Luke Evans to play Gaston in Disney's "Beauty and the Beast"

Meet the new Gaston.

Luke Evans is in negotiations to play the self-obsessed, big-biceped villain in Disney's live-action retelling of "Beauty and the Beast," Variety reported Wednesday.

Emma Watson is playing Belle in the film, which is being directed by Bill Condon ("The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn") from a script written by Evan Spiliotopoulos with rewrites by Steve Chbosky.

Production is reported to begin later this year, with no release date currently set.

Evans most recently starred in "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" and "Dracula Untold."

This project is one of a number of revivals of beloved Disney franchises. The studio's live-action "Cinderella," starring Lily Evans, opens next Friday, and a new version of "The Jungle Book" is also due out next year.