Did Regis Philbin audition to provide the voice of The Beast in Beauty And The Beast?

[DodgerGirl]

On the commentary for Beauty And The Beast I learned that when they started auditioning for the voice of The Beast one of the celebrities chosen to try out was Regis Philbin but when he tried out he did great but they chose Robby Benson instead. Regis Philbin would've made a fun Beast and would've done a great monster like growl in my opinion

 

[firefly_ris]

"Are you ready for this? If she doesn't eat with me, she doesn't eat AT ALL, I tell ya!"

 

[bcla]

The growl in Beauty and the Beast got an electronic enhancement.

There was an interview with one of the producers where he wasn't clear what role Regis Philbin auditioned for.

https://www.glamour.com/story/10-fascinating-revelations-about-beauty-and-the-beast-25-years-later​

Regis Philbin and Katie Lee Gifford Auditioned We know what you're thinking: There's no way this happened. Well, turns out, it did. "Regis and Kathie Lee had [Live! with Regis and Kathie Lee] that was part of Disney," explains Beauty and the Beast producer, Don Hahn, of why the pair was brought in. "I have Regis’ audition tape somewhere, and Kathie Lee singing, and then Regis playing the part of [Belle’s] dad or the Beast or something. We were happy to audition them, but…you have to be right for the role. They knew that going into it. The funny thing is, Kathie Lee is really a good singer. So, it wasn’t just a matter of saying, ‘You can’t sing.’ She really can. Regis as the Beast was a bit of a miscast. [Laughs] I think he understood that going in.”​