Cast
Alex Pettyfer ~ Kyle Kingson
Vanessa Hudgens ~ Linda Taylor
Mary-Kate Olsen ~ Kendra Hilferty
Neil Patrick Harris ~ Will Fratalli (Kyle's blind tutor)
Lisa Gay Hamilton ~ Zola (Kyle's maid)
Peter Krause ~ Rob Kingson (Kyle's father)
Fun Facts
~Based on the novel by Alex Flinn from 2007
~Vanessa was the first cast member to finish filming all her scenes because she had to leave to promote Bandslam
Plot
Kyle Kingson (Alex Pettyfer) has it all – looks, intelligence, wealth and opportunity – and a wicked cruel streak. Prone to mocking and humiliating “aggressively unattractive” classmates, he zeroes in on Goth classmate Kendra Hilferty (Mary Kate Olsen), inviting her to the school’s extravagant environmental bash. Kendra accepts, and, true to form, Kyle blows her off in a particularly savage fashion. She retaliates by casting a spell that physically transforms him into everything he despises. Enraged by his horrible and unrecognizable appearance he confronts Kendra and learns that the only solution to the curse is to find someone that will love him as he is – a task he considers impossible. Repulsed by his appearance, Kyle’s callous father (Peter Krause) banishes him to Brooklyn with a sympathetic housekeeper (Lisa Gay Hamilton) and blind tutor (Neil Patrick Harris).
As Kyle ponders how to overcome the curse and get his old life back, he chances upon a drug addict in the act of killing a threatening dealer. Seizing the opportunity, Kyle promises the addict freedom and safety for his daughter, Linda Taylor (Vanessa Hudgens) if she will consent to live in Kyle’s Brooklyn home. Thus begins Kyle’s journey to discover true love in this hyper-modern retelling of the classic “Beauty and the Beast” story.
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