pan and the two of them tie Ariel and Belle up and take the item to destroy it. In order to get out of the ropes, Belle removes Ariel's bracelet which allows Ariel to wiggle free from the ropes and undo Belle's bindings. Ariel then puts the bracelet back on and go after John and Michael.

Belle and Ariel find Michael and John just before they destroy the box. Belle is able to stop them by activating a mine cart on the tracks, which throws Michael and John off their feet. Using the time to her advantage, she grabs the box and kicks their gun away. John and Michael tell Ariel and Belle that Pan has Wendy hostage and if they don't do his bidding he will kill her. Ariel and Belle promise they will help save their sister. Ariel and Belle then go to the coast where she parts ways with Belle and returns to Neverland with Pandora's Box.

When Ariel returns to Storybrooke, Belle helps her reunite with Prince Eric. Mr. Gold and Belle also reunite, but it's only for a few days. Pan casts a curse to destroy Storybrooke and its residents, but Gold stops him and disappears. Regina then casts a spell to send everyone from the Enchanted Forest, including Belle, back to the world they came from.

In the Enchanted Forest, Belle and Neal return to the castle try to find a way to bring Rumpelstiltskin back to life. They meet Lumiere in the library, and he tells them they must use a key to open the Vault of the Dark One. When they reach the vault, Lumiere reveals that he has been working under Zelena the Wicked Witch of the West. Baelfire still decides to open the vault despite Belle's warning and his life is exchanged for Rumpelstiltskin’s. A new curse is later cast and everyone in the Enchanted Forest, including Belle, returns to Storybrooke. After a long battle, Zelena is defeated and taken to jail. Belle tells Mr. Gold not to go after Zelena even though she was responsible for his son's death. However, Mr. Gold kills Zelena behind her back, then he and Belle get married.

In the mid-season finale of Season 4, "Heroes and Villains", Belle learns that Gold chose power over love and so uses his dagger and a gauntlet to make him unfreeze Emma and Mary Margaret and give Hook his heart back. The two then go to the town line where Gold tries to apologize, but Belle doesn't believe him and that he won't ever change and then uses the dagger to banish Gold from Storybrooke. Gold cries out for Belle as she cries over what she has done.

When Gold returns to Storybrooke he stops by the pawnshop and sees that Belle has gotten together with Will Scarlet. Later, to get the dagger back from Belle he takes Hook's appearance and tricks her into giving it to him. Soon Gold, as Hook, goes into the pawnshop and asks her if she is over Gold. She says no but says that Will makes her happy.

As Gold's condition worsens, being consumed by the Dark One's powers, Belle confesses to him that she doesn't love Will. The Apprentice removes the darkness from Gold's heart, though he remains in a comatose state while the darkness is taken in by Emma Swan.

With the other residents, Belle transports to the Enchanted Forest, taking Emma to Camelot in order to find Merlin and remove her darkness. However, weeks later, they return to Storybrooke with missing memories as to how they failed. During her time in Camelot, she helped Merida win back her kingdom while helping the others stop King Arthur and the previous Dark Ones from taking over Storybrooke.

After her memory is restored, Belle remained in Storybrooke but is unaware that Gold, who travelled with Emma to the Underworld to rescue Hook, has reclaimed the powers of the Dark One, and is unaware that she is pregnant with their first child, which is tied to a contract that Hades is using due to Rumpelstiltskin having made a deal with a healer back in the Enchanted Forest in exchange for saving Baelfire. Unfortunately, after she is sent through a portal along with Zelena and her daughter, Belle learns the truth from Gold about his reacquired powers and her pregnancy as well as the contract, putting her life and that of their unborn child in jeopardy once again. Motivated by Hades, Gaston moves against Rumpelstiltskin with plans to kill him, reuniting Belle with her ex-fiancé. After confronting Gold about his murder of Gaston decades earlier, Belle intends to help Gaston move on, only to learn that Gaston blames her for his death. In an attempt to rescue Rumpelstiltskin, Belle inadvertently pushes Gaston into the River of Lost Souls. Consumed with guilt over what she did to Gaston, Belle places herself under a sleeping curse, believing it would give Gold time to protect their child from Hades. Before falling under, Belle makes a Gold promise to return her to her father. It later turns out that Gold's kiss of True Love can't break the spell; Belle had begun losing faith in him again. Later in a dream, Belle's future son, Gideon, helps Belle wake up from the curse. However, the Black Fairy speeds up Belle's pregnancy and kidnaps Gideon. Eventually, the Black Fairy is defeated, Belle forgives Rumpelstiltskin for all of his wrong-doings and Gideon is able to restart his life. Belle, Rumpelstiltskin, and Gideon then spend many happy years together in another realm and when Belle becomes very old, she dies peacefully. Rumpelstiltskin then begins searching for the Guardian so he can be free from the Darkness and reunite with Belle in the afterlife.

