As I said in the teaser, this is for a
faithful adaptation for the graphic novel. I've seen the 2005 movie, and while it does contain great actors (such as Hugo Weaving and Natalie Portman), it is a poor adaptation. They've change several elements, like making V a freedom fighter rather than an anarchist. It's been butchered by Hollywood, like many great comics have been such as
Daredevil,
Constantine, and
Jonah Hex. To be as faithful to the comic as possible, almost every actor I have casted are British Iwith the exception of Danny Hutson).
Anyway, enough ranting. For the director, I chose Alfonso Cuarón (
A Little Princess,
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Askaban,
Children of Men). The dude is very underrated and I think he would be perfect for this project, especially after seeing
Children of Men.
Anyway, on with the cast:
Benedict Cumberbatch as V: A mysterious anarchist who seeks to systematically take down Norsefire, a facist party ruling a dystopian Britain. His face is hidden behind his trademark Guy Fawkes mask. He is experienced in the arts of explosives, subterfuge, and hacking, and has a vast literary, cultural, and philosophical intellect. V is the only survivor of Camp Larkhill's (a concentration camp where Jews, blacks, Muslisms, homosexuals, and people with leftist views were sent to) "Batch 5" experiment. Four dozen prisoners were given a compound that caused cellular anomalies, which killed all test subjects except him. The compound gave him advanced strength, relfexes, endurance, and pain tolerance.
Reason for Casting: Cumberbatch is a very talented, yet underrated actor. He has this very uniguw voice that I think would be perfect for V (remember, we don't see his face).
Emma Watson as Evey Hammond: A young woman whom V saves from being killed by the "Fingermen" (secret police). V takes her under his wing and she learns of his past and plight against Norsefire.
Reason for Casting: Although I think Portman did a good performance in the film adaptations, It annoyed me that they ignored the fact that Evey is suppose to be 16 years old. Watson is a talented young actress and I think she would be good in this role. It also helps that she has worked with my choice of director before.
Sean Pertwee as Inspector Eric Finch: The world weary chief of the New Scotland Yard and head of the Minister of Investigations (now called 'The Nose"). A pragmatist, he only sides with Norsefire because he would rather live in a with order rather than chaos.
Reason for Casting: Pertwee is another underrated actor. I liked his performance in
Dog Soldiers, and think he would fit this role like a glove.
Timothy Dalton as Adam Susan: The leader of the Norsefire party and the entire country, who is in love with the Fate computer. A solipsist, he believes that he and "God" (the Fate computer) are the only "true" beings. He embraces facicism and the racist notions of purity. It is implied that his embrace of facism was a response to his loneliness.
Reason for Casting: The former James Bond is a shoe-in for this role. He's played villains before (e.g.
The Rocketeer and Chuck). But it was his role as Rassilon in
Doctor Who that convinced me to cast him.
Malcolm McDowell as Bishop Anthony Lilliman: A corrupt priest who is the voice of the Norsefire party in the Church. He is a paedophile and molests young girls in his parishes. He once worked at Camp Larkhill, providing spiritual support to those participating in the "Batch 5" experiment. V later kills him by forcing him to take communion with a cyanide laced host.
Reason for Casting: McDowell is a terrific actor. It was mainly his role in
A Clockwork Orange that made me cast him.
Danny Hutson as Lewis: A former guard at Camp Larkhill who is now the "Voice of Fate", a radio boradcaster who give "information" to the public. V later kidnaps him and drives him insane with a combination of an overdose of Batch 5 and the shock of seeing his prized collection of porcelain dolls being burned in a mock recreation of Camp Larkhill.
Reason for Casting: As I said above, Hutson is the only non-british actor that I am casting. I've enjoyed his work (Borigins doesn't count) and think he'd be great in this role.
Helena Bonham Carter as Delia Surrdige: A former worker at Camp Larkhill who was in charge of the "Batch 5" experiments. She is the only of V's tormentors that is remorseful of her actions. V gives her a lethal injection, but she experiences a painless death. In the final moments of he life, she apologizes to V.
Reasons for Casting: Elizabeth Sladen would be my choice for the role if she was still alive (may she rest in peace). Carter is a great actress and impressed me with her work in
Room with a View and
The King's Speech.
Anthony Head as Peter Creedy: The succeeder of "The Finger" after Derek Almond's death, who wishes to replace Adam Susan as leader.
Reason for Casting: Head's another great actor who I think would be great in this role. I casted him after seeing him in the
Doctor Who episode
School Reunion.
Simon Pegg as Roger Dascombe: The head of the ministry of Propaganda called "The Mouth", who is openly effeminate.
Reason for Casting: I know you're all thinking "WTF? Why are you casing a comedian?". But Pegg has played serious roles before, such as William Hare in
Burke & Hare. He's the only person who fits the role.
Ray Winstone as Derek Almond: The head of the "Finger" (secret police) and a high ranking Norsefire official. After being warned by Finch, he attempted to stop V from killing Delia Surridge. However, he arrived too late and V killed him by impaling him with a knife.
Reason for Casting: Winstone has played gruff, tough guy roles in the past, so playing Almond wouldn't be a strecth.
Cate Blanchett as Helen Heyer: The ruthless and manipulative wife of Conrad Heyer. She uses her superior intellect to keep her husband in line (whom she considers worthless). She plans to use her husband posistion in the government to rule Britian, using him as a puppet leader. She sleeps with Alistair Harper and turns him against Peter Creedy.
Reason for Casting; Blanchett has played a manipulative bitch before in
Hanna, so this wouldn't be too hard for her to play.
James Callis as Conrad Heyer: The head of "The Eye", an agency that controls the country's CCTV system. His wife views him as pathetic and plans to use him as the leader of the Norsefire Party (a position which power is largely ceremonial), leaving her in charge of the country.
Reason for Casting: I decided to cast Callis based on his work on
Battlestar Galactica.
John Simm as Dominic Stone: Finch's partner within the Nose, who figures out the connection between V and the murders of the former Camp Larkhill workers.
Reason for Casting: I really do like his work on
Life on Mars.
Gerard Butler as Alistair Harper: A Scottish gangster who wishes to expand his influence into England. He is hired by Creedy as an emergency police force after V destroys the Eye, the Ear, and the Mouth (Norsefire's primary use to keep its citizens in order). However,he later sides with Helen Heyer after she offers him a place within the Finger after Conrad comes to power. Harper fulfills his end of the deal by slitting Creedy's throat with a straight razor.
Reason for Casting: Although I think Butler is not that great of an actor, I think he is perfect for the role of Harper. Plus, he is also Scottish.
Please leave your thoughts and comments below. I hope you have enjoyed this artcle.