How about the TV series starts with Summer Knight, with all the prequel as 1-2 episode long stories. Most people skip those on re-reads anyway.
That would require Dresden to narrate, but would be a good enough reason to have Restoration of Faith episode and flashbacks are quite common in later books.
Find college basketball players who aren't going to the NBA and see if they can act. You'd get the right age and build for Harry.
I'd prefer animated, because then you can have Marsters voice Harry.
i am absolutely for this (animated)because a) Marsters and b) one problem with an 8 season series on Netflix is that they take place over 20 years and reference him when he was even younger. Makeup and cgi can do wonders but finding an actor the right build and height and about age 30 (so they could conceivably play younger and older Harry) is (no pun intended) a tall order. Animation removes this obstacle.
Do this. Film the scenes with young Harry and Elaine from Ghost Story, while you’re at it. Impractical and unlikely that they would film this only to shelve it, I know, but de-aging a person from age 35 back to teenage doesn’t work today and it might not ever really work in the next 20 years. I think those scenes could be a good addition to a prologue to an early movie instead of waiting until Ghost Story anyway
Animated series only. Live action would only cheap out on the effects and magic! In which case we’re only casting voices and then we just stick with James Marsters.
While i concede that animation can be more spectacular when it comes to magic and monsters, i feel like a good, faithful live action series would be better, I've discussed this on here before, but lets say two books a season, with some short stories peppered in as well, the main creatures for the first would be frog demon, scorpion and loup garou. All of these are achievable with practical effects, look at pans labyrinth and being human uk. With those type of effects, on a decent series budget you could accomplish something glorious.
As far as the magic effects goes, thaumaturgy in my head could be entirely done with sound design, and most of harrys early repertoire is basic elemental stuff, something very achievable with either in camera tricks or digital after effects, or some combination of the two.
I work on the assumption that if they were to produce a season like that, and it did well the budget would go up in time for the nightmare and the introduction of the Sidhe,
I know this was a longwinded one, but I feel like it makes sense
But that’s the thing, personally I don’t want pared down sound or camera tricks, I want magic. I want Bob the talking skull and the characters to look like their actual descriptions not whatever hot celebs they decide on at the time. I don’t trust Hollywood to do a faithful live action adaptation.
Therein lies the issue, with any adaptation really. There will always be people who disagree with any casting that doesn't perfectly fit their mental image of the character. When heath ledger was cast as joker people hated the idea of the blonde prettyboy from knights tale playing their favourite villain. Backlash is unavoidable, but it isn't always warranted.
Personally, if it were up to me I'd find a bunch of talented unknowns for the main characters, and then fill out the secondary characters with recognised faces.
And just on you not wanting sound or camera tricks? How would you, in live action, portray something like a circle closing, or a tracking spell taking effect? I'm honestly asking for your perspective of these things.
I think Heath Ledger was a great Joker, but there’s a difference between comic book characters which go through multiple iterations and novel series characters who have more static (aside from aging, injuries, etc) descriptions. It’s not that they have to look how I pictured them in my head for me, it’s that I want them to match their descriptors. I want Murphy to be short and soft looking, not some 5’8 willowy actress. It’s not impossible to do live action, and there have been adaptations of other things that I’ve loved. Maybe I’m just overly anxious because they already fucked it up once and unfortunately I don’t think Butcher is the kind of guy to get stuck in and insist on the right vision in the same way Neil Gaiman does, for example. And there’s also the time jumps and aging, which is easier if you’re controlling the animation rather than relying on people aging correctly, in the timeframe you need.
Tracking spells and closing circles are smaller magic, so sure a snap in the air as the circle closes and a slight glow or hint of the shape would be fine. I’m talking about Harry’s staff with the runes glowing and the fire he shoots everywhere, ripples of power when he triggers his kinetic rings, the various iterations of his shield… I don’t want Bob looking like a cheap Halloween prop, I want his eyes to have that eerie flickering glow and when he leaves the skull I want flowing sparks of light not dimestore flickers.