In his search for the Guardian, Rumpelstiltskin goes to the Magical Forest and meets Alice, a Guardian. He brings her to Belle's coffin, where she begins destroying the Dark One's dagger with her magic, but Rumpelstiltskin, not wanting her to absorb the Darkness, tackles her, restoring the Dagger and ruining his chance to reunite with Belle. A new Dark Curse is later cast, and Rumpelstiltskin is sent to Hyperion Heights. After his memories return and both Mother Gothel and Dr. Facilier are defeated, Rumpelstiltskin travels to the Wish Realm where he takes out his own heart in order to save the dying Wish Realm Hook by giving it to him, which destroys the evil Rumpelstiltskin from that realm. Rumpelstiltskin then dies and is happily reunited with Belle in the afterlife.

### Descendants

Belle appears in the Disney Channel Original Movie Descendants.

She and the Human Beast serve as the parents of the major character, Ben. Sometime after breaking the curse on her Prince, she and the Beast became the King and Queen of the idyllic kingdom of The United States of Auradon, one large kingdom uniting all the famous kingdoms, set in the present day, and inhabited by various iconic Disney characters and their children. When Ben, who is soon to be King, states he wants to grant the children of the Isle of the Lost a second chance as his first proclamation, she is understandably worried, but she remains supportive of her son's endeavours and pushes her husband to do so as well.

### Beauty and the Beast

Belle appears in the 2017 live-action adaptation. In this version, Belle isn't only a bookworm, but also an inventor, she uses her inventions for everyday chores such as laundry, which in turn provides her with time to catch up on her reading. Her backstory with Maurice is also expanded upon, as this version of the story confirms that the death of Belle's mother was the result of the black plague, forcing Maurice to take Belle (who was still an infant at the time) and flee Paris for safer havens towards the town of Villeneuve in the French countryside. As a result of his wife's passing, Maurice is somewhat overprotective of Belle and has reservations over her dreams of experiencing adventure within the outside world. As such, he created music boxes that represent different countries to allow her to "see the world" without actually having to leave their provincial town of Villeneuve.[3] The fate of her mother (with her father's vague response on the former), left Belle puzzled and led her to seek out for answers; something that she would not discover for many years later, upon her time with the Beast, which he later showed her through a book given by the Enchantress as a means of traveling anywhere it desires, which she used it to transport them toward her childhood home in Paris and found out her mother's tragic fate, causing the Beast to realize his misjudgement of Maurice and made an apology to Belle for his earlier mistreatment to her father. The discovery of her mother's tragedy would be crucial for having Maurice and Belle making amends with each other, with Belle's widen understanding of why Maurice was so overly protective of her.

Belle is introduced in the opening of the film, singing the musical number named after her. While exploring the surrounding landscape, the people all seem to show interest in her. Encountering Gaston, he requests her to go on a date with him, to which Belle decides not to. Belle walks into her father Maurice in his workshop just as Maurice explains to Belle that the village is small, which is safer than larger villages and after a conversation between Belle and her father, Belle asks him for a rose like the one in his painting just as Maurice storms off to the marketplace to find a rose for her. As Maurice leaves, Belle returns to the village around her, teaching a nearby girl how to read, to which she then approaches Gaston again who tells her to give advice to the villagers, explaining to her that she would never marry him even though the village around Belle's world is small. After the conversation, Belle sings a reprise of the song named after her, longing for a great adventure in the world around her.

