Actors who 100% embodied character from book

[NEtoN10]

I was just thinking today about book to film adaptations and actors who I thought 100% embodied the character as I imagined them.

For me Helena BC as Bellatrix Lestrange, Ralph Fiennes as Voldemort, the whole cast of Matilda!

Who does it for you? Interested to hear !

Joan Hickson was the perfect Miss Marple.

I came on to say John thaw as Morse but darkchocolate beat me to it. I lived David Jason as Frost too. The whole cast of P&P BBC 1995. Meryl Streep in the devil wears prada.

John Thaw as Morse, perfect casting.

Definitely agree.

Sad piece of trivia, apparently when they were filming the storyline when morse dies thaw started to feel unwell but put it down to being too in the mindset of a sick morse? And initially ignored the symptoms. Whether this would have made a difference to the outcome nobody can know.

Thaw and morse had several things in common which I read somewhere was a bit of a new thing for thaw as he'd previously played characters he felt he had little in common with

Angelica Houston as the Grand High Witch

Another vote for Harriet Walter as Harriet Vane. Extraordinary casting.

I liked Jennifer Ehle's performance but she didn't embody Lizzie Bennett for me. However, Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma was perfect. I'd never seen her as blonde before, but now I always do.

Sophie Thompson embodies pretty much everyone she plays, but she's particularly good as Mary Elliott in the Amanda Root/Ciaran Hinds Persuasion.

Great actors can “be” the character without looking exactly like the character

Ashley Jensen as Agatha Raisin
Titus Welliver as Bosch

Two good examples

Gregory Peck in to kill a mockingbird

Graphista similar thing happened to John Spencer who played Leo in West Wing. His character has a massive heart attack and then so did he

Sam Heughan as Jamie Fraser in outlander
Ken Stott as Rebus
John Thaw as Morse

Ooh, @Graphista how can you say that about Geraldine McEwan, she was absolutely dreadful, dreadful voice, nothing about her said 'old pussy'!!! Sitting here listening to John Hickson read Murder at the Vicarage feeling affronted.

Bryce Dallas Howard in The Help. Actually I think all the casting was perfect.

Maggie Smith in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

Oh yes, Joan Hickson as Miss Marple.

And Alec Guinness as Smiley.

Both greatly approved by the authors, I believe.

I agree with Geraldine McEwan. In the books miss marple has a hint of nosy smug streak missing from Joan Hickson.

Fry and Laurie as Jeeves and Wooster are very good.

And yy to Harriet Walter as Harriet Vane.

And all of the casting of the Amanda Root/Ciaran Hinds Persuasion.

I'm team Joan Hickson all the way.

George Baker and Christopher Ravenscroft as Wexford and Burden. Perfect

Jack Nicholson in the shining.

Angrybird123. I never realised that re Wsst Wing- had thought it was a hasty rewrite when John Spencer died. I’d read that they were supposed to lose the election, which is why we were meant to be quite sympathetic to Vinnick, but when John Spencer died they thought it would be too sad, and changed the end. Am off to google now to see if I actually made all that up!!!

Also not a book but the actors who play Brian and Roger from Queen in the film of Bohemian Rhapsody are amazing.

legendsrevealed.com/entertainment/2013/01/21/what-arnold-vinick-going-to-win-the-presidency-on-the-west-wing-before-john-spencers-untimely-death/

(For anyone who cares- I didn’t totally make it up, but was still wrong!)

There are Star Trek books? That preceded the TV series?

That is brand new information!

Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes.

David Bowie in The Man who fell to earth