Casting choices fear

[Kaladinstorm]

Hey guys this is my first time on here, im a new reader and currently on book 3 dragon reborn,

and feel i am the perfect person to address the tv shows casting

as iis am part of the target demographic they are looking to hit at (18-24)

 

Guys i won't lie the casting choices feel a bit off

what does everyone else here think?

i am very Happy though that we are even getting a show and ,

new people will be introduced to this amazing piece of fiction

so im putting a positive spin to this

 

However.... the mental image of these characters i had in my mind

and yes i viewed some as very attractive

fell quite short

lets discuss!

[mistborn82]

You should wait and see, sometimes mental images aren't the last word. Like, as someone else posted here, everyone had one image of Nick Fury in Marvel but now he's Samuel L. Jackson, same with the series. I'm legally-blind so images aren't my thing. For me it will be voices as I've only listened to the audiobooks and I have to get used to more than two voices.

[king of nowhere]

A good actor can impersonate the character, bring it to life. A good actor is someone who can stay there with a plastic armor and a towel on their back wiggling around his hands, and instead of being embarassed he'll be able to take himself seriously enough to convince you that he's actually doing magic.

and the best actor is not always the one who most closely resembles the character's description. between an actor that most looks like rand and an actor that can pretend really well he's rand, they rightly pick the second.

so, i will wait to see them in action before deciding anything

 

also, make up and hair styles make a lot of difference.

[Thrasymachus]

Off in what way?  Physically, the descriptions of the characters match pretty well with the actors, from what I see.  With the sole exception of Moiraine being almost a foot too tall.

[Carebear Sedai]

I'm extremely pleased with the casting. The level of talent they've procured is one of the reasons I'm confident with the show. If fancasts are indication of fans' headcanon, then I'm glad if they don't fit it. Fancasts are usually horrendous.

[Elder_Haman]

I’m encouraged by the casting so far. There are a couple of the main characters that I haven’t seen enough of to evaluate their acting. But on balance, the choices seem excellent. And the casting director has a very good track record IMO. 

[mistborn82]

I also think it's good that they're casting relative unknowns. Although one thing to consider, if they weren't before, they'll have to break the timeline now, as on top of the time filming 8 seasons, if possible, the extra 1 to 2 years just adds to the fact you can't fake a 35-year old to look 18, again if it goes that long.

[Harldin]

Take a look at a picture of Amilla Clarke sometime and then compare it to a picture of her as Daenerys Targaryen or compare Cate Blanchett to Galadriel to get a good idea of how much a Actor can look different with makeup and the right costume.

[Taishar Hawaii]

I have no doubt that we all have our own images of every one of these characters, and it is only natural to have doubts when faced with the prospect of your vision not being brought to life (Willaume better be able to pull off Thom's glorious 'stache!!).  That being said, I can forgive all that if they can truly bring the character to life on screen.  Just look at Peter Dinklage as Tyrion in GOT.  FAR from looking as he is described in the books, but he brought Tyrion to life in all his witty, ribald and eloquent glory! 

[Jax Bornhald]

I too have some reservations about the cast, but I'm holding out on any opinion until I've seen at least a couple of episodes.  However, hitting the proverbial nail on it's head with a cathedral bell is the casting of Barney Harris as Mat.  He looks almost identical to how I imagined him to in the books, and if the brief snippet in the script reading is anything to go by he'll nail the performance too.

 

I'm a little disappointed that no Forsaken have been cast yet, which leads me to believe they may not be making an appearance in the first season. But hey....who knows.  Early day and all.

[mistborn82]

@Jax BornhaldI think Mr. and Mrs. Grinwell will turn out to be Forsaken. I don't know if they'll be killed for their identities or whether they'll be Forsaken from the beginning. I don't see them casting actual actors for a glorified cameo at best. To me you either cast some huge for a cameo or you cast an extra. An extra probably costs less than an actor too.

[Jax Bornhald]

16 hours ago, mistborn82 said:

@Jax BornhaldI think Mr. and Mrs. Grinwell will turn out to be Forsaken. I don't know if they'll be killed for their identities or whether they'll be Forsaken from the beginning. I don't see them casting actual actors for a glorified cameo at best. To me you either cast some huge for a cameo or you cast an extra. An extra probably costs less than an actor too.

They will in fact be Aran'gar and Asan'gar in disguise!!  Gotta love the Grinwells.

[mistborn82]

Something because they realistically could've been Brandon and Harriet or Rafe and Sara, the book consultant, if the Grinwells were the same as the books.

[Elder_Haman]

On 4/9/2021 at 10:30 AM, mistborn82 said:

@Jax BornhaldI think Mr. and Mrs. Grinwell will turn out to be Forsaken. I don't know if they'll be killed for their identities or whether they'll be Forsaken from the beginning. I don't see them casting actual actors for a glorified cameo at best. To me you either cast some huge for a cameo or you cast an extra. An extra probably costs less than an actor too.

Either that, or they will be the among the folks that start trickling into the Emond's Field when the Trollocs and Whitecloaks start to pressure the Two Rivers.