When Philippe arrives towards Belle, the horse is worried that he recently discovered something mysterious her father Maurice encountered, causing Belle to ride on him to get to the Beast's Castle. Arriving there, Belle encounters Lumiere and Cogsworth, who are commenting about Belle's plan to break the curse. Belle uses Lumiere as a torch to protect herself in order to find her father. Encountering Maurice, he warns her to escape before the Beast finds her. Belle then asks the Beast to find her father, to which the Beast denies her father's actions. Approaching the Beast, Belle spends a minute alone with the Beast, requesting him to see her father just as Belle notices the Beast taking her father away. Afterward, Lumiere escorts Belle to her room, who later introduces himself to Belle, just as Cogsworth approaches his conversation with Belle.

While exploring outside, Lumiere tells Belle that she can explore any part of the castle except for the west wing just as Belle is taken to her new room in the castle, to which it is known that the castle is now her new home just as Belle encounters Plumette, Madame De Garderobe, and Froufrou inside her new room as she encounters them in awe.

The Beast then requests Belle for a dinner invitation in the dining area, but she rejects his offer for locking her in the tower. She later gets an invitation from Mrs. Potts to go to the dining area, explaining that she would feel better after dinner just as Belle is told to go to dinner to which Belle is taken to the dining area where Lumiere and the other objects perform the musical number "Be Our Guest" in front of Belle, satisfying her.

After the musical number "Be Our Guest", Mrs. Potts talks to Belle, telling her that the Beast is willing to be set free by finding someone to fall in love with. After talking to Mrs. Potts, she tells her son to go to bed. Belle then looks at the damaged picture of the royal family's castle and arrives at the spot where the Enchanted Rose is at, only for the Beast to confront her as he angrily roars at her to get out of the castle. Belle then plans to leave, but Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, and Froufrou try to stop Belle from leaving, but Belle leaves. Escaping, Belle rides on Philippe while a pack of wolves prepares to attack. The Beast then arrives and fights against the pack of wolves, shooing away the wolves. Belle comforts over the injured Beast as he is taken to the castle, where he is told to help her only if he controls his temper. While taking care of the Beast, Mrs. Potts tells Belle the Beast about his tragic loss of his mother and having to be raised by his abusive father just as the Beast calms himself while resting. Later after singing the musical number "Days in the Sun", Lumiere explains to Belle that if the last petal falls, the Prince will remain a Beast forever and the castle residents become inanimate objects.

With the Beast healed, he takes Belle to the library as she looks at the library around her in excitement. Later, Belle and the Beast walk outside together just as the couple looks at the frozen lake around them. Belle then teaches the Beast how to be gentle to Philippe and later sings the musical number "Something There" just as she and the Beast start a relationship with them. Later, Belle thanks the Beast for saving her from the wolves just as Belle talks to him about the villagers thinking Belle is funny. Back at the library, the Beast shows Belle a book from the Enchantress related to the curse she cast on her. Belle later takes the Beast into Paris, where she sings to him that her childhood in Paris is gone just as she remembers her tragic flashback about her mother who died from the plague just as the Beast apologizes to her for calling her a thief.

Belle wears a ball gown at the Beast's castle while the Beast wears a formal suit just as she and the Beast dance together during the musical number "Beauty and the Beast" as Mrs. Potts sings in front of the dancing couple.

Belle tells the Beast that her father taught her how to dance as the couple arrives at the balcony. Showing empathy to Belle, the Beast gives her the Enchanted Mirror to Belle help her find her father. Upon seeing Maurice being attacked by an angry mob, Belle is tasked to find her father and rescue her.

As Belle leaves the castle to find her father, Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, and Plumette are worried about Belle planning to find her father just as they all leave sadly, as the Beast sings the musical number "Evermore". Belle walks across Gaston in front of Maurice who is being threatened just as Belle shows proof about the Beast to the townspeople. During this moment, Belle finds out that Gaston betrayed her about the Beast being a hideous monster as Gaston is aggressively planning to kill the Beast as Belle is locked into the carriage. Afterwards, Gaston sends an angry mob to kill the Beast. Belle and Maurice plan to escape the carriage in an attempt to warn the Beast that Gaston has sent in the mob to kill him. Belle then rides on Philippe to return to the castle.

