Movies
B-D Casting Call: ‘Hellraiser’ Remake
The last time we did a casting call, for the Platinum Dunes remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street, rumors of our choices being approached for real (Jackie Earl Haley) actually started brewing on the web. While we didn’t start the rumors, we’re glad to see our choices got somebody going. We can only hope for half as much free press as we take a crack at another remake of an `80s horror classic, Hellraiser. The remake currently being scripted by Pascal Laugier (Martyrs) and Clive Barker recently told us Laugier plans to turn a draft in over the next week. Casting won’t be far behind, so just in case they need a hand, here’s who we’d pick.
Michael Shannon
You might not know the name, but one viewing of BUG or REVOLUTIONARY ROAD should have you convinced. Shannon is a terrific actor and there aren’t many others who can pull of his level of fearsome intensity more convincingly. Just watch some of Shannon’s work and then picture his piercing eyes as he stares into your soul and warns, “No tears, please. It’s a waste of good suffering.”
alternate: Hugo Weaving
Linda Fiorentino
Kevin Smith broke the news that the reason Fiorentino is so good at playing a bitch is because she has natural abilities in that area. Nevertheless, there’s nothing wrong with typecasting if it works. Fiorentino is the perfect wicked witch, although she’s kind of gone off the radar for the past decade so we might want to see how she’s kept herself up before deciding for sure.
alternate: Lauren Graham
Megan Fox
Is there really any part the ridiculously sexy Megan Fox is wrong for? Yeah, she might not be the greatest actress out there, but its not like Ashley Laurence was a master thespian by any means. Just skim down the original wardrobe as much as possible, bath Fox in blood and let us enjoy.
alternate: Mary Elizabeth Winstead
Dominic West
Yes, West was a bit over the top as Jigsaw in PUNISHER: WAR ZONE. But dial that performance down a bit and take a look at his extraordinary work on THE WIRE. PUNISHER proves West is willing to do genre material, so a role like this might not be such a long shot.
alternate: Joaquin Phoenix
Bill Pullman
Anyone who’s seen an episode of BIG LOVE knows Pullman could make a great choice for Frank. He plays the family man well and can easily bring on the crazy when the time comes for Frank to dress up in his skin.
alternate: Bill Paxton
Danny DeVito
Who else could possibly play Butterball as well as the original butterball of acting, Danny DeVito? The production could save a ton on cosmetics and he might look even scarier than the original.
alternate: Slimer
Samantha Morton
She looked pretty good as a baldy in MINORITY REPORT. Plus, she’s got some undeniable acting chops that would give Laugier the chance to expand this scant role from the original.
alternate: Scarlett Johansson
Matthew Lillard
Okay, this one is probably going to be an actor caked in a ton of makeup and prosthetics (see Doug Jones below), but its fun to think who might be cast if they were actually looking for an actor to actually fit the original look a bit. I can’t remember the last thing I saw Lillard in (and probably don’t want to) so what the heck, give the guy a job!
alternate: Doug Jones
A contemporary reimagining of H.P. Lovecraft’s short story Herbert West: Reanimator is on the way, and Deadline has unveiled the first look at the new Herbert West and the pathologist drawn to his orbit.
Adam Simon (The Haunting in Connecticut, “Salem”) and Tim Metcalfe (The Haunting in Connecticut, Kalifornia) penned the script. The original screenplay and storyline come from Jade Sandberg Wallace.
Michael Grossman (“The Originals”, “Pretty Little Liars”) directs.
The new images introduce star Joseph Morgan (“Vampire Diaries“), who plays “brilliant surgeon and scientist Herbert West, who is obsessed with creating a serum to reanimate the dead.” Katie Cassidy (Speed Demon) stars opposite as the pathologist with a troubled past who joins his efforts.
Together, they prove that conquering death may be the ultimate sin against life itself.
The film’s official synopsis: “As a child, Herbert West watches his father Peter reanimate his dead mother Judith in a secret basement lab — only for Judith to mortally wound Peter and nearly kill Herbert before Peter shoots her. The trauma leaves its mark on Herbert, but so does one final image: his mother’s finger, twitching after death. Thirty years later, Herbert West is a brilliant, secretive surgeon still chasing his father’s obsession.
“Pathologist Kate Locke arrives in town and is drawn into his orbit — first through a spark at a hospital fundraiser, then through his secret lab, where he reveals a serum capable of reanimating severed tissue. Kate, hiding a dark past of her own, is thrilled rather than horrified, and moves into West’s mansion to work alongside him. Their early experiments on a cadaver succeed only briefly. West concludes that dead tissue is the problem — they need something fresher.”
Supporting cast includes Scott Aiello, Ira J Amyx, Randall Newsome, Emma Reinagal, James D. Bryce, Kathryn A Bentley, Jack Lancaster, Amy Holland Pennell, John Pierson, Mindy Shaw, Eric Dean White, Tristan Wilder Hallet, Adrienne Lamping, Aaron Crippen, and Drew Patterson.
Makeup artist Jeff Lewis (“Star Trek: Voyager,” “Star Trek: Enterprise”) and cousin Roger Lewis are heading the production via their newly established Woodlake Entertainment.
Lovecraft’s short story, first serialized in Home Brew magazine in 1922, is the first among his works to mention the fictional Miskatonic University. It was most famously adapted into a 1985 horror movie from Stuart Gordon, starring Jeffrey Combs as Herbert West.
Herbert West: Reanimator is set in Alton, Illinois, where production is now underway.
Herbert West: Reanimator. Photo credit: Matt Lief Anderson
You must be logged in to post a comment.