Castium Revelio: Goodbye “Gentleman Jack,” Hello Upside Down
Welcome to this week’s edition of MuggleNet’s Casting News! We’ve got two fewer trailers to show you than we did last week, but we also have new projects for Sonia Friedman and some sad news on a Gemma Jones project. Castium Revelio!
Before we get into all of that, however, we have an interview with Ralph Fiennes (Lord Voldemort) about his role in the drama-mystery film The Forgiven. He described his experience reuniting with Jessica Chastain as “inflammatory” and said that the scenes they shot together “had tension in them because of the relationship” but that there was nothing in them “that felt momentously awkward or dangerous.” When asked whether he would ever return to the Wizarding World, he joked, “I think Voldemort should reappear, and there should be Voldemort’s Bride, played by Jessica.” Would you like to see that as much as Fiennes does?
We’re kicking off the trailers next. The Woman King is an upcoming historical drama inspired by the lives of the Agojie, an all-female troop of fierce warriors, and the general who is left to train the next generation. Hero Fiennes Tiffin (11-year-old Tom Riddle) is set to play Santo Ferriera in the film, and you can see him in action in the trailer below!
We’ve got unfortunate news for any Gentleman Jack fans. HBO canceled the series after its second season aired earlier this year. Gemma Jones (Madam Pomfrey) starred in both seasons of the show, which is based around the life of Anne Lister, whose coded diaries have led to people labeling her as the first modern lesbian. The network said in a statement, “It’s been tremendously gratifying to see how Anne Lister’s journey has resonated with viewers.”
Our final two stories this week feature Sonia Friedman (producer of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child). Helen Hunt (As Good as It Gets) has been cast in the lead role for Friedman’s company’s production of Eureka Day. The production will be the show’s European premiere and will take place between September 6 and October 31 at the Old Vic theater in London. Will you be hoping to see the production?
Last but not least is a new stage play that will be produced by Friedman. The play comes as part of the newly formed production company Upside Down Pictures, owned by the Duffer brothers (creators of Stranger Things). There aren’t many details about the play yet, other than that it is set in the Stranger Things universe and will use some of the show’s mythology. Stephen Daldry (The Crown) is already on board to direct.
A new stage play set within the world and mythology of Stranger Things, produced by prolific and multi award-winning producers Sonia Friedman, Stephen Daldry (The Crown, Billy Elliot, The Reader), and Netflix. Daldry will also direct.
— Netflix (@netflix) July 6, 2022
That’s a wrap on this week’s Casting News! Which of these stories has made you most excited about its project? Let us know in the comments below.