Arriving back at the Castle, Belle notices Gaston hurting the Beast just as Gaston tries to finish his plan to kill the Beast. After the Beast reunites with Belle, she comforts him after being injured. Gaston, however, falls to his death while Belle tries to protect the Beast. Belle ends up crying over the Beast's motionless body as the last petal falls.

As the last petal falls, Agathe arrives at the spot where Belle cries over the Beast's dead body as Agathe uses her magic to restore the Enchanted Rose as the Beast is transformed back into his normal form, the Prince whom Belle manages to recognize as her beloved by looking into his eyes before sharing a kiss with him. With the spell broken and the castle fixed, the Prince and Belle dance in the ballroom with the other castle residents.

## Other Appearances

In 1992, Belle made an animated/live-action appearance at the 64th Academy Awards ceremony where she, along with Beast and Chip, awarded Daniel Greaves the Oscar for Short Film (Animated) for Manipulation.[1]

Belle makes a cameo appearance in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. During the song "Out There", Belle is seen walking through the streets reading her book.

In a special trailer for Lilo & Stitch, Belle and Beast were seen engaging in the famous ballroom dance when Stitch is seen on the chandelier, causing it to tear loose from the ceiling and come crashing down, thus tarnishing Belle and Beast's dance, though Beast is able to get Belle out of harm's way. Their romantic moment ruined thanks to Stitch, Belle then storms off to her room in a huff telling Stitch to get his own movie.

Belle made a cameo appearance as a silhouette with Beast, Mrs. Potts, and Chip at the end of The Lion King 1½.

Belle makes a cameo appearance along with Beast in the Mickey Mouse episode "The Adorable Couple". Belle appears in the Elena of Avalor episodes First Day of Rule, Model Sister and Coronation Day.

Originally, when the first instalment of Disney Princess Enchanted Tales was to be released, it was to feature a new Belle story and a brand new Fa Mulan story. The first chapter was entitled "The Kingdom Of Kindness". The plot of Belle's story featured Chip getting in trouble with the Beast after breaking some of his things. Terrified, Chip runs away. Belle finds him and convinces him to come back to the castle and teaches Beast what it means to be kind. She also teaches Chip that even when people are mad at him, it still means they love him. Only one known song has been written for Belle, this song is called "You'll Never Lose This Love" and is available to watch on the Enchanted Tales Website.[2]

An emoticon version of Belle appears in the Beauty and the Beast entry of the As Told by Emoji short series.

In the series finale of At Home With Olaf, a short clip of Beauty and the Beast featuring Belle and the Beast appears during a montage of heart-warming moments from Disney films playing in Olaf's song "I Am with You".

## Printed Media

### The New Adventures of Beauty and the Beast

This comic serial took place a few years before the events of the first film, with both stories being reprinted in Disney Princess Comics Treasury.

In the first issue, in a flashback during the first storyline, "Bewitched", Belle briefly witnessed the Prince being unkind to an old lady, resulting in her asking her father whether men are all monsters. In the second storyline, "Bothered", she learns from Maurice that their pet pig, Pierre, was an essential component to a truffle harvester before he tells her to put her King Arthur book away, so she can play outside with the other village children. Belle attempts to refuse, citing that she has more enjoyment imagining King Arthur's court. Ultimately, she did go out, resulting in her being reluctantly forced into becoming the "galley prisoner" by several boys playing pirates. She attempted to get out, only to find a bear (implied to actually be the Enchantress in disguise) snarling and about to attack her. She eventually was unintentionally rescued by Maurice with a test run with the Truffle Harvester. Belle later makes an appearance in the ending of the third storyline, "Bewildered", as a reflection on the enchanted mirror.

