For the ’80s and early ’90s babies, the story of Black Beauty and the iconic film that came with it was one of the more memorable movies from our childhood.
Starring Sean Bean (Game of Thrones), Alan Cumming (Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion) and Jim Carter (Downton Abbey), the movie followed the story of the horse Black Beauty, as he narrates the circle of his life.
Now, Disney Plus has remade the cult classic for a new generation, featuring the voice of Academy Award-winning actor Kate Winslet as Black Beauty and stars Mackenzie Foy (The Nutcracker and the Four Realms), Iain Glen (Game of Thrones), Claire Forlani (Departure), and Calam Lynch (Dunkirk).
This modern-day reimagining of Anna Sewell’s timeless classic follows Black Beauty (Winslet), a wild horse born free in the American West.
Rounded up and taken away from her family, Beauty is brought to Birtwick Stables where she meets a spirited teenage girl, Jo Green (Foy).
Beauty and Jo forge an unbreakable bond that carries Beauty through the different chapters, challenges, and adventures of her life.
In the trailer, Glen, who plays Jo’s uncle says to her: “You’ve gotten closer to that filly in days than I have in weeks. They say a horse picks you. If I fought for every horse I ever loved, I’d have a hundred of them.”
The original novel was written in the last years of Sewell’s life, during which she remained unable to leave her house due to illness.
Upon publication, it became an immediate best-seller, with its author dying just five months after it was sent out into the world. Sewell was able to see her only novel become a success and it is still one of the best-selling books of all time.
It follows the themes of kindness, sympathy and respect and also teaches humans about the importance of animal welfare.
The contemporary reimagining of the classic novel, Black Beauty, premieres November 27 only on Disney+.