Hollywood Casting and Mis-Casting

[The Baron]

(So as not to further drag the "Leslie Nielsen" thread further off course...)

The Commander said:

"We watch something like, say, Columbo, and think to ourselves, of course Peter Falk was the perfect actor for the part."


I'd always heard that the part of Columbo was originally written for Bing Crosby. With respect to "der Bingle", I just can't imagine what it would've been like with him in the part.

[The Baron]

It's true - Gorshin's Riddler often came across as being crazier than Romero's Joker.

[Jason Marconnet (Pint sized mod)]

I remember some people weren't happy with the casting of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine because 1) he was Australian and 2) he's much taller than Wolverine. Actor Dougary Scott was first scheduled to play Wolverine but he opted to be in Mission Impossible 2. Dougray Scott is also not Candanian (he's scottish) and he's also tall. So I guess the filmakers didn't care about sticking to those details. Honestly it didn't matter to me. Hugh Jackman really caputured the character of Wolverine.

[ClarkKent_DC]

Jason Marconnet said:

I remember some people weren't happy with the casting of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine because 1) he was Australian and 2) he's much taller than Wolverine. Actor Dougary Scott was first scheduled to play Wolverine but he opted to be in Mission Impossible 2. Dougray Scott is also not Candanian (he's scottish) and he's also tall. So I guess the filmakers didn't care about sticking to those details. Honestly it didn't matter to me. Hugh Jackman really caputured the character of Wolverine.

Now, this I don't get. Yes, Hugh Jackman is Australian, but why does that mean he can't play a Canadian?

[Cavaliere (moderator emeritus)]

There might have been a little (very little) concern over Jackman being from Australia because of the failed X-Men cartoon pilot, "Pryde of the X-Men." For those who didn't see it or were able to burn it from their memories, the producers of that cartoon gave Wolverine an Aussie accent!

[ClarkKent_DC]

I just ran across this article that states the writer of Pirates of the Caribbean had Hugh Jackman in mind for the Captain Jack Sparrow role, but Disney didn't think he was a big enough star and instead signed Johnny Depp ("What If Hugh Jackman Had Been Jack Sparrow?").

And, for that matter, yesterday I saw an article that states Depp, in a Vanity Fair interview, said Disney during filming wasn't that thrilled with his performance: "Johnny Depp in Vanity Fair: Disney Hated My 'Gay' Captain Sparrow"

[Philip Portelli]

I distinctly recall when I first saw X-Men in the movie theatre that I felt no one could convincingly play Wolverine, let alone this Hugh Jackman guy that I never heard of before. After five minutes, it was "That's Woverine!" Now if only the others were that engaging!

[ClarkKent_DC]

Sometimes it works that way. Loretta Lynn sat in on the casting sessions for Coal Miner's Daughter, and personally tapped Cissy Spacek for the part, despite an utter lack of resemblance; Spacek felt right.

Likewise, Erle Stanley Gardner saw a parade of actors try out for Perry Mason, whose physical characteristics were not described in any of the novels. But when Raymond Burr came into the room, Garnder jumped up and exclaimed, "That's him! That's my Perry Mason!"

[Philip Portelli]

I wonder what influence, if any, J.K. Rowling had on the casting of the Harry Potter films. What was going through her mind when her characters became "real". I have seen some HP fan art. They depict Hermione as a pretty teen ager, not resembling her initial descriptions. Professor Snape IS Alan Rickman. If they could improve the cast, I have no idea what they could do!

[Travis Herrick (Modular Mod)]

I don't know how widely available it is on the net (I'm sure you can find it). I got the a version of the X-men movie on DVD (Called X-Men 1.5) and it included Hugh Jackman reading for the part of Wolverine.

[ClarkKent_DC]

I haven't heard one way or the other what influence J.K. Rowling had on the casting of the Harry Potter films.

Anne Rice rather famously blasted the choice of Tom Cruise as Lestat in Interview With the Vampire: "I was particularly stunned by the casting of Cruise, who is no more my Vampire Lestat than Edward G. Robinson is Rhett Butler." But she came around once the movie was done ... and after the producers froze her out: "The charm, the humor and the invincible innocence which I cherish in my beloved hero Lestat are all alive in Tom Cruise's courageous performance."

I'm also not sure whether the author should or shouldn't have any influence, and, if so, how much. Books are books and movies are movies, and the elements that work in one arena don't necessarily confer to the other.

[George]

ClarkKent DC said:

"The thing is, Tim Burton was deliberately casting against type. He figured that, first, somebody who dresses up in costume to fight crime is by definition not right in the head. So, by that logic, he shouldn't cast the expected leading-man type, the tall, barrel-chested, square-jawed, brutally handsome, manly man; instead, as he saw it, the role called for someone more nebbishy who became fierce when outfitted as the hero."

Exactly. Keaton was the last person you'd suspect to be a costumed crimefighter. Which was exactly right. If you're going to take on a secret identity, and keep it secret for years, you'd have to be "the last person they'd suspect."

Keaton did better in the role than a more traditional leading man, George Clooney, did a few years later. Of course, it helped that Keaton had a better director and somewhat better scripts.

[Philip Portelli]

This might seem weird but I liked Clooney as Bruce Wayne, especially his scenes with Michael Gough's Alfred. The Batman parts were difficult to watch and don't get me started with Batgirl!