Role Call: Through the Looking Glass

This week, we take a look at our first clip from Alone in Berlin, catch up with Mrs. Weasley, and explore the last few films that will feature our beloved Alan Rickman. Check out MuggleNet’s weekly Role Call!

We previously reported on the casting of Emma Thompson (Sybill Trelawney) and Brendan Gleeson (Alastor “Mad-Eye” Moody) in the drama Alone in Berlin, which tells the story of an ordinary couple who fight against Nazi rule in Germany after their son is killed. The story is based on real-life events, and today, we bring you the first clip from the film via Variety. Take a look:

The film was entered into the Berlin Film Festival, which takes place this month from February 11 through February 21. Additionally, a special screening of Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson’s award-winning film, Sense and Sensibility, will also play during the festival on February 16 as a way to pay tribute to Rickman. Sense and Sensibility also boasts a handful of other Harry Potter actors, including Gemma Jones (Poppy Pomfrey), Elizabeth Spriggs (the original Fat Lady), Imelda Staunton (Dolores Umbridge) and Robert Hardy (Cornelius Fudge).

The Potter fandom is still dealing with the loss of icon Alan Rickman (Severus Snape), but we shall always have his films to look back on with fond memories. We still have two new films to look forward to: Eye in the Sky and Alice Through The Looking Glass.

Eye in the Sky is set to premiere at the Miami International Film Festival this March, with a screening set for March 5. In the film, Rickman plays Lt. Gen. Benson opposite Helen Mirren. Here’s the plot for the film:

A British citizen has joined the Somali terrorist group Al Shabab. From a high-tech control room, Col. Katherine Powell (Oscar-winner Helen Mirren) guides field operative Jama (Oscar nominee Barkhad Abdi of Captain Phillips) to gather intel that will enable capture and arrest. When Jama reports the high probability of an imminent suicide bombing, Powell confers with her immediate superior, Lt. Gen. Benson (the late, great Alan Rickman, in his final on-screen role), whose approval she requires to strike—and whose duty it is to determine if the inevitable civilian casualties constitute acceptable collateral damage.

Tickets for the festival will be available for purchase beginning February 12.

For those watching the Superbowl on Sunday, watch the commercials carefully. Alice Through the Looking Glass is slated to have a TV spot narrated by Rickman. Luckily, we have the clip right here. Don’t worry. We won’t tell anyone you went in search of a handkerchief at the sound of Rickman’s voice. We’re right there with you.

Alice Through the Looking Glass is set to premiere April 27, starring many recognizable Potter alum: Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange), Stephen Fry (voice of UK audiobooks), Rhys Ifans (Xenophilius Lovegood), Toby Jones (voice of Dobby) and Timothy Spall (Peter Pettigrew/Wormtail).

Speaking of Stephen Fry, he has a few new projects in the works as well. Recently announced is his participation in the animated film Duck, Duck, Goose. His exact role is not yet known but the film is currently listed as in production. Here’s a synopsis:

The film follows a high-flying goose bachelor as he is saddled with two wide-eyed orphans and works to keep his new pseudo-family safe from the impending winter and a nefarious cat.

Fry’s other film, Love & Friendship, also debuted at Sundance last month alongside Daniel Radcliffe’s (Harry Potter) farting corpse comedy, Swiss Army Man. Love & Friendship is based on Jane Austen’s novella The Lady Susan. Amazon acquired US rights last year but no date for a US release has yet been announced.

Ralph Fiennes (Lord Voldemort) will continue to rule the stage, according to a new listing of upcoming plays through 2018. He is slated to take on the role of Antony at the Olivier Theatre in Antony and Cleopatra. Helen McCrory (Narcissa Malfoy) will also bring her considerable talents to the Lyttleton Theatre as Hester in a production of The Deep Blue Sea from June 8.

Joining a new thriller is Gary Oldman (Sirius Black), who was recently announced as being cast in Gerard Butler’s long-awaited Hunter Killer. The film was shelved so Butler could take on the hit Olympus Has Fallen, but it appears the film is back on. While we are not sure of his specific role, Empire Online is stating that Oldman will be playing an American official.

A rogue Russian general who kidnaps his country’s president and looks to kick off World War III. Allied against him are an untested submarine captain, Joe Glass (Butler) and a Navy SEAL team.

Previously titled Metatonia, the film starring David Tennant (Barty Crouch, Jr.) and Sir Michael Gambon (Albus Dumbledore) has had a name change. Now called Mad To Be Normal, it is slated to film in Huddersfield and will explore the life of psychiatrist R.D. Laing. We hope to bring you more on this film soon!

Harry Potter director Mike Newell is in the running to direct a new film, Guernsey. Based on a best-selling novel, the story follows a writer who bonds with residents as she aims to tell the world about their experiences during World War II through her novel. For now, this appears to be only a rumor, but we are keeping our eyes open for you!

Finally, Variety has confirmed that Julie Walters (Molly Weasley) will reprise her film role as Ma Kehoe from Brooklyn in a spinoff television series for the BBC. The focus will be on Kehoe’s New York boarding house, and will feature the same group of Irish, British, and American young women as seen in the film, minus the role of Eilis Lacey, which was played by Saoirse Ronan.

That’s all for this week’s Casting News. Which projects are you most interested in seeing? Let us know in the comments!