Boo.
I have nothing against the new actress who has been cast. In fact, I'm pretty sure she will be just fine. She was probably on the short list for Catelyn even before Ehle was cast, so there's little reason to worry about her acting ability. As a side note, I do NOT actually think she looks too old (they are aging the Starks up, so it makes sense), but she IS plainer looking than Ehle. I don't think this is a deal breaker, as long as her hair is dyed red and make up and lighting work to flatter her. It seems clear the producers are going for Catelyn as being markedly plainer than Cersei, though, which is not exactly true to the books (where it can be inferred that Catelyn is pretty hot herself) but it's not a huge deal.
But I'm still really bummed because Jennifer Ehle is one of my favorite actresses thanks to her role as Lizzie Bennett in the 1995 "Pride and Prejudice" mini series (she's also quite good in the movies "Paradise Road" and "Possession"). I was so looking forward to having her on my TV every week playing a character that I really like in a story that I love. Since everything about the Game of Thrones series has been really positive so far, this bit of bad news has hit me pretty hard.
I'm still psyched about the show, but with Ehle out, I'm less psyched than before.
4 comments:
I’ve actually found some images on the ‘net of Michelle Fairley where she has red hair, I’m not sure how old they are, though. She looks very Catelyn in those. On the other hand I was unaware that Jennifer Ehle was in Paradise Road, which is a film I enjoyed immensely. There’s not a bad performance in that, even Glenn Close kept the overacting down to a minimum. So losing Ehle from the cast of AGoT is a blow, especially as there was a definite resemblance between her and Sophie Turner, who plays Sansa. Given that the books play up Sansa’s resemblance to her mother (one of the reasons Littlefinger is so attracted to her) this was a great bit of casting which unfortunately now doesn’t work out quite so well.
Yeah, I'm most concerned about the resemblance issue. Sansa's resemblance to her mother is a pretty crucial plot point for the whole Littlefinger storyline, so hopefully they can use hair and make-up to make Fairley look as much like Sophie Turner as possible.
Thanks for the comment!
Apparently Daenerys is being recast, too. No one seems to know whether it's because Tamzin Merchant wants out (doubtful; actors like work, generally spaeking) or HBO wants her out.
I'm not familiar with her at all -- never seen the Tudors, and her part in P&P was pretty small -- so I don't know if this is good news or bad news.
Yeah, saw that about Tamzin Merchant, JJ. Honestly? I kinda hope they do recast Dany's character.
It might be unfair (because the character is written like an annoying half-wit airhead) but Merchant's "Katherine Howard" on THE TUDORS is horrible. I'm gleefully awaiting the episode where she gets executed for treason.
So while I was willing to give Merchant a chance at playing Dany, I was never too enthused about her (and this has nothing to do with her looks but everything to do with her acting ability).
So while I'm really sad about Ehle's departure, I'm kinda hoping they do recast Dany and ditch Merchant.
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