I thought of John Cusack as Ford Prefect too, or if not Kevin Spacey.
I think Gary Oldman would make an excellent Zaphod Beeblebrox - he looks like a man who would perform his own brain surgery.
I was stumped for Trillian. Holly Hunter maybe, if she doesn't look too old yet.
The voice of Marvin should definitely be Steven Wright.
There was a rumour circulating that Bruce Campbell was up to play Zaphod. It seems to be unsubstanstiated, but it's a lovely thought.
Michael Palin would be great as the Book. Indeed, he was one of the original choices for the role in the radio version.
Steven Wright as Marvin? "I think you oughta know I'm feeling depressed. Real depressed. This morning someone stole all the diodes in my left hand side and replaced them with exact duplicates."
Stephen Wright as Marvin - hmm, too American? A shame to think that the producers would dumb-down Marvin's wonderful Hancock-esque peeved/depressive dialogue into GenX whinging. Surely, if Frasier can be as popular as it is, Americans surely understand well-written English, if not produce it themselves?
Michael Palin as the Book - hmm, too recognisable maybe - would we be able to forget it was Palin speaking at all? And Fry always sounds too smug. Robert Llewellyn in Kryten mode? Now that'd be funny.
Hugh Laurie as Dent - now that's a good idea - Laurie's trademark 'guppy mouth agape' look would be perfect for the perma-bewildered Arthur.
I would actually doubt that 'The Book' would feature in the film at all. Ditto a lot of the characters. I remember Adams talking about the film script once, saying something along the lines of 'If you read the first book, anything that doesn't happen as part of the main story - that's the film'.
So it looks like he's going to take a completely different slant on the story again. That'll be good though - better than attempting to compress everything down from the original scripts.
Hope it gets made soon - over the past twenty years the two Adams-related news stories that keep popping up have been 'Hitch-Hiker Goes Hollywood' and stuff about him being about to get married (and they only ran the latter so they can do a pun on 'Space Hiker Gets Hitched' etc).
>Stephen Wright as Marvin - hmm, too American? A shame to think that the producers would dumb-down Marvin's wonderful Hancock-esque peeved/depressive dialogue into GenX whinging. Surely, if Frasier can be as popular as it is, Americans surely understand well-written English, if not produce it themselves?
The central problem with Wright as Marvin is that he wouldn't be bitter enough - hence my suggestion of Rickman. Paul Merton could do it well. (PS - Wright - 'genX whinging? I don't think so - too abstract and surreal.)
>Michael Palin as the Book - hmm, too recognisable maybe - would we be able to forget it was Palin speaking at all? And Fry always sounds too smug. Robert Llewellyn in Kryten mode? Now that'd be funny.
I think it's really important that whoever voices the book is deadpan - Llewellyn would be too ''jokey'. I still think Peter Sallis (voice of Wallace in Wallace and Gromit, and Clegg - the only funny thing about 'Last of the Summer Wine') would do a sterling job.
>Hugh Laurie as Dent - now that's a good idea - Laurie's trademark 'guppy mouth agape' look would be perfect for the perma-bewildered Arthur.
If the thing ever gets made I think Laurie is a shoe-in for Arthur
One rumour currently doing the rounds is that Laurie is 'doing Hollywood' (Sense & Sensibility, Stuart Little, Mousehunt etc.) in order to score a few hits and put him in a good position to secure the part of Dent. Also Jay Roach (Austin Powers, Meet the Parents) is apparently looking to direct -- another strong contender after a good run of successes.
Also Adams is supposed to be very keen on having Laurie play Dent.
>Also Adams is supposed to be very keen on having Laurie play Dent.
If you go onto Douglas Adams' site (www.douglasadams.com), there's a forum to which he occasionally contributes. He's been very quiet lately though, which, reading between the lines of previous postings, seems to imply that they're having trouble getting the final go-ahead to start filming.
Other stuff which has been on there over the last few months:
1. Marvin will be Stephen Moore (correctly, in my view). As it's a voice part only, the fact that he's aged 20 years since the radio/TV show doesn't matter, as it does with the other actors (hence no Simon Jones as Arthur).
2. Adams did say he liked hearing casting suggestions on the forum.
3. The 'script' got reviewed and panned on another site. Adams, however, said that the script which was reviewed wasn't legit (again, reading between the lines, it might have been an early draft - it seems to have been through quite a few).
4. Jay Roach *is* directing.
5. There was a rumour that Disney were getting cold feet, which led to Adams suggesting that tickets are sold before the movie is even made, to prove to them that there's enough interest that it will be a box office success. They (Disney) seem to be nervous, because it's big budget.
6. Adams does seem to want Hugh Laurie as Arthur. Other than that and Stephen Moore as Marvin, he says there are no restrictions on nationality of actors.
7. There seems to be a strong possibility of Sean Connery as Slartibartfast.
8. Er...
9. That's it.
And now the weather with Suzanne Charlton...
