WoT Casting!

[Wyndlerunner]

5 hours ago, king of nowhere said:

I also wonder how they are going to represent aes sedai ageless faces. according to the book, it's something subtle enough that people not familiar with aes sedai won't pay much notice, but also distinctive enough that one who is familiar can tell an aes sedai by sight.

I douubt it can really be done that way.

I honestly don't think that the agelessness is super necessary to portray Aes Sedai accurately, they could just have it so that "Oh, Aes Sedai usually look younger than they are"

[Thorn]

On 9/6/2019 at 3:32 PM, Toaster Retribution said:

I want to see that, mostly for Bloom. The fact that it has so much sex scenes is putting me off a bit though. 

I dont think they can do someone too old for Thom. WoT is a huge commitment, and a recast in the middle of it would suck.

That Henney pick for Lan looks solid at least. 

I wouldn't be surprised if Thom is held off for a bit.  His role early on isn't much other than as a traveling companion (unless I'm forgetting something) until Shador Lagoth.  He could be introduced on the road, as I would have thought they'd have had Thom in on the first reading.  

Can we digitally age Chris Pratt though?  I feel like Johnny Karate would make a good gleeman.  A serious one of course...

 

Also, I feel like Ben Foster needs to be a Forsaken?  Mazrim Taim?  Heck, Ben might could pull off Padan Fain.  

[Angsos]

Thom is in the battle or whatever on winternight and he suggests Moiraine can heal Tam. I think he needs to be there.

As for forsaken, I think Anthony Hopkins would make a good Ishamael, an A-lister whose there to draw eyes and then dies, like in Westworld. For Lanfear you have to have someone who can pull of going from nice to full on psychopath without making it look stupid. Fain will have to be extensively rewritten as he's massively underused but I don't know who could do him justice.

[king of nowhere]

6 hours ago, Wyndlerunner said:

I honestly don't think that the agelessness is super necessary to portray Aes Sedai accurately, they could just have it so that "Oh, Aes Sedai usually look younger than they are"

the fact that you can tell aes sedai by sight is a plot point several times. however, I agree it's not so important it cannot be changed, which is probably what they'd do.

otherwise, the closest they could do to represent the ageless look is pai mei, from kill bill. someone who looks old and young at the same time. i don't know how much the look would work without white hair, or how recognizable it would be. or whether you can do that with any actor with make-up, or if you need the right face underneath.

2 hours ago, Angsos said:

Thom is in the battle or whatever on winternight and he suggests Moiraine can heal Tam. I think he needs to be there.

anyone else could have fulfilled that role. in fact, rand going back and forth between the wisdom and the major and thom is unlikely to figure in the tv show. screen time is at a premium, and movie makers always try to shorten scenes whenever possible. i think it's more likely either nynaeve will directly tell rand that moiraine can heal, or the major will tell it immediately.

But I still think the two rivers is the right place to introduce thom. it would be more awkward to introduce him later and explain why he'd join the party, and it wouldn't gain anything.

[Toaster Retribution]

16 hours ago, Thorn said:

 

Also, I feel like Ben Foster needs to be a Forsaken?  Mazrim Taim?  Heck, Ben might could pull off Padan Fain.  

Ben Foster for Fain is excellent casting in my mind. 

[Wolverine13]

I'm  really not that excited about this series being taken on. All the political BS that's been attached with the casting decisions, people going off about who's being represented. I cant realistically believe that this will exist long enough to cover 14 books, hundreds of characters, plots, subplots etc. All I can see is another Legend of the Seeker. I hope I'm wrong cause this series is one of my all time favorites and after 30 years of reading and rereading these people are like some of my oldest friends. 

[Angsos]

Don't forget @Wolverine13 all the chatter around the series in online forums is only a tiny slice of the target audience. Sure Amazon wants fans of the books to watch but they want a wide audience as possible and some of the casting criticism comes from some who had an image in their head while others I won't get into. Just hope for the best.

