The success of the original 1991 American animated feature, Beauty and the Beast, directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, led to three direct-to-video follow-up films, a live-action spin-off television series, a Disney World stage show, a Disney World restaurant, a trackless dark ride, several video games, merchandise, and the 10th longest-running musical in Broadway history, which was nominated for nine Tony Awards, winning for Best Costume Design.

[1] The plot of the film is based on the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast by Jeanne-Marie Le Prince de Beaumont.

In 2002, Beauty and the Beast was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

[5] It was directed by Cullen Blaine, Daniel de la Vega, Barbara Dourmashkin, Dale Kase, Bob Kline, Burt Medall, and Mitch Rochon.

[7] It is set during the original film, and was released in part to help promote Disney Channel's television series, Sing Me a Story with Belle.

[citation needed] A live-action remake of Disney's 1991 animated feature film of the same name was released in March 2017, directed by Bill Condon.

[15] The rest of the cast featured Josh Groban, Joshua Henry, Rita Moreno, Martin Short, Shania Twain, and David Alan Grier as the Beast, Gaston, the narrator, Lumière, Mrs. Potts, and Cogsworth, respectively.

[16][17] Paige O'Hara and Richard White, the original voices of Belle and Gaston, respectively, and composer Alan Menken made cameos in the special.

[41] The original Beauty and the Beast film, as well as the stage musical and live-action remake, have received overwhelmingly positive feedback.