John Malkovich would do the voice of the book wonderfully - his deadpan delivery (too obvious for Marvin the Paranoid Android) would be ideally suited to the surreality of the script.
Sean "I have you in my shites" Connery as Slartibartfast? Please no, that would be dreadful.
"pan galactic gargle blaster, shaken, not stirred"
Gene Wilder could be good as Ford, but he's probably too old and I think I read somewhere he's very ill as well, or did I just make that up?
Jim Carrey was rumoured to have got the Zaphod role not long ago, but I think Doug Adams has since confirmed that's bollocks.
Might there be a part for Eric Sykes in it?
>Gene Wilder could be good as Ford, but he's probably too old and I think I read somewhere he's very ill as well, or did I just make that up?
His wife died after a protracted bout of cancer, if that's what you're thinking of. He abandoned his acting career to nurse her through it. I don't know if he himself is ill. He's been in some cock-awful films, but he is a genius comic actor. Bless him.
>Sean "I have you in my shites" Connery as Slartibartfast? Please no, that would be dreadful.
Oh come on, it would be worth it just to hear him *say* "Slartibartfast"...
Which "cock-awful" films has Gene Wilder been in?
'See No Evil, Hear No Evil' for a start...
'Haunted Honeymoon'...
From the F.A.Q at www.genewilder.org:
>What is the current status of Gene Wilder's health?
>Mr. Wilder is currently in good health. He's in remission from a recent bout with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
So now you know.
FWIW, my favourite Wilder scene: the moment from 'Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex' where the Armenian farmer tells him he's in love with a sheep, and Wilder struggles to think of something to say.
It's possibly the longest double-take in screen history. And, if memory serves, the best.
Al done:
>I still think Peter Sallis (voice of Wallace in Wallace and Gromit, and Clegg - the only funny thing about 'Last of the Summer Wine') would do a sterling job.
And it doesn't hurt that his voice sounds almost exactly like Peter Jones'?
Cheerio
Steve
>Al done:
>
>>I still think Peter Sallis (voice of Wallace in Wallace and Gromit, and Clegg - the only funny thing about 'Last of the Summer Wine') would do a sterling job.
>
>And it doesn't hurt that his voice sounds almost exactly like Peter Jones'?
I *knew* there was a reason why this seemed such a good idea...
Bill Oddie might be good as Ford.
How about Philip Seymour Hoffman as Hotblack Desiato, William H. Macy as Arthur Dent (the perennial loser caught up in circumstances beyond his control, although WHM might be a bit old)? Michael Alexander St. John as the voice of the book?
How about Tom Baker as the voice of the book? Great voice and a nice "in-joke" for the fans.
> There was a rumour circulating that Bruce Campbell was up to play Zaphod. It seems to be unsubstanstiated, but it's a lovely thought.
The ol' aintitcool site had someone posting saying they'd bumped into Jay Roach at the store they worked at, and that he'd been saying he REALLY would like Campbell to play that role in an ideal world...which cued lots of "YES!YES!YES!' type language, whilst at the same time accepting that it was something of a pipe dream.....
Arthur Dent *has* to be English. He should be a relative unknown as no big star would take what is effectively the role of an amiable loser who has stuff happen to him.
Hugh Grant would be good. Richard Herring too, but it'll never happen.
Voice of Marvin - original guy if he's still alive.
So token Americans for box office appeal:
Zaphod Beeblebrox - Bill Murray?
Stephen Moore is still alive and would be brilliant, again, as Marvin.
Jim Broadbent as Arthur? He's quite well known in Hollywood - got an Oscar nomination, didn't he?
Jim Broadbent? Who he? (Sorry, I'm ignorant).
>Jim Broadbent? Who he? (Sorry, I'm ignorant).
http://amazon-uk.imdb.com/Name?Broadbent,+Jim
OK, no mention of an Oscar nomination. Perhaps he just went to the Oscars on the back of Bullets Over Broadway and it stuck in my mind because he looked so out of place. Looks like he's got some big films coming up next year, so they haven't forgotten him...
Just as long as it's not Jim Carrey!
It won't be, unless Doug Adams takes complete leave of his senses.
Kevin Spacey could be a talking door!
How about Morwenna Banks as Trillian?
And Robbie Williams as a Vogon poet *snigger*
Douglas Adams is currently in the country because, he says, the film is finally being made "after twenty years of development hell". This came at the end of a very good, if slightly rushed, interview on BBC News 24's "Hard Talk" the other night. No other details were forthcoming, as it was the last question he was asked, and they only had about 5 seconds before the credits rolled.
Arthur - Hugh Laury or Richard E Grant
Ford - Adrian Paul or Paul McGann
Slartibartfast - Richard Wilson or Jonathon Pryce or Tom Baker .
Zaphod - Richard E Grant , Tim Curry .
The Ship - Julian Clary .
Marvin - Richard Wilson or Tom Baker .