#potentially longer per the live-action version (which is crap but does answer more questions)

[marzipanandminutiae]

pet peeve

the ice-cold Take that “well, Belle and the Prince will probably get executed in the French Revolution!!!!”

the original novel was published 50 years before the Revolution even started

so like. assuming they both live to be 70-something, and the French populace still feels the need to revolt in a world where the reigning monarch- or the reigning monarch’s father or grandfather -learned not to be a selfish dick from a fairy’s curse, sure, that MIGHT be an issue. pretty big “might,” though

people really do see “17-″ at the start of a year in French media and jump right to a specific 10-year period at the very end of the century, don’t they

(I’m more interested in the possibility that the United States might not exist in this universe, because the ruler of France is too concerned about getting their country through difficult financial times to get involved in a foreign war. since, you know...either taught not to be a selfish dick via curse, as stated above, or raised by someone who was)

[something-tofightfor]

I really hope Ben stays away from anything live action Disney. He needs something better. I’m not digging this Darkling crap. I wish he had a better agent and better decisions with his career. He has so much potential to win awards and make great films/series.

Short answer: He’s going do do what he wants because as an actor. He’s made a name for himself and has earned the right to take/try out for the roles that he wants… and as fans, all we can do is sit back and watch, even when we disagree. I don’t think there’s any actor or actress that I can think of that I enjoy that has taken on GREAT roles every step of the way… but I’ll agree that this is frustrating for me.

Longer answer: I agree. I think that Disney live action movies are a waste of time. The Jungle Book was incredible, and the CGI/cast were phenomenal, but I feel like everything since has been super lackluster… specifically Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King. I’m not sure why they feel the need to remake every single movie into a ‘live action’ version… it’s unnecessary, CLEARLY a cash grab (because the originals are still incredible and classics and don’t NEED to be updated). As much as I love Ben, and think he looks SUPER YOUNG … the story of Rapunzel is meant to be about an 18 year old girl. Ben is nowhere near 18. Pairing him with a girl in a love story that is MEANT to be 18 is not a good choice. Voice acting is one thing - because it’s cartoon characters and older voices… but that’s not what live action is. I already have an issue with the age difference between The Darkling and Alina in S&B (or, I guess I should say what I THINK the age difference will be onscreen, because who knows WTF they’re going to do there) … and two projects in a row like that would be hard to take. I think that a huge issue with fancasting (especially with him) is that people don’t care about the character in question per se, they just want to see an actor or an actress that they like in a specific part. For example… Ben as Sirius. The pictures that people seem to always use for this are literally more than a decade old - he looks different now He’s not 26. He’s not Caspian age anymore. They get it in their heads that someone is PERFECT for a part, and then even if it doesn’t make logical sense at the present time, won’t let it go. (Batman, Flynn, Sirius, The Darkling …. but LB got her wish 8 years later) 

He does have a lot of potential, but at the same time, he’s only able to work with the scripts that he has available, as well as with the studios that will allow him to audition for the parts they provide him. He seems to be having fun on set with the S&B cast, but unfortunately, when he’s out in large groups (at that dinner, in the dance party video) it’s painfully clear that there is an age gap between him and the rest of the main cast. I don’t want that for him, (not that what I want matters, but) and would love to see him do something else in the vein of Gold Digger (which I enjoyed a hell of a lot more than I thought I would) or even Jackie and Ryan or Westworld. 

He hasn’t made a movie since J&R, and that’s a damn shame. I know he had to switch agents/reps early 2019 because his old agent quit, and it seems like whoever he’s working with now has been working hard to keep his name relevant… but again, doing the SAME convention twice in the span of 7 months, not doing ANY smaller more intimate conventions in the United States, or outside of Europe? It makes no sense. He has so many fans in other areas of the world, it just seems like he’s really limiting himself in both the way he presents himself to people at events like conventions and with the roles he takes/tries out for/focuses on, and I’m curious as to why. He owes the fans nothing, and I have to hand it to him - he seems to be super focused on making sure that everyone that meets him/that he works with gets the attention that he feels they deserve… but that doesn’t mean that I want to see him languishing away in mediocre roles for the rest of his career, however long that may be. 

Thanks for your message!