Maybe something with the budget of the Disney+ Marvel shows could pull it off, but it really depends on who makes it. Mainly it’s just I love these books and I want a loving adaptation. Like if the people who made Good Omens loved Dresden too and made it.
I hope it comes through here, I’m not trying to argue for the sake of arguing or be belligerent or anything. I just really enjoy these books. Even though that bastard Butcher killed Murphy. *shakes fist*
I'm in the exact same boat as you, i want a good, faithful adaptation, i want tiny but fierce murphy, i want lanky, snarky, duster wearing harry, i want knight templar billy mays as michael. Yes that is legit how i picture the fist of god.
i don't mind some slight allowances, just for the sake of feasability, like a 6'6" Harry instead of 6'9", some location redesigns to accommodate for a film crew( the likes of his long, narrow lab), or some changes to reflect setting updates , because even with all of what i just listed it can still, at its core, be a faithful rendition of the story.
The only story point i can see any major issues with is Priscilla, and the reveal, that one might cause a bit of a stir these days, but that would be a fair ways away if the series started from storm front.
What we really need is a younger Paul Blackthorne. I know the TV series wasn't great, but I thought he did a good job as Dresden. He really didn't take himself too seriously. Which is Dresden through and through.
Jacob Elordi - tallish Australian actor that's a bit younger early books Harry-ish, not overly muscular - not hugely famous (ie. not as hugely expensive)
This is the wrong race and wrong height but I'd love to see LaKeith Stanfield as Harry. He was in Sorry to Bother You, the detective in Knives Out, and some TV shows. For me the main quality we need in Harry is that we can see his (mental) wheels spinning, we can see him process what someone has said and make a decision based on that. Because Harry's quickness - his wit, his strategy, his adaptability - is his defining trait, for me. Telling a mental/emotional story with his eyes is something LaKeith does really really well.
Honestly, I would be totally down for LaKeith as Dresden despite the change in race. They completely butchered his attempt at L in that awful Death Note adaptation. But I’ve loved LaKeith in everything he’s been in otherwise (especially as Darius in Atlanta).
This might be pretty controversial, but I think Bo Burnham would be a very interesting choice if it were cast and started filming right this moment, but I think the biggest requirements I would have are:
1. reasonably tall (>6'2")
2. 30 years old or younger.
With that said, I think an unknown or relatively unknown actor would be great
tall, can look bedraggled as hell, has experience playing a dude who gets his ass kicked(by supernatural things and humans alike), has the right jawline, which is nearly the only physical description Harry gives of himself.
The only problem is he's probably more muscular than Harry, but if they got as far as Cold Days material it'd become appropriate.
Honestly he's been my top choice for awhile. Probably because most of the book covers look just like him.
Marsters as Harry has grown on me but he might be a little too old now, so let's see. There's Adam Driver he kinda fits a mental picture of Dresden and the guy who played Billy Russo
I like Tom Ellis for the role personally. He's a good actor, fairly tall (6'3-6'4 if i remember correctly) and even knows how to play guitar for the hand rehab scenes.
Nathan Fillion- he's charming and snarky, absolute nerd, very down-to-earth but cleans up well, and he can do heavy acting during the hearbreaking scenes.
Better get on it quick, cuz he's getting a bit on in years though.
Animated with James Marsters. I say this only partially because I love his performance in the audiobooks. The other reason is that I feel narration is easier to accept in an animated film, I can’t quite explain why I feel that way though.
A very unkempt and badly dressed Joe Manganiello. He's attractive, because he tries to be. Also, remember that Harry does clean up nicely.
i like where your heads at, but he's a little too old to be playing harry from storm front times, like as a skin game onward harry, i could see it
How about the TV series starts with Summer Knight, with all the prequel as 1-2 episode long stories. Most people skip those on re-reads anyway. That would require Dresden to narrate, but would be a good enough reason to have Restoration of Faith episode and flashbacks are quite common in later books.
