Beauty and the Beast (1991 film) servants' human forms. The Prince and Belle host a ball for the kingdom, where they dance happily. After the success of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" in 1937, Walt Disney sought out other stories to adapt into feature films, with "Beauty and the Beast" being among the stories he considered. Attempts to develop the "Beauty and the Beast" story into a film were made in the 1930s and 1950s, but were ultimately given up because it "proved to be a challenge" for the story team. Peter M. Nichols states Disney may later have been discouraged by Jean Cocteau having
Beauty and the Beast (1991 film) Beast" was the most successful animated Disney film release, and the first animated film to reach $100 million in the United States and Canada in its initial run.<ref name="http://www.thetech.org/about-us/media-room/disneys-animated-beauty-and-beast-celebrates-10th-anniversary-worldwide-large"></ref> In its IMAX re-release, it earned $25.5 million in North America and $5.5 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $31 million. It also earned $9.8 million from its 3D re-release overseas. During the opening weekend of its North American 3D re-release in 2012, "Beauty and the Beast" grossed $17.8 million, coming in at the No. 2 spot, behind "Contraband", and achieved the highest opening weekend for an animated