In the second issue's first storyline, "Elsewhere", she and Maurice were on their way back from the fair (not being allowed to participate after one of Maurice's inventions ripped the dress of one of the judge's wives). She eventually got curious about a path and went down it despite her father's insistence that she does not go down that path. She managed to find an owl, which Maurice attempted to capture for one of his new ideas, although it disappeared despite capturing it. They then fled after finding a wolf nearby (both the wolf and the owl were implied to be the Enchantress in disguise). Belle noted she had a funny feeling she'll eventually go down that path in an act of foreshadowing.

### Beauty and the Beast (Marvel Comics)

This comic serial took place during Belle's stay at Beast's castle, similar to the midquels above.

In the First Issue, while looking for the book Lost at Sea, she heard the Beast roaring (which nearly got an animated Ladder to drop her due to fright, also implying that this wasn't the first time Beast made a huge roar). Belle then spent her time reading the book until Chip and Mrs. Potts (after the former had to loudly interrupt her reading) informed her of Beast's rising temper and foul mood, which is nearly spoiling the planned surprise party for the Wardrobe. Belle then decided to tell Beast just what she thinks of him. After telling the Beast off, the latter admitted that he was in a foul mood because he had woken up from a dream about becoming handsome and discovering he was still ugly. Belle then assured him that it was the inside that counts, not the outside. Belle then offered to have Beast come down to aid with Wardrobe's surprise party, with Beast, after initially refusing, deciding to do so for Belle.

The second issue picks up right where the first issue left off. Belle tells him to be gracious, at least during the Wardrobe's surprise party when the Beast snaps for his dinner. During the actual dinner, however, Belle reacted with disgust when Beast ended up chowing down the meal like an animal. Sometime later, Belle thanked Lumiere for the soup and planned to have the rest of dinner by the fire, although after Beast snapped at her to stay at the table, she then sternly told Beast that she'll stay only if he eats with a utensil and not slurp the meal (which Beast did reluctantly). Belle then was horrified that Beast (who had second thoughts to attending the party anyway) demanded the party be cancelled when he learned the Wardrobe wasn't coming down, and instead suggested that she go upstairs and try to convince Wardrobe to come down as the servants worked very hard for it. Belle then learned the Wardrobe wouldn't come down because she was depressed as, being a wardrobe, she viewed herself as useless as she had plenty of dresses and no one to wear them. She then offered to try on one of the dresses, and then deliberately left behind the tiara to lure the wardrobe downstairs for the surprise party. She then watched the opera.

The third issue occurs the morning after the party, Belle proceeded to go for a walk on the grounds, alone, despite the servant's suggestions that someone accompanies her. While walking on the grounds, Belle accidentally bumped into the Beast (who had secretly gone outside in an attempt to walk with her at the servants' suggestion), which ended up spoiling the event with them getting into a severe argument. Eventually, they made up and decided to play with the leaves and snow. Aside from this, one of the Bimbettes, Laurette, disguised herself as Belle in a wife auction organized by Gaston, fully anticipating that Gaston would want Belle. She then pretended that she fully submitted to what Gaston wanted in a wife, but then her disguise was spoiled by her sisters (not realizing that "Belle" was actually Laurette). Although Gaston was initially upset at this outcome, he eventually forgave it, and figured Belle may have simply not been aware of what happened.

Belle and Beast on the cover of one of Marvel's Beauty and the Beast comic stories.

The fourth issue picks up right where the third issue's Belle story left off. Lumiere planned to have Belle and Beast attend the Glorious Harvest Gala Festival, even writing invitations for them. However, although Belle got her invitation, Beast's invitation ended up blown into the fire and burned. She later learned of this when Chip opened the window enough for Lumiere and Cogsworth's loud blame game to pierce her reading in an attempt to warn her of what happened (with Belle assuming that Beast threw the letter into the fire). She then told off the Beast for burning the letter and implied that she misjudged Beast, although she eventually learned that the reason why Beast did so was that he couldn't read the letter even if he wanted to, having long forgotten how to do so. Belle then offered to teach him to do so, and then attended with him the Gala Festival, having supper, and then offering to have her look at the stars.

