Newbury and Hobbes Dream Casting: Ioan Gruffudd as Sir Maurice Newbury
If you haven't noticed by now I have a tendency to always cast the books I'm reading with actors from film and television. It's just a weird quirk of mine that I've always had, like the first time I read Harry Potter and saw Richard E. Grant as Lupin, an impression that stuck so thoroughly that whenever I watch the movies I can't help thinking how wrong they got it with David Thewlis. Not that I have anything wrong with him, well maybe he could be held accountable for The Island of Dr. Moreau, he's just not who I pictured. Ever since I started this blog I've started to share my odd little casting ideas, and I figured, well, why stop now when I have to tell you who I think should star in George Mann's books if (fingers crossed) they were ever to become a series.
Name: Ioan Gruffudd
"Dream" Character Casting for the George Mann Newbury and Hobbes Miniseries: Sir Maurice Newbury
First Impression: My love of Ioan is actually one of my very first big celebrity crushes. Because I have spent so much time hopelessly in love with his acting I actually don't remember the first time I sat up and took notice. I devoured everything he's ever been in from the oddly Welsh Very Annie Mary, to that horrid drug movie Shooters. But there's a part of me that's pretty sure, deep down, that it was his role as the doomed Philip Bosinney in The Forsyte Saga that captured my heart. Even if he did have some follicular issues...
Why they'd be the perfect actor for the Newbury and Hobbes Miniseries: Not only does Ioan have that upper class bearing, but there's a jovialness to him that makes me think the camaraderie with Veronica and the strolling off to fight crime arm in arm wouldn't come off as false being said by him. Yet there's a darkness that he is able to portray that makes it not seem impossible that he might dabble in the occult or various dangerous substances.
Lasting Impression: Horatio Hornblower. I mean how could this NOT be my lasting impression of him. I devoured this series from beginning to end in a very rapid fashion. I even became so obsessed with the time period of the show I watched all the DVD extras about ships and sailing, hence I know all about powder monkeys!
What else you've seen them in: Ioan is probably best known for his forays into blockbusters, starring in the Fantastic Four movies as Reed Richards, Mister Fantastic, and yes, I did sadly see this in the theaters, but it wasn't nearly as embarrassing as paying to see that horrid King Arthur adaptation. And I just saw that he was on a few episodes of Glee... ok, that's weird. Also he did a guest stint on Castle which made me realize why I'd fallen for him all those years earlier. Though the average person will probably know him for his string of failed or failing television shows, Century City, Ringer, and Forever. Though if I were you I'd totally check out Forever because it's campy fun with a Sherlock Holmes vibe, and it's his first show that I really hope won't be cancelled.
Can't believe it's them: He was in a Westlife video? OMG! This video for their cover of "Uptown Girl" is totally awesome and has Charles Bingley and Tim McInnerny from Blackadder in it! And the guy who left Edith at the altar in Downton Abbey! Though of course the version of "Uptown Girl" from Ashes to Ashes will win every time in a contest. You have to watch the Ioan version though!
Wish they hadn't: Of all the shows I've seen him in I'd say Ringer with Sarah Michelle Geller was the absolute worst. So let's remove that from his CV if you please! Though Shooters was pretty bad as well... and why did he do that Madonna movie? I mean, I know it's his job and he needs to make money, but there's some bad movies here for such an amazing actor.
Bio: Despite many people thinking he's English, he's actually Welsh, which you can occasionally detect from the lovely lilting tone in his voice. His name, despite spelling (ah, those crazy Welsh), is pronounced Yo-wahn Griffith. As a teenager he got a start on a Welsh soap opera and then he attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts from 1992-1995. A year after graduating he was cast in the new version of Poldark, which was sadly not picked up despite how good it was. Small roles in big budget movies started to come in as well as leads in television shows. Perhaps the most famous movie he was in is Titanic! He met his wife on the set of 102 Dalmatians and they have two daughters and live in LA. Hopefully his new starring lead show Forever will make him a bigger household name, a name he totally deserves... at least hopefully it will lead to people learning how to pronounce his name!
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