Role Call: Singing the “Star Wars” Blues
This week, we take a journey with an old friend to India, catch up with a troubled royal, get a peek at what Oliver Wood’s been up to, and lament the release date delays in a galaxy far, far away. All that and more in MuggleNet’s weekly Role Call!
We may never have gotten to see him bring Teddy Lupin to life in the Harry Potter films, but that doesn’t mean we don’t still have a bit of a crush on Luke Newberry and follow what he’s up to. For fans who reside in Wales, here’s your chance to meet the star, who was recently announced as a guest for Wales Comic Con this April!
NEW MEDIA GUEST #WCC2016 – Luke Newberry #InTheFlesh #Sherlock #Hercules #FromDarkness pic.twitter.com/5wSJ2S78yw
— Wales Comic Con (@walescomiccon) January 17, 2016
For more information on how you can purchase tickets and set your sights on meeting Luke, check out the Wales Comic Con website here.
As we previously announced, Churchill’s Secret is set to debut this fall on PBS, starring Sir Michael Gambon. The actor recently appeared at the Television Critics’ Association event for Masterpiece and PBS to talk about the role, and the network sent out this photo via Instagram:
Also attending the TCA in a panel for PBS, Sir Kenneth Branagh announced he will return to his former character Detective Kurt Wallander this May as part of the Masterpiece Mysteries program. This will be the fourth and final season for the Wallander series, in which the detective suspects he may be suffering from Alzheimer’s, just like his father. The final season is set to premiere on May 8.
A number of projects related to Harry Potter cast members were nominated and received awards as part of the Critics’ Choice Awards last week. Here’s the full list, and congratulations to all who were recognized!
For those itching to see Matt Lewis in his role opposite Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke, Me Before You has changed their date once again. The film is now back to its original premiere date of June 3 instead of the March premiere, according to Deadline.
Have you been missing Sean Biggerstaff lately? Fans in the UK will get their chance to see the actor perform on stage this year, as he tackles a lead role at the Bush Theatre in the play Right Now. From March 23 to April 16, Biggerstaff can be seen in the role of Ben. Here’s a quick plot description:
Settling into their idyllic new flat, Alice and Ben become acquainted with their seemingly welcoming and accommodation neighbours from across the hall. Suggesting drinks, hors d’oeuvres and dancing, Juliette, Giles, and their son Francis soon begin to unsettle the couple, resulting in innocent invitations leading to far more unsettling matters.
To learn more about the play or to purchase tickets, visit the show’s website here.
Two former Potter stars have made recent appearances backing health-related advances and initiatives. Julie Walters helped unveil a £500,000 3D breast screening machine at Royal Surrey County Hospital, which is said to help diagnose cancer earlier by 25%. Here are a few photos from the reveal of the new machine:
Warwick Davis and his wife Sam also participated in an official opening of Grantham and District Hospital’s hospice unit which provides palliative and end-of-life care to patients closer to home, saving time and money for families who previously had to make a lengthy trip outside of the county. Warwick gave a speech and then unveiled a plaque which declared the hospice unit open, saying,
It is a great honour to be asked here to open this pioneering hospice in the hospital, which is providing the benchmark for palliative care across the county. After speaking with the patients here, it is clear how important a unit like this is. It really is great to be here and be part of history in the making by declaring this facility open.
Harry Potter illustrator Kazu Kibuishi and his wife Amy, also an illustrator, will be in attendance this April at the Alaska Robotics Mini-Con in Juneau!
We’ll be in Juneau to be w/ great friends & you can join us: https://t.co/kOXFssz2TR The guest list: https://t.co/M5MajIQ9mN @alaskarobotics
— Kazu Kibuishi (@boltcity) January 20, 2016
They join a long list of talented artists who will be on hand to talk about what they do and why they do it, meet fans in the community, and participate in drawing hangouts. The Comic Convention and Artist Camp will run from April 22-24.
Miriam Margolyes might not seem the type, but her latest adventure just proves that you should never judge a book by its cover. The actress recently journeyed to India to participate in a reality television series based on Dame Maggie Smith‘s film series The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Titled The Real Marigold Hotel, the BBC series sent eight aged celebrities to Jaipur to see if the hotel and the country really were ideal for those in their final years. Margolyes spoke to Radio Times about her experience in a recent interview, saying,
In India, the elderly are seen as heads of the family, there to dispense advice on issues ranging from the investment of family money to the intricacies of traditional rituals. There is a social stigma attached to disrespecting the older generations.
On whether or not she would retire to India, she shoots down the notion:
I wouldn’t consider retiring to India. There are too many people and it’s difficult walking along the pavements. I’d love to spend two or three months a year there.
Finally, she sums up her time in Jaipur positively:
We all ended up with a profound admiration for the country, its wonderful people, and felt privileged. Of course, we were apprehensive in the beginning.
The Real Marigold Hotel three-part series premieres on BBC Two on January 26.
We’ve been missing Hagrid something fierce as of late, especially given all the talk about Newt and his fantastic beasts. While not nearly as dangerous as his half-giant counterpart, actor Robbie Coltrane‘s next role might make you forget all about Hagrid. The actor is slated to join Julie Walters in a “shocking” new role based on real-life events. Coltrane will tackle fallen comedian Paul Finchley, who was caught in a sex scandal. Walters will play his wife. The drama, titled National Treasure, also happens to have a third Harry Potter connection: it has been penned by Harry Potter and the Cursed Child writer Jack Thorne. The four-part production is scheduled to begin filming in Leeds in February.
Toby Jones, who voiced Dobby in the Potter series, is slated to appear next week on the Graham Norton Show as part of the media promotion for the upcoming film Dad’s Army. The film, a movie-version of the British television series, also stars Potter cast members Bill Nighy and Sir Michael Gambon. The episode will air on BBC One January 29.
Stage and screen actor David Tennant is wrapping up his award-winning role in Richard II at the Barbican Centre, and new photos have surfaced. He once again dons the long locks of his character, looking as regal as he did in his previous performance in 2014. This won’t be the last time he’ll embody the troubled king, as he is set to take the production to New York this March.
Finally, Star Wars fans will have to wait a tad bit longer for the next episode in the epic series, starring Domhnall Gleeson as General Hux. Only a few days ago, Disney and LucasFilm announced that they have moved Episode VIII to December 2017 from their original plan to release the film during the 2017 summer blockbuster season. This follows the record-shattering premiere of The Force Awakens outside of the summer season, when box office records tend to skyrocket. The film is scheduled to begin production in London next month.
That wraps up this week’s Casting News – and it was a long one! There are so many great projects in the works that we can’t help but be excited for what’s in store. Tell us what you’re most excited about by commenting below or dropping us a tweet here! We love hearing from readers, so don’t be shy!
