One scene in the live-action Beauty and the Beast seemed to tease a Hunchback of Notre Dame spinoff in the works, but it had been debunked when the rumors were coming out. However, news has just come out that Disney is indeed moving forward with the Hunchback film.
According to Deadline, playwright David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly) has been hired by Disney to write a live-action script for the film. Alan Menken, who wrote music for the original animated film, will also write music for this live-action version.
What's more, Beauty and the Beast star Josh Gad is being rumored for the lead role of Quasimodo.
Personally, Hunchback of Notre Dame is one of my favorite Disney movies, and I love it not only because of the fantastic music but also because of the incredibly dark themes that it explores. I bet you couldn't find another Disney movie where the main villain is motivated by lust just like Judge Frollo.
Personally, I wouldn't pick Gad as the lead for this film. He's already made his mark playing Gaston's second fiddle in Beauty and the Beast, and I've never really seen him play a role as emotional as that of Quasimodo.
Then again, he could still pull it off. People didn't think Heath Ledger would be an amazing Joker, but look where we are now. As long as Gad can do justice to Out There, I'll be fine.
No release date has been set for The Hunchback of Notre Dame but I'm guessing it could be sometime between 2020 and 2021.