The fifth issue has Belle teaching Beast how to read. However, the difficulty ended up frustrating Beast to a huge extent, causing them to have a huge argument and resulting in Belle storming off. Belle then mentioned the complexity of the Beast's dual nature and commented that she wished that she was back at the village (then flashing back to the beginning of the film).

The sixth issue picks off where the fifth issue left off: Belle, after reading a book, comments it's great to have a library, so she could go off on adventures, even if it's her imagination and pities the Beast for keeping himself locked up in the castle and his mind, being too stubborn to let her teach him how to read. She then got a message from Lumiere from the Beast, although she eventually deduced that Lumiere actually composed the Beast's message for the Beast and not the Beast himself. She then thanked Beast for his thoughtfulness but would appreciate it more if Beast himself actually wrote the poem. Beast was reluctant since he wasn't a poet. Eventually, after Beast unconsciously began to do poetry, she then let Beast attempt to read when he requested it.

The seventh issue starts with a daydream by Belle about a time at the village where she helped Maurice fix up an egg-sorting contraption just as the latter was about to give up due to it failing and resulting in eggs splattering, citing her confidence in him. After successfully fixing it up, Maurice then notes that a dove was nearby, meaning that their lives will get better. She then is in her room, mentioning she misses him. Afterward, she agrees to play with Chip in the snow (as everyone else was too busy to do so with Chip). She then taught him how to build a snowman, and eventually decided with Chip to get holly bushes to help prepare for Christmas. Unfortunately, the blizzard unexpectedly gets worse, with Belle and Chip eventually getting lost in the forest and thus unable to return to the castle due to the severity of the storm.

The eighth issue picks up where the seventh issue left off. Belle, lost in the storm, offered to tell Chip a story about her past as a way to keep themselves awake and thus avoid freezing to death, although she eventually passes out. Luckily, the bushels managed to hit Beast as he was searching for her, resulting in him tracking down her location and saving her and Chip in time. She then learned Beast tended to her side and never moved, with her thanking him. Beast then thanked her for saving his life as she taught him that his life wasn't "meaningless" after all. In her flashback, Belle and Maurice, with their egg-sorting contraption, went out of the village to the fair. However, they eventually got themselves lost (due to the Bimbettes switching the sign to go the other way to deliberately get Belle off the course). They just barely managed to get to the fair (after Maurice deduced they were actually supposed to go South, not North), and also won as a last-minute entry. She then returned to the village with Maurice, with Gaston greeting them (to the Bimbettes' chagrin).

In the ninth issue, because of guilt for rarely saving her and Chip, Beast had her stay in bed and make breakfast in bed for her. However, this eventually proved unnecessary due to Belle having fully recovered and coming downstairs to thank Beast. Belle then offered to do something in return for Beast, with the servants planning to make a portrait of her. She changed her various outfits and eventually settled on a pink outfit, thanks to Beast's compliment earlier. However, during the painting process, she had a sad look that Beast and Chip noticed when the painting was unveiled (it's strongly implied her melancholy was due to homesickness, more specifically, her missing her father).

In the tenth issue, occurring the next day, Belle ended up playing in the snow with Chip (as she had promised to play with him in the snow again after a day passed), although while gazing at the sky, she saw a dove and began to feel sad for her father again. She then had a snowball fight with Chip, accidentally striking Beast (who was on his way to converse with Belle to figure out how he can make her feel better after getting the hint from the portrait earlier that she was melancholic) on the muzzle with a snowball. She apologized to Beast, and after a comment from Chip about getting Hollies, inadvertently supplied Beast with the idea to decorate the castle with lots of hollies to make her feel better. Belle then, after dinner, discovered Beast's decorations after Beast led her to them.

In the eleventh issue, set an unspecified time after the prior issue, Belle was reading with Beast in the library when she discovered it was a bit chilly, and eventually discovered the cause was because the door was ajar. However, she then discovered that because of the earlier snowstorm, her favourite book was ruined. Her devastation was made even worse when Beast obliviously insulted her book in an attempt to make her feel better, leaving without a word while crying to herself and also being unwilling to eat at dinner with the Beast. She also explained to the Wardrobe what the story was about, with the Wardrobe also explaining that before books, there were storytellers, with Belle acknowledging that nothing can take it away from her.

