Who was originally cast as Aragorn?

[Fyrie]

Kid,

I *think* I remember reading a quote from Tom Baker where he said that he received the script, but he refused to try out due to the 18 month shooting schedule. Something about he didnt' want to be away from his wife that long. I'm sure someone can pull a reference to that.

 

[Barendd Nobeard]

Stewart would have made a better Gandalf. He has the demeanour of a leader which the role of Gandalf requires. McKellan doesn't. I don't think Connery would have been good for the part - he doesn't do 'worried' very well. Tom Baker has the voice, but I'm not sure he portrays emotions very realistically.

<snip>

Can you imagine how much more dramatic the conflict between Saruman and Gandalf would have been if it had been Lee vs Stewart?

No, Stewart would not have made a better Gandalf. He can't act, which is a prime requirement for the role.

Well, I should re-phrase that. He plays his one character very well. But whether is Gurney Halleck, Jean-Luc Picard, Charles Xavier, or whomever, they're all the same.

Pox on Stewart anywhere near PJ's LotR trilogy!

 

[Sulimo]

No, Stewart would not have made a better Gandalf. He can't act, which is a prime requirement for the role.

Well, I should re-phrase that. He plays his one character very well. But whether is Gurney Halleck, Jean-Luc Picard, Charles Xavier, or whomever, they're all the same.

Pox on Stewart anywhere near PJ's LotR trilogy!

He can, or at least could. Just check out I Claudius for one example.

 

[ColonelHardisson]

No, Stewart would not have made a better Gandalf. He can't act, which is a prime requirement for the role.

Well, I should re-phrase that. He plays his one character very well. But whether is Gurney Halleck, Jean-Luc Picard, Charles Xavier, or whomever, they're all the same.

Pox on Stewart anywhere near PJ's LotR trilogy!

Stewart is a fine Shakespearean actor. The trouble is, he's been miscast for just about everything he's done in film and TV besides Trek and a handful of other projects. When I do my own LotR series of films, I will definitely cast Stewart as Gandalf just to spite ya!

 

[Barendd Nobeard]

He can, or at least could. Just check out I Claudius for one example.

OK, I may just do that. There's one other thing I've seen him in (besides Dune, ST:TNG, and X-Men), but I can't remember what it is.

I'm visiting relatives for Christmas, so some rentals may be in order, what with all the free time.




[edit - fix bad punctuation]

 

[Barendd Nobeard]

Stewart is a fine Shakespearean actor. The trouble is, he's been miscast for just about everything he's done in film and TV besides Trek and a handful of other projects. When I do my own LotR series of films, I will definitely cast Stewart as Gandalf just to spite ya!

I look forward to it seeing your vision on screen!

Who else would you cast, especially in the roles missing from PJ's version (Tom B., etc.)?

Maybe I should try my hand at a musical version, just so I can cast J-Lo as Galadriel and Placido Domingo as Gimli.

 

[ColonelHardisson]

Y'know who I would cast as Wormtongue? Christopher Walken. Think about it a while.

Tom Bombadil is a tough one. Nathan Lane, off the top of my head.

 

[Droogie]

Never have I seen such perfect casting for so many roles in one film like in FotR. The dodgiest casting for me is Sean Astin as Sam, since he sounds like he struggles the most with the required accent. But even he does a decent job.

Cate IS Galadriel. She oozes of inner strength and wisdom.
Ian Mckellen is Gandalf. I can't think of anyone else who could play him.

 

[Wolv0rine]

The question is - could Sean Connery have properly delivered the now-immortal screen line:

"YOU... SHALL NOT... PASS!"

So far, I did not see a single mis-cast in this film on the screen. I supposed I shall have to wait until the weekend to see if this is still true.

While I openly agree that Sir Ian was the best choice for the role (and that is simply delivered a spot-on perfect Gandalf), and that Sean Connery would have been a Bad choice... that line, from Sean Connery.. the Balrog might have just up and turned around.

 

[Mark]

Y'know who I would cast as Wormtongue? Christopher Walken. Think about it a while.

Tom Bombadil is a tough one. Nathan Lane, off the top of my head.

Walken has become too much of a caricature of himself and would have brought even more complaints than the casting of Elrond, IMO. I think that Brad Dourif did a tremendous job as Grima. In the short amount of screen time he actually had, he managed to pack quite a range of emotional and subtext. My two favorite moments are his look when Eomer asks what he really wants from Saruman as his treasure, and the split second where he realizes the size of Saruman's Army. You can almost hear him wondering if he helped create a monster Though we all know Saruman would have managed with or without him, that particular take on the look speaks to Grima's arrogance even as he realizes that he has helped bring the destruction of his own race to Middle Earth (or so anyone would have thoughts upon viewing the masses of orcs).