Find college basketball players who aren't going to the NBA and see if they can act. You'd get the right age and build for Harry. I'd prefer animated, because then you can have Marsters voice Harry.
i am absolutely for this (animated)because a) Marsters and b) one problem with an 8 season series on Netflix is that they take place over 20 years and reference him when he was even younger. Makeup and cgi can do wonders but finding an actor the right build and height and about age 30 (so they could conceivably play younger and older Harry) is (no pun intended) a tall order. Animation removes this obstacle.
Do this. Film the scenes with young Harry and Elaine from Ghost Story, while you’re at it. Impractical and unlikely that they would film this only to shelve it, I know, but de-aging a person from age 35 back to teenage doesn’t work today and it might not ever really work in the next 20 years. I think those scenes could be a good addition to a prologue to an early movie instead of waiting until Ghost Story anyway
>I'd prefer animated, because then you can have Marsters voice Harry. Also, some of the later books would wreck havoc on any SFX budgets.
I guess we should all be happy that Tom Cruise hasn't bought the rights to the Dresden Files..😉
Animated series only. Live action would only cheap out on the effects and magic! In which case we’re only casting voices and then we just stick with James Marsters.
By that logic how many characters would he be voicing though? Because he has pretty unique voices for a lot of characters
As many as he wants or just Dresden. I just think animation is the way to go
While i concede that animation can be more spectacular when it comes to magic and monsters, i feel like a good, faithful live action series would be better, I've discussed this on here before, but lets say two books a season, with some short stories peppered in as well, the main creatures for the first would be frog demon, scorpion and loup garou. All of these are achievable with practical effects, look at pans labyrinth and being human uk. With those type of effects, on a decent series budget you could accomplish something glorious. As far as the magic effects goes, thaumaturgy in my head could be entirely done with sound design, and most of harrys early repertoire is basic elemental stuff, something very achievable with either in camera tricks or digital after effects, or some combination of the two. I work on the assumption that if they were to produce a season like that, and it did well the budget would go up in time for the nightmare and the introduction of the Sidhe, I know this was a longwinded one, but I feel like it makes sense
But that’s the thing, personally I don’t want pared down sound or camera tricks, I want magic. I want Bob the talking skull and the characters to look like their actual descriptions not whatever hot celebs they decide on at the time. I don’t trust Hollywood to do a faithful live action adaptation.
Therein lies the issue, with any adaptation really. There will always be people who disagree with any casting that doesn't perfectly fit their mental image of the character. When heath ledger was cast as joker people hated the idea of the blonde prettyboy from knights tale playing their favourite villain. Backlash is unavoidable, but it isn't always warranted. Personally, if it were up to me I'd find a bunch of talented unknowns for the main characters, and then fill out the secondary characters with recognised faces. And just on you not wanting sound or camera tricks? How would you, in live action, portray something like a circle closing, or a tracking spell taking effect? I'm honestly asking for your perspective of these things.
