Did you spot the hidden tribute to Walt Disney in Beauty and the Beast?
It's subtle, but the production and set designers hid a special homage in the Beast's castle
As Belle and the Beast waltzed around the castle in the new live-action movie, did you spot anything interesting about the floor? Did you perhaps make out, at the centre of the room, the swirling initials: W.D.?
It turns out there's a secret hidden within the palace (as well as, er, the obvious one about the Beast and the curse and the rose).
Production designed Sarah Greenwood has revealed that, along with her set designer Kate Spencer and their team, she decided to discretely pay homage to the man who started it all – Walt Disney.
Of course it had to be subtle, but if you look closely that's the W from Walt's signature overlaid with a swirly D. Compare and contrast:
The floor of the castle itself was made from 12,000 square feet of faux marble, and was based on a pattern from the ceiling of a Benedictine Abbey in the Czech Republic.
And the W.D. on the floor? Greenwood revealed it was "quiet homage to Walt Disney." It's the little touches that make the magic.
Authors