In the twelfth issue, picking up where the prior issue left off, Belle expressed some uncertainty about the Beast, especially given his inconsistent nature, and is struggling to understand him. Later, Belle finds the Beast arriving at the library, and he attempts to tell her something. However, before the Beast could begin to explain, the Wardrobe (who decided to make an opera thanks to what Belle told her earlier) basically started an opera in the library, causing Beast to skulk off. Belle then pursued him and tried to find out what he wanted to tell her, and he revealed he had repaired her favourite book and apologized for the earlier comment.

In the thirteenth and final issue, Belle helped prepare a cherry pie for dessert for a meal she and Beast were having, to thank him for repairing the book earlier. She later put it on the windowsill for it to cool off after it was done being baked. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to her, Sultan, while jumping in and out of the window while forced outside by the servants, ruined the dessert, and proceeded to eat it up. Despite this and Beast and her learning the bad news, Beast wasn't the least bit upset, and in fact, was touched that Belle even made him dessert in the first place. As a result, she and the Beast shared a moment near the fireplace, with the servants witnessing it.

Besides the main comic serial, the fifth issue for the anthology series Disney Comic Hits! had her as a child sledding alongside Gaston and the Bimbettes, suggesting that she had initially been friends with Gaston and the Bimbettes prior to the events of the first film and that Belle may have moved to the village when she was very young (at least around Chip's age, according to her). She also ended up being given by Beast a sleigh ride as her Christmas present, with it being implied that Chip suggested the present to him.

### Disney Adventures

Belle appeared in at least two stories for Disney Adventures magazine, both being in the Twelfth Volume:

In the first story, Time Flies! Belle informed an agitated Cogsworth that dinner was only a few hours away (as he was under the belief that dinner was actually supposed to happen by that point and the staff was late), and then discovered the cause at the wrong time: Cogsworth's wind up key was stolen as a prank (revealed to be by Lumiere). This story was later reprinted in Disney Princess Comics Treasury.

In the second story, Sittin' Pretty!, Belle made an appearance in the ending of the comic, where she was amused at the servants' attempts to give Beast a makeover, noting he looked ridiculous, as well as adorable, catching Beast off-guard. Beast also went through the makeover because he was ranting about how Belle can love him when he looks hideous.

### Kilala Princess

In the manga series Kilala Princess, the main characters Kilala, Prince Rei, and Princess Sylphy enter the world of "Beauty and the Beast" looking for magical gems to activate the Magic Tiara's power and awaken the princess within Kilala. When Belle first meets them, Kilala immediately asks to shake her hand. They become fast friends, and Belle asks the Beast to let them stay in the castle and work. Sylphy's egocentric attitude initially makes it unbearable for everyone, but it improves over time. When Cogsworth accidentally loses the pocket watch that the Beast planned to give to Belle, Kilala and Rei go into town to find it. Though they manage to retrieve the watch, in a broken condition, the amber stored inside is stolen by Gaston.

The Beast remains unaware of this incident, and when it breaks in his hand, he bursts out angrily and hides in his room. In order to cheer him up, Kilala, Rei, and Sylphy steal back the lost gem from Gaston. Kilala then tells him why he wanted to give Belle the watch in the first place, and that it doesn't matter if the gift is broken. Belle accepts the broken watch and gives the gem to Kilala as a token of gratitude and turns into a gem of the Magic Tiara. She is last seen witnessing Kilala receive her own gem: an emerald.

### The Beast Within: A Tale of Beauty's Prince

Belle appears in Serena Valentino's novel "The Beast Within" with a much-reduced role. She first appears at a ball thrown by the Prince, where he is drawn to her but is discouraged to do so by Gaston, who mentions that she is the daughter of a crazy inventor and that all she talks about is books. Inspired by this, the Prince then goes to a prettier girl named Tulip, whom he decides to marry. Later, she appears in events that are canon to the film, however, the wolves are sent by the sisters of the Enchantress, who desire to kill her so the Prince will remain a beast forever. However, in having the Beast save Belle, they inadvertently set into motion the events that lead to the Beast's redemption and his and Belle's happily ever after.

