Celine Dion almost turned down Beauty and the Beast because of her late husband

3 March 2017

Celine Dion almost didn't take part in the 'Beauty and the Beast' soundtrack because it reminded her of her late husband.

Celine Dion

The 48-year-old singer recorded the song 'How Does A Moment Last Forever' for the live-action remake of the classic fairy tale, but says she "couldn't say yes right away" because her husband and manager René Angélil - who died in January 2016 - helped her secure the titular duet she sang with Peabo Bryson for the 1991 animated Disney feature.

She told 'Entertainment Tonight': "My first 'Beauty and the Beast', the decision was made with my husband. Now I'm making decisions on my own. It's a little bit harder. I couldn't say yes right away, because I felt like I was kind of cheating in a way."

It isn't the first time the 'My Heart Will Go On' hitmaker has expressed her concerns with taking on a track for the remake as she previously said she felt like she was "cheating on" the original.

She said: "30 year later, they [came] back to me.

"I saw the [new] movie, it's great, but there was something inside of me that was shaking a little bit.

"They say, 'So what do you think? Would you consider singing this new 'Beauty and the Beast' song, 30 years later?' and I'm like, 'Uh, I have to listen to it again, because I need to be professional.'

"To be honest with you, I said to them, 'That is so hard for me to commit [to] right now, because I felt like [I was] cheating [on] the first 'Beauty and the Beast'."

Meanwhile, Celine - who shared sons Rene-Charles, 16, and six-year-old twins Nelson and Eddy with Rene - recently said she was starting to feel "stronger" since the death of her husband, and now feels like the "leader of the family".

She said: "When he left, he came inside of all of my kids' hearts and mine, he gave the rest of his 50 percent for me to be complete, to continue the rest of my life, to feel strong and to believe that I can still do this and he will always be with me.

"I feel stronger. He gave me the rest of him. I feel stronger, I step forward. I say what I mean, I mean what I say. I stand up for my kids and I feel like I'm the leader of the family."