# Casting for The Silmarillion **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** middle-earth\ **Created:** [October 13, 2012, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577 "2012-10-13T00:48:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/1 "2012-10-13T00:48:30Z")
Previous thread on such a movie, movies or miniseries: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=567348&highlight=silmarillion](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=567348&highlight=silmarillion) It’s almost certainly too big, sprawling/disconnected and thematically diverse to ever all be filmed. But if it were, or if your favorite part of it were filmed, who do you envision in the various roles? Just off the top of my head: Morgoth: Ian McShane, _Deadwood_ Sauron: Jude Law, _Sherlock Holmes_ Luthien: Keira Knightley, _Pride & Prejudice_ Beren: Jeremy Renner, _The Hurt Locker_ Turgon: Daniel Craig, _Casino Royale_ Feanor: Ciaran Hinds, _Munich_ ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/2 "2012-10-13T01:14:02Z")
Since I read the Silmarillion in the 70’s right after it was released, My imagination populated it with 60’s cartoon characters. Tuor: Dudley Doright Idril: Nell Fenwick Turgon must of course be Inspector Fenwick then. Glorfindel: Race Bannon Luthien: Jessica Rabbit Beren: Crusader Rabbit ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/3 "2012-10-13T04:24:20Z")
OK… and in 2012…? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/4 "2012-10-13T04:29:23Z")
Jessica Rabbit is a 60s cartoon character? ---
**Author:** ![Alka\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Alka\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alka_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/5 "2012-10-13T10:48:37Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Luthien: Jessica Rabbit Surely she’d make a better Turin Turambar? > [@](#): > > I’m not bad, I’m just _drawn_ that way. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/6 "2012-10-13T12:07:30Z")
A bunch of people who haven’t been born yet. I believe the work goes public domain 70 years after the death of the author-since Christopher Tolkien is still around, said film could be made no earlier than 2082. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/7 "2012-10-13T14:29:26Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Jessica Rabbit is a 60s cartoon character? Well, 1981. I retrofitted her in. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/8 "2012-10-13T14:31:55Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > OK… and in 2012…? My only interaction with modern culture outside of the Jackson movies is “Deadliest Catch” and “Mythbusters”. So I can’t name too many current actors. Sig Hansen would make a fine Caranthir, and Jamie Hyneman fits the bill for Brandir the Lame. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/9 "2012-10-13T21:58:55Z")
Sauron should be somebody super handsome who can play a bad guy. Matt Damon. Morgoth should be the voice of James Earl Jones. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/10 "2012-10-13T22:50:16Z")
Feanor will be tough to cast. He’s one scary dude, but not in an evil way. We have plenty of actors who do scary evil, few who can do scary good. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/11 "2012-10-13T23:03:48Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > A bunch of people who haven’t been born yet. > > I believe the work goes public domain 70 years after the death of the author-since Christopher Tolkien is still around, said film could be made no earlier than 2082. Surely they could buy the rights. Otherwise how did the Harry Potter series get filmed? ---
**Author:** ![the\_diego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@the\_diego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_diego)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/12 "2012-10-13T23:09:17Z")
If filmed in Brooklyn: Manwe: Danny Aielo Aule: Al Pacino Mandos: James Gandolfini Melkor: Robert De Niro Sauron: Joe Pesci If in Southern California: Manwe: Andy Garcia Aule: Bruce Willis Mandos: Samuel Jackson Melkor: Danny Trejo Sauron: Cheech Marin ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/13 "2012-10-13T23:31:00Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > Feanor will be tough to cast. He’s one scary dude, but not in an evil way. We have plenty of actors who do scary evil, few who can do scary good. Christopher Walken? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/14 "2012-10-13T23:33:08Z")
I don’t think that the creation saga would be done justice by actors. You could make an abstract anime about it, though. Same thing goes for the War of Wrath (except less abstract.) Great animation opportunities there, and done in an anime style it would be great to see elves’ eyes literally glowing with the light of the West. ---
**Author:** ![Lasciel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@Lasciel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lasciel)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/15 "2012-10-13T23:55:37Z")
> [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](#): > > Surely they could buy the rights. After the dustup with Jackson and LoTR, and now The Hobbit as a trilogy? Over Christopher’s dead body, which gets us right back where we started from. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/16 "2012-10-14T00:16:50Z")
Well, it could still be quicker if whoever inherits the rights from Christopher is more amenable to selling. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/17 "2012-10-14T17:17:40Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > Christopher Walken? Too old. Feanor is an Elf, who presumably is forever physically at peak maturity, say, 21 years old. Who can do good scary at that age? ---
**Author:** ![Lars\_Aruns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Lars\_Aruns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lars_Aruns)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/18 "2012-10-14T23:57:51Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > Feanor will be tough to cast. He’s one scary dude, but not in an evil way. We have plenty of actors who do scary evil, few who can do scary good. How about Jeremy Clarkson… “These Silmarils are the most wondrous gems… _in the world_.” ---
**Author:** ![the\_diego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@the\_diego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_diego)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/19 "2012-10-15T00:09:05Z")
How would you cast Johnny Depp? I’d give him either Finrod Felagund or Earendil. But with his Sweeney Todd makeup, he’ll make a good orc officer. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577/20 "2012-10-15T00:28:09Z")
> [@the\_diego](#): > > How would you cast Johnny Depp? Tom Bombadil! (Making up for the exclusion from LotR.) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/casting-for-the-silmarillion/637577.md?page=2)