To hate when a television adaptation uses actors who look nothing like the description in the book

[Vintagejazz]

I was watching an Agatha Christie adaptation last night and two of the main characters looked absolutely nothing like the way they're described by AC. In fact one looked the exact opposite. I know casting directors have to take account of other things besides looks, but I find it irritating when there seems to be no resemblance between the book description and the actor chosen.

AIBU?

The Reacher thing and Emma Thompson in sense and s are both the fault of the director's ego iirc, they were the directors/producers of both and Wanted the big role, dammit!!

I thought Louise Dylan made a really good Harriet Smith, i can't believe anyone could think her plain.

Lucy is definitely dark-haired in the original Narnia illustrations.

Never mind Jane Eyre, I long for the day someone gets Cathy and Heathcliff right - and actually sticks to how the story is told in the book rather than missing half of it out. It's never gonna happen - not even Olivier was right.

Billie Piper was in an Austen adaptation (can't remember which one)

It was most distracting. She looked like she had been wandering round All Saints in 2002 and stumbled onto the set wearing a muslin frock.

She just looked all wrong.

To be fair Louise Dylan in the Romolai Garai Emma wasn't bad - though perhaps still not the head-turner I had in mind. But generally speaking casting directors and make-up miss the point of the character.

Ray Winstone's 'my old man's a dustman' portrayal of Henry VIII was all kinds of wrong as well....

Tiny Winona Ryder as the 'coltish' Jo March (Little Women). The book goes on about Jo's awkward long limbs, why oh why pick a teeny tiny actress?

Any character that's meant to be on the old/ugly side ends up being played by a beautiful young actress.

I liked Tom Cruise as Lestat. He wasn't quite how I pictured Lestat from the novels,but I thought he did a good job.

I had more of a problem with Armand in the film.

I didn't mind Tom Cruise as Lestat either even though he wasn't like I'd pictured him. Brad Pitt played Brad Pitt as always though.

While we're on the subject, can I just mention Carey Mulligan is going to play Bathsheba Everdene in a new adaptation of Far from the Madding Crowd which is all kinds of wrong and I haven't even seen it yet.

I'm prepared to eat my words but she was awful as Daisy in The Great Gatsby too.

Angelica Houston as Viviane in The Mists of Avalon. I think she's a fantastic actress but Viviane is supposed to be a tiny, child-like figure, not a statuesque, imposing woman.

Also David Thewlis as Lupin - I think my main problem lies with his moustache, it's a bit...seedy. I thought Kevin McKidd would have made a great Lupin. Also reckon younger Gary Oldman would have been an amazing Sirius, but not so much older Gary Oldman.

Leonardo Dicaprio as Richard in the movie of The Beach was all wrong.

Also Leo as Frank Abagnale in Catch Me If You Can.

Both utterly wrong and one of them is a real life person

Lol at me jumping on this but Disgruntled did you know Angelica Houston also played Mrs Brown of Mrs Brown's Boys? of Mrs Brown 'Da Movie' genre?

I had no idea, and no sympathy, when I saw a clip.

Yes, Billie Piper was in North Hanger Abbey (sp?)
And it was painful to watch...

Disagree about Anna Maxwell Martin in Death Comes to Pemberley. Don't want to be too mean, as she is a very good actress, but she was about 10 years too old for the part (in the time line of DCTP Lizzie is supposed to be about 27/28, but AMM is late thirties, and looks it). She is also too ordinary looking.

Jane Austen never says Lizzie is not good looking, just not as stunning as Jane. Remember when Mr Collins wants to marry one of the sisters, he is first interested in Jane, but Mrs Bennet hints that Jane might be engaged soon and Mr Collins 'had only to change from Jane to Elizabeth - equally next to Jane in birth and beauty'.

Maybe people are thinking of the ball where Mr Darcy won't ask Lizzie to dance as she is only 'tolerable'. But there he is just being picky and snobby, and showing that the local people are not good enough for him!

Loads of Harry Potter ones.

I thought Daniel Radcliffe was good as Harry in the first films but didn't grow into the part at all. To be fair, I suppose the producers who originally cast him couldn't have predicted that.

But the worst was the girl who played Ginny Weasley. In the book, she's cool, sexy and brave. The actress who plays her is drippy and insipid, particularly in the later films. So disappointing.

Agree with Billie Piper as Fanny was totally wrong and I think JK Rowling may have altered the plot of the later books to keep Ginny Weasley out of the action. Was watching Chamber of Secrets the other day and the actress was good - as a kid. Terribly wooden later though.

Gary Oldman is perfect for Sirius and I loved Lupin too.

And Richard Armitage should be in everything. Just because.

Well, Mrs. Bennet did have an agenda.

Speaking of P and P, the best Mr. Collins was David Bamber in the BBC production.

YANBU. I always felt they got Bridget Jones' Mother wrong in the film. Totally miscast. For some reason I imagined Julie Walters as her for some reason!

Yes scone but that quote was not from Mrs B but was from the narrator/Jane Austen! Sorry I don't know the correct literary terminology.

I always think that inspector Lynley should be blonde - and Havers teeth are too good and don't match what I think they are like- I am not sure if the pictures of them in my head come from the books or my imagination.

The woman in 'one day' was it Anne Hathaway? Gorgeous, when I imagined the girl in the book looked more like er me?

All of the Marauders in the HP films, except James' ghost, are too old. I think we work out that James and Lily had Harry aged about 21, and Lupin and Sirius appear in book 3 when Harry is 13, so should be early-mid 30s. Gary Oldman was in his late 40s, as was Timothy Spall, and David Thewlis only a few years younger. And I'm in the GO is not hot camp.

Hermione also far too pretty.

Yes suffolk Elinor was much closer to what I had imagined in the latest bbc adaptation but I really liked the casting of actress who played Marianne she really stood out for me and the sets/locations were far more in keeping with the books description so much better than the Emma Thompson film and not even going to go into Emma adaptations yet to see a half decent one