### Royal Weddings

In this book featuring the wedding between Belle and the Prince, Belle decided that, since the Prince had spent time unloved during the curse, she might also do something to show the Prince is indeed loved. She then secretly invited the village to the wedding. During the ceremony, she then received a book from the Prince, so they could "write their future adventures together".

## Disney Parks

### Disneyland Resort

At Disneyland, Belle can be spotted on a float in Mickey's Soundsational Parade. At the Fantasy Faire, Belle tells her tale with help from Lumiere, Mister Smythe, and Mister Jones in the Royal Theater.

Belle appears in the original version of World of Color in Disney California Adventure. She appears in the opening during the theme of the show shown ball dancing with Beast. She later appears starting the show's finale as she confesses her love for Beast, and he transforms into a handsome prince.

Belle is also prominently featured in Paint the Night parade, as part of a Princess-themed float, alongside Cinderella and Rapunzel.

Belle also frequently appears for meet-and-greets, both in her blue and gold dresses. More recently, though, the blue dress has been the only one seen due to the gold dress causing back issues to cast members.

### Walt Disney World Resort

In the former show held at the Magic Kingdom, Storytime with Belle, Belle would tell her story to an audience, some of which were chosen to act as characters in the story. The show then became part of the attraction, Enchanted Tales with Belle. In the same park, she can be seen making daily appearances in the first float of the Festival of Fantasy Parade.

Belle has her own spell card in the attraction Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom known as "Belle's Mountain Blizzard".

In Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage at Disney's Hollywood Studios, Belle appears and plays out her same role as in the film. In the same park, Belle can also be found in Fantasmic!, during the princess-themed medley. It also appeared at Disneyland Park (Paris) until 1997.

For meet-and-greets, she has made appearances with Gaston in the Magic Kingdom's New Fantasyland and alone at Epcot's World Showcase around the France pavilion. Most of the time, she's seen in her blue peasant dress. However, during Epcot's Festival of the Holidays, she'll wear her red and gold dress from The Enchanted Christmas.

### Tokyo Disney Resort

Belle is featured towards the end of Once Upon a Time, where she and Beast share a dance before the latter is attacked by Gaston. After Gaston's death, Belle is present to witness the Beast's transformation into a human. Belle and Beast also appear as the centrepiece for the Beauty and the Beast unit of Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade: DreamLights.

### Disneyland Paris

In Paris, she, who presented by Rosie and Louis, holds a mask while entering The Starlit Princess Waltz as part of the 25th Anniversary, and its 2019 Christmas season, The Royal Sparkling Winter Waltz. Princesses hold fans and switch them and dance with Beast/Adam and princes.

At the Walt Disney Studios Park, Belle appears in Mickey and the Magician, sharing a ballroom waltz with Beast during Lumiere's segment of the show.

### Hong Kong Disneyland

Belle is featured in the Flights of Fantasy Parade, along with the other Princesses on the Swan airboat, called Romance Takes Wing. She has also featured in the Paint the Night Parade as part of a Beauty and the Beast-themed float.

### Shanghai Disneyland

Belle is featured on the Beauty and the Beast display in Voyage to the Crystal Grotto. A statue depicting Belle and Beast can also be found in the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel.

### Disney Cruise Line

In Believe aboard the Disney Dream, Belle appears alongside Mrs. Potts in Lumiere's segment of the show.

## Disney Princess

Belle's popularity and strong characterization led her to become a member of the Disney Princess franchise.

### Redesign

Belle received many changes in her late 2012 redesign.

Her gown now possesses the same gold colour from the film instead of the yellow colour in the previous franchise, however, the bottom half is now decorated with glittery designs of roses.

The off-the-shoulder part of the dress is made of cream-colored organza and pinned in the front by three pearls of varying sizes. Her evening gloves match the colour and material of the dress's shoulders.

In early redesigns, Belle's sleeves were covering her shoulders instead of revealing them.

### Palace Pets

Belle's Palace Pets are Teacup, Petit, Rouge, Booksy, Page, and Lacy.