[king of nowhere]

eh, it's possible the project will fail, but if they manage to make a decent first season, it will already be something. although the last book, with all the cinematic battles, is probably the most suited for the screen.

anyway, fantasy is selling a lot lately, and wheel of time was big, and this has the potential to make a huge load of money if they make it well. so, i believe they will at least try to make it good

[Wyndlerunner]

14 hours ago, Angsos said:

Don't forget @Wolverine13 all the chatter around the series in online forums is only a tiny slice of the target audience. Sure Amazon wants fans of the books to watch but they want a wide audience as possible and some of the casting criticism comes from some who had an image in their head while others I won't get into. Just hope for the best.

Not once did I imagine Nynaeve as an African-American. As soon as I saw who they cast, I instantly went."Yeah, I can see this, this really works!" 

As far as I can tell, Dragonmount is the site of the most vitriolic responses to the casting, from what I've seen lurking there.

[Angsos]

I can attest to that as I've been drawn in more than once. Now I'm trying to stay away from there, whether or not it will work. Also Amazon has a vested interest in it working as they have the Middle earth series coming and if WoT works, that series will do better and I'm sure it won't hurt any of Amazon's other series.

[Thorn]

On 9/16/2019 at 3:07 PM, Angsos said:

Thom is in the battle or whatever on winternight and he suggests Moiraine can heal Tam. I think he needs to be there.

As for forsaken, I think Anthony Hopkins would make a good Ishamael, an A-lister whose there to draw eyes and then dies, like in Westworld. For Lanfear you have to have someone who can pull of going from nice to full on psychopath without making it look stupid. Fain will have to be extensively rewritten as he's massively underused but I don't know who could do him justice.

I do like at least an A-lister for the main villan/s each season.  Hopkins would be a great grab.  Jason Issacs, Malcovich, Weaving? Let's just get all of them for the men.  That guy who plays IT would be solid.  

Lanfear...Amanda Seyfried? Charlize Theron? Angelina Jolie (probably too old)? Honestly, if one considers the greater the beauty, the greater the crazy scale, this shouldn't be hard to find even a newbie that could pull it off.  Matching someone with Rand's age here might be a good move.  I've always thought Lanfear was one of the best villianesses ever, including her surprise exit.  I thought she was going to be the Nae'blis so to speak originally. 

Spoiler

And thus, I thought Jordan's use of the Dark One's resurrections to be a diminishing move to her character by which he just weakens her in both power and influence.  This is a change I wouldn't mind the TV version making.  

Moghieden -  Helena Bonham Carter, Maggie Smith...somebody older, craftier, spiderylike 

Semihrage - Tilda Swinton... I get tortured just seeing her on screen.  

Spoiler

Verin - Kathy Bates...

Not a forsaken, but honestly Kathy Bates could just play several here to save on signings elsewhere. 

Fain is alluded to throughout the early books and later revealed to be behind much of the mayhem.  I don't think it's hard to do the same thing in the tv series.  He's introduced as the peddler, which you later find out was responsible for the Trollocs and has been pursuing them since they leave town.  The mystery keeps you hooked even in TV.  

On 9/16/2019 at 6:11 PM, king of nowhere said:

But I still think the two rivers is the right place to introduce thom. it would be more awkward to introduce him later and explain why he'd join the party, and it wouldn't gain anything.

The real fun question to me is how and why Thom was ever there in the first place other than by coincidence?  One of the world's best gleemen just happens to be in the far end of Andor in the all but forgotten Two Rivers just for Winternight?  The wheel weaves as the wheel wills they say, but I'd bet he was already interested in Moraine.  

