| Lan |
Daniel Day-Lewis - 9.8%
Liam Neeson - 9.1%
Russell Crowe - 9.1%
This was one of the closest races in the whole survey, with over three dozen different actors getting votes. Day-Lewis beat Neeson and Crowe by a single vote, but it's clear to me that everybody has their own idea of what Lan is to them. |
Daniel Day-Lewis
While I don't think that there is a perfect match for Lan among today's stable of Hollywood actors, at least Daniel Day-Lewis can act as well as any of them. His role in 'Last of the Mohicans' proves that he can handle the physical demands as well. |
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| Galad |
Ben Affleck - 19.4%
Leo DiCaprio - 11.2%
Brad Pitt - 7.1%
It was probably the movie 'Armageddon' that raised Ben Affleck to official 'hunk' status, and since then he's starred in a bunch of mediocre films ('Dogma' being the exception, of course). Still, enough voters thought he was Galad material for him to beat DiCaprio and Pitt. |
Ben Affleck
I'm just taking it on faith that women find Affleck really good-looking. Hey, it's not like I'm going to cast Ricky Martin or Enrique Iglesias for this role, you know? |
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| Gareth Bryne |
Sean Connery - 49.6%
Harrison Ford - 5.0%
Patrick Stewart - 4.2%
Actually, Harrison Ford would be a pretty good second choice if Connery passed on the role. I would love to see Ford all dressed up in battle armor.
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Sean Connery
You can't argue with perfection, and there wasn't a role more tailor-made for Connery than Gareth Bryne. I'll bet Jordan was thinking of Connery when he created the character. |
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| Thom Merrilin |
Patrick Stewart - 40.8%
Sean Connery - 16.5%
Sam Elliott - 6.8%
Oddest vote: Randy Travis. Actually, I'm surprised more entertainers weren't up for this role. Also getting a couple of votes was Brent Spiner, who was Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation. |
Patrick Stewart
I can just imagine how much fun Stewart would have with this role. It combines his love for the theatrical with the thrill of being a man of action, and he even gets to romance a few women along the way.
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| Juilin Sandar |
Bruce Campbell - 27.6%
Gabriel Bryne - 5.2%
Kevin Kline - 5.2%
I wish Bruce Campbell could enjoy more mainstream success. If only somebody in Hollywood would take a chance and cast him in an action-comedy, he'd be a huge hit. |
Jackie Chan
Since he's too short to play an Aiel, I had to find something for my favourite martial-arts movie star, and Juilin seems like a good fit. Chan is really good with a quarterstaff, and he can teach the actor who plays Mat how to use it, too. Plus, we'd get to see outtakes! |
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| Ingtar |
Kenneth Branagh - 28.9%
Bruce Willis - 10.5%
Mel Gibson - 5.3%
I'm guessing that Bruce Willis got support here because of his self-sacrifice in 'Armageddon', and as for Mel, he seems to get votes in almost every male role anyway. Branagh is the great Shakespearean actor, and I chose him last time for his familiarity with the tragic hero. This time, though... |
Sean Bean
I'm going with Sean Bean because he's such an underrated actor, a relative unknown compared to most of his British compatriots. He could use the exposure. :) |
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| Lord Bashere |
Anthony Hopkins - 9.8%
Patrick Stewart - 7.8%
Brian Blessed - 5.9%
This was another widely distributed vote, with three dozen different actors snagging nominations. Lord Bashere's character is colorful, confident, and fairly crucial to the plot, so you'd want a great actor to really give Davram a charge. |
Anthony Hopkins
They don't come much better than Sir Hopkins, who's been a treat to watch in every film he's starred in over the last ten years. Who better to stand up to a crazy Rand than Hannibal Lecter himself? |
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| Elyas Machera |
Mel Gibson - 35.7%
Anthony Hopkins - 7.1%
Liam Neeson - 5.7%
It's the look in his eyes, the feral, dawn-of-man fire that flashes out at you just when you think you've got him where you want him. I'm sorry, people, but... |
Mel Gibson
...I can't see how anybody could think of someone other than Mel Gibson for Elyas. They're so much alike that it's scary. Another thing about Mel - he's a cinematic masochist. He loves getting the crap kicked out of him in every movie. Wonder why? |