[mistborn82]

Wouldn't they be too far though but that's a good thought. I still like the Forsaken theory better though because that why you don't have to invent a story for them, the roles just morph into Ishamael and Lanfear, the Gars or whoever.

[The Purple Ajah]

I think the Forsaken are castings we might not even hear about until the show releases.

 

Rafe Judkins has said that the prologue will feature in some way, so Ishamael and LTT will have to be cast. As for other Forsaken including Lanfear, I'm not sure if Season 1 will even go that far into TGH.

 

Personally I'm looking forward to the Morgase and Elaida castings.

[Harldin]

I like the idea of thinking about the show as a new turning of the Wheel compared to the books. Opens up a fresh perspective for us book fans and you don’t lose all your hair worrying about castings.

[mistborn82]

Along with casting, there are also going to to be major changes, one being that the first three books weren't aimed at a far away ending which is why Ishamael won't die 3 times, etc. Another big change is will we get the AMOL ending or will we get some version of the one if RJ lived. So another turning of the wheel is a better way to think and that phrase isn't mine, I heard in a youtube video, who can't remember where he heard it.

[Harldin]

3 minutes ago, mistborn82 said:

Along with casting, there are also going to to be major changes, one being that the first three books weren't aimed at a far away ending which is why Ishamael won't die 3 times, etc. Another big change is will we get the AMOL ending or will we get some version of the one if RJ lived. So another turning of the wheel is a better way to think and that phrase isn't mine, I heard in a youtube video, who can't remember where he heard it.

I first heard that saying some months back just can’t remember where. WOT sets up so that everything has to be treated as Canon and can be written of as another turning of the Wheel

[Jax Bornhald]

On 4/11/2021 at 12:00 AM, The Purple Ajah said:

I think the Forsaken are castings we might not even hear about until the show releases.

 

Rafe Judkins has said that the prologue will feature in some way, so Ishamael and LTT will have to be cast. As for other Forsaken including Lanfear, I'm not sure if Season 1 will even go that far into TGH.

 

Personally I'm looking forward to the Morgase and Elaida castings.

Ooh, I hope you're right about that one.  I think the Forsaken are some of the most eagerly awaited castings for me.  I'm pretty interested in who will play Elaida and Morgase too.  I've heard no mention of Elaine yet though.

[mistborn82]

Most think the Trakands and probably Elaida won't be in season one, though I'm confused because I thought Elayne had been cast. I went back and looked and yes, people thought one actress was Elayne but then nothing. I don't know what happened after that though.

[Elder_Haman]

On 4/10/2021 at 12:34 PM, mistborn82 said:

Wouldn't they be too far though but that's a good thought. 

Geography in tv shows tends not to matter much, lol. And given where we will likely meet the Grinwells (probably somewhere between episodes 3 and 5), the audience will think of them as living fairly close to Emond's Field just because of how early in the series we met them (if that makes sense).

On 4/10/2021 at 12:34 PM, mistborn82 said:

I still like the Forsaken theory better though because that why you don't have to invent a story for them, the roles just morph into Ishamael and Lanfear, the Gars or whoever.

My concern about this is how they can write this without drastically underpowering whichever Forsaken they turn out to be. This early in the story, it's hard to believe that Ishy (assuming he is free and able to touch the world) wouldn't just kill Rand. If there's some deeper manipulation going on, it would have to be made obvious right up front. Not impossible, but very difficult to execute - at least for the type of serious tv Amazon is after.

 

On 4/10/2021 at 4:00 PM, The Purple Ajah said:

Rafe Judkins has said that the prologue will feature in some way, so Ishamael and LTT will have to be cast.

I don't remember this. Do you happen to have a link? Just curious. My recollection was that he said they would not be doing the prologue, but I could be mistaken.

[mistborn82]

The Dark One told him not to and I like Aginor for Mr. Grinwell and the reason he didn't kill Rand was he couldn't reach the Eye without help. It could also be that the Grinwells are still themselves in S1 and are killed early in season 2 or at the very end of S1. I also think it more than likely that all of the Forsaken will be free for S2 and not just Lanfear.

[Elder_Haman]

1 hour ago, mistborn82 said:

The Dark One told him not to and I like Aginor for Mr. Grinwell and the reason he didn't kill Rand was he couldn't reach the Eye without help. It could also be that the Grinwells are still themselves in S1 and are killed early in season 2 or at the very end of S1. I also think it more than likely that all of the Forsaken will be free for S2 and not just Lanfear.

It can be done. But it's a high degree of difficulty. I'm guessing they'll just be Darkfriends who lure Mat and Rand into peril.

[The Purple Ajah]

4 hours ago, Jax Bornhald said:

Ooh, I hope you're right about that one.  I think the Forsaken are some of the most eagerly awaited castings for me.  I'm pretty interested in who will play Elaida and Morgase too.  I've heard no mention of Elaine yet though.

 

3 hours ago, Elder_Haman said:

I don't remember this. Do you happen to have a link? Just curious. My recollection was that he said they would not be doing the prologue, but I could be mistaken.

Here you go! It says he has "plans" for the prologue, and unless it's substantially altered, I'd say that almost certainly confirms both LTT and Ishamael. In the same thread, he also says that including stuff other than TEOTW and NS is a WAFO.