TolkienMovies.com
April 22, 2001

Opinions on Casting
Jean Marie

I've read a lot of other peoples opinions on casting lately and find them to be mostly uninformed and based merely on whether or not the particular person speaking likes the 'look' of the actor or not.

Miranda Otto, an actress merely in her early twenties, too old for Eowyn? Really? Di Carpio more suited to the movie than the fine ensemble of actors and actresses PJ has picked, and yet Tyler's inclusion is offensive?! First off let me start with Viggo. The fabulous Viggo, the marvelous Viggo, I had absolutely no clue who he was when he was cast so I did what seemed natural to me: I rented one of his movie and formed my opinion of his casting on his(substantial) acting ability and talent. He quickly became one of my favorite actors and now I can't think of him and Aragorn separately.

Same thing with Otto: I rented What Lies Beneath, sat back and decided she was one of the most talented younger actresses I've ever seen. I've been a fan of both Astin and Wood for a long time now and was pleased with both.