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| Tallanvor |
Ed Burns - 19.3%
Brad Pitt - 10.5%
Ewan McGregor - 8.8%
Ed Burns was my pick in the previous cast list, so with that advantage, he wins easily over Brad Pitt and a host of others. Believe it or not, this gets harder as I get deeper into the list, because I'm running out of parts for all the actors I want to get into this puppy. |
Ewan McGregor
The basic requirement for Tallanvor is that he's nearly young enough to be Morgase's son, but older than our Two Rivers heroes. Add McGregor's considerable talents (including the contents of his undershorts, apparently) and his emerging celebrity, and you've got a winning combination. |
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| Lord Talmanes |
Eriq LaSalle - 10.5%
Cuba Gooding Jr. - 10.5%
Geoffrey Rush - 10.5% (tie)
I had an idea the other day - wouldn't it be cool if the casting worked so that all the Tairen nobles were black, and all the Tairen peasants were white? I've always liked reversing stereotypes. I'll have to give the idea more thought. |
Joseph Fiennes
Well, I've already got his brother cast as Taim, and Joseph was very good in 'Shakespeare In Love'. He's got an aristocratic look to him, and he's young enough to pair up well with Mat. |
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| Uno |
Tom Sizemore - 23.1%
Pete Postlethewaite - 7.7%
Go ahead, you tell Tom Sizemore that you want to cast him as Uno, the ugly, battle-scarred Shienaran. Put particular emphasis on the word 'ugly'. Then tell him he was the only one considered for the part. At this point, you might want to have your running shoes on. |
Robert DeNiro
I want to make it clear that I'm not insinuating that DeNiro is ugly. Far from it. Really. He's just the best actor of our generation, and there wasn't a lot of roles I could consider him for, you know? Besides, he would be cool as Uno. |
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| Hurin |
Eric Stoltz - 13.6%
John Cusack - 9.1%
Tom Hanks - 9.1%
You know, I look at Tom Hanks' name there, and I realize that there really aren't any roles in WOT that he would be especially good for. Not many self-effacing nice guys. I'm not sure why, but that makes me kind of sad. |
Nathan Lane
The diminutive, flamboyant star of 'The Birdcage' and the voice of Timon in 'The Lion King', Nathan Lane can be a source of comic relief, and would help to defuse/heighten the awkwardness between Rand and Selene in 'The Great Hunt'. Hurin is basically a sidekick, and that's what Lane has played for most of his career. |
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| Lord Agelmar |
Ian McKellen - 11.5%
Nick Nolte - 7.7%
Ben Kingsley - 7.7%
We don't see much of him (end of TEOTW, beginning of TGH), but I'm sure he'll be back in the forefront by the Last Battle. The strongest impression I get of the man is that of a consummate host and storyteller. |
Martin Sheen
If there's one thing about Martin Sheen, he loves to tell a story. The best scenes in NBC's hit drama 'The West Wing' are when Sheen, who plays the President, launches into a masterfully delivered tale, and I keep thinking of Agelmar telling stories to the girls in TEOTW. Sheen's got passion in spades. |
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| Masema |
Christopher Walken - 25.6%
Joe Pesci - 5.1%
Tim Roth - 5.1%
I must admit, Joe Pesci is an inspired choice. "But, I'm funny how? Funny like a clown? I amuse you? I make you laugh?" Yep, that's Masema, all right. Masema on crack. |
Nicolas Cage
Much as I love Joe Pesci (he's really handy with a car door, too), I find myself leaning towards Nicolas Cage. I've seen him with that crazy, sociopathic look in his eyes, and while I'm not convinced that he's as good an actor as everyone says, his off-balance tics and mannerisms would suit Masema well. |
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| Loial |
Michael Clarke Duncan - 13.7%
CGI (Computer Generated Image) - 11.8%
This wasn't really fair, because nobody is as tall as Loial (not even Shaq), and obviously some sort of special effect will have to be used. So, really, what we're looking for here is the person to supply Loial's voice. |
Robert Jordan
Well, you have to give the man a cameo role of some sort - why not give him a full speaking part? He's got a decent voice, and I'll bet he knows the dialogue better than anybody, too. :) |
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