I think it'd be easy to explain that they bump into him at the first inn w/ Nynaeve catching up or at Whitebridge even, and find an excuse for him to get wrapped into things from there, much like Loial does later.  Still Season 1.   But he doesn't really gain much relationship till he's on the road after Shador Lagoth with Mat and Rand.  Thom to me is kinda of like the Ron in Harry Potter, he's primarily just a traveling companion until Cariehen in Book 2, and then again when he joins up with Mat in Book 3.  So I think there's lots of ways to integrate him and that's why he's absent where I thought he'd already be cast by now.  

Tim Curry would be an interesting Thom.  

[Toaster Retribution]

Huh, they have cast Thom, Logain, Loial and Fain. I only know of Logains actor (he is the Professor in La Casa de Papel) but I do like the castings, even though Thom doesnt look much like I pictured him.

Hopefully they announce Mins actress soon. She is one of the few females in WoT I like, so I’d be bummed out if she got cut.

[Wander89]

On 07/12/2019 at 3:39 PM, Toaster Retribution said:

Huh, they have cast Thom, Logain, Loial and Fain. I only know of Logains actor (he is the Professor in La Casa de Papel) but I do like the castings, even though Thom doesnt look much like I pictured him.

Hopefully they announce Mins actress soon. She is one of the few females in WoT I like, so I’d be bummed out if she got cut.

I imagine they announce the female characters like Min, Elayne, Morgase and Elaida at the next Wotwednesday

[king of nowhere]

on the other hand, all of them have only cameo appearances in the first book, so it's possible that they would be moved to the second season without damaging the plot.

I'm glad they found a thom, as he was a tricky one to cast. this actor can sing and play the guitar, and they will probably use a body double and a few special effects for tumbling and juggling. if he's some ten years younger than he was supposed to be in the story, but it's not an important detail; I can't think of any single problem with the story if thom is made to be in his late forties/ early fifties instead of in his sixties

[Turin Turambar]

On 12/7/2019 at 10:39 AM, Toaster Retribution said:

Huh, they have cast Thom, Logain, Loial and Fain. I only know of Logains actor (he is the Professor in La Casa de Papel) but I do like the castings, even though Thom doesnt look much like I pictured him.

Hopefully they announce Mins actress soon. She is one of the few females in WoT I like, so I’d be bummed out if she got cut.

I'm sorry, I know this is a waste of a post, but I have to agree. Min is awesome.

[Wander89]

14 hours ago, Turin Turambar said:

I'm sorry, I know this is a waste of a post, but I have to agree. Min is awesome.

Never a waste! Min is awesome!

[Toaster Retribution]

On 2019-12-08 at 6:41 PM, king of nowhere said:

 

on the other hand, all of them have only cameo appearances in the first book, so it's possible that they would be moved to the second season without damaging the plot.

 

I do think they will cast the royals for season 1. They already have Logain, so it makes sense to have the royals too.

I do think Min might get to wait until season 2 though :-(

[Singer]

If I could choose absolutely anybody in show business for some of the big villains and side characters, these are my picks:

Chiwetel Ejiofor as Moridin. He could easily play the ice cold nihilist.

Meryl Streep as Elaida.

Djimon Hounsou as Demandred

Christina Hendricks as Graendal. I can see no one else in this role.

Morena Baccarin as Lanfear

I don't know who he should play, but as usual I want Jackie Chan in there somehow. Maybe he could be a Shienaran soldier or one of the great captains. Or maybe a warder, like Hammar. 

Thoughts?

 

 

[Eluvianii]

On 22/12/2019 at 3:07 PM, Singer the Ooklalala said:

I don't know who he should play, but as usual I want Jackie Chan in there somehow. Maybe he could be a Shienaran soldier or one of the great captains. Or maybe a warder, like Hammar. 

Thoughts?

Hey, what about Elyas? For some reason it was surprisingly easy to picture him, though I don't know if he gets any battle scenes or more screen time at all (I'm only in The Shadow Rising).

[Wyndlerunner]

On 12/22/2019 at 3:07 PM, Singer the Ooklalala said:

Meryl Streep as Elaida

Dang, this just works.