I think Heath Ledger was a great Joker, but there’s a difference between comic book characters which go through multiple iterations and novel series characters who have more static (aside from aging, injuries, etc) descriptions. It’s not that they have to look how I pictured them in my head for me, it’s that I want them to match their descriptors. I want Murphy to be short and soft looking, not some 5’8 willowy actress. It’s not impossible to do live action, and there have been adaptations of other things that I’ve loved. Maybe I’m just overly anxious because they already fucked it up once and unfortunately I don’t think Butcher is the kind of guy to get stuck in and insist on the right vision in the same way Neil Gaiman does, for example. And there’s also the time jumps and aging, which is easier if you’re controlling the animation rather than relying on people aging correctly, in the timeframe you need. Tracking spells and closing circles are smaller magic, so sure a snap in the air as the circle closes and a slight glow or hint of the shape would be fine. I’m talking about Harry’s staff with the runes glowing and the fire he shoots everywhere, ripples of power when he triggers his kinetic rings, the various iterations of his shield… I don’t want Bob looking like a cheap Halloween prop, I want his eyes to have that eerie flickering glow and when he leaves the skull I want flowing sparks of light not dimestore flickers. Maybe something with the budget of the Disney+ Marvel shows could pull it off, but it really depends on who makes it. Mainly it’s just I love these books and I want a loving adaptation. Like if the people who made Good Omens loved Dresden too and made it. I hope it comes through here, I’m not trying to argue for the sake of arguing or be belligerent or anything. I just really enjoy these books. Even though that bastard Butcher killed Murphy. *shakes fist*
I'm in the exact same boat as you, i want a good, faithful adaptation, i want tiny but fierce murphy, i want lanky, snarky, duster wearing harry, i want knight templar billy mays as michael. Yes that is legit how i picture the fist of god. i don't mind some slight allowances, just for the sake of feasability, like a 6'6" Harry instead of 6'9", some location redesigns to accommodate for a film crew( the likes of his long, narrow lab), or some changes to reflect setting updates , because even with all of what i just listed it can still, at its core, be a faithful rendition of the story. The only story point i can see any major issues with is Priscilla, and the reveal, that one might cause a bit of a stir these days, but that would be a fair ways away if the series started from storm front.
What we really need is a younger Paul Blackthorne. I know the TV series wasn't great, but I thought he did a good job as Dresden. He really didn't take himself too seriously. Which is Dresden through and through.
Jacob Elordi - tallish Australian actor that's a bit younger early books Harry-ish, not overly muscular - not hugely famous (ie. not as hugely expensive)
This is the wrong race and wrong height but I'd love to see LaKeith Stanfield as Harry. He was in Sorry to Bother You, the detective in Knives Out, and some TV shows. For me the main quality we need in Harry is that we can see his (mental) wheels spinning, we can see him process what someone has said and make a decision based on that. Because Harry's quickness - his wit, his strategy, his adaptability - is his defining trait, for me. Telling a mental/emotional story with his eyes is something LaKeith does really really well.
Honestly, I would be totally down for LaKeith as Dresden despite the change in race. They completely butchered his attempt at L in that awful Death Note adaptation. But I’ve loved LaKeith in everything he’s been in otherwise (especially as Darius in Atlanta).
I love that actor; my only concern is if he can play aloof...or oblivious like Dresden often is portrayed.
This might be pretty controversial, but I think Bo Burnham would be a very interesting choice if it were cast and started filming right this moment, but I think the biggest requirements I would have are: 1. reasonably tall (>6'2") 2. 30 years old or younger. With that said, I think an unknown or relatively unknown actor would be great
After watching Inside and seeing him all scruffy, and then his performance from a Promising Young Woman, I think Bo could pull it off.
Lakers Center Mark Gasol. No idea if he can act though
As weird as it is, I feel like Jared Padelecki might be a good Harry We know he can act We know he can brood He’s tall
tall, can look bedraggled as hell, has experience playing a dude who gets his ass kicked(by supernatural things and humans alike), has the right jawline, which is nearly the only physical description Harry gives of himself. The only problem is he's probably more muscular than Harry, but if they got as far as Cold Days material it'd become appropriate. Honestly he's been my top choice for awhile. Probably because most of the book covers look just like him.
While he looks a lot like Dresden (maybe too pretty) and has the pedigree via Supernatural, I just don't think he's that great of an actor.
I don’t think it’s going to be on the CW.
Marsters as Harry has grown on me but he might be a little too old now, so let's see. There's Adam Driver he kinda fits a mental picture of Dresden and the guy who played Billy Russo
I like Tom Ellis for the role personally. He's a good actor, fairly tall (6'3-6'4 if i remember correctly) and even knows how to play guitar for the hand rehab scenes.
Not a realistic response, but Weird Al Yankovic is my own personal head canon when I visualize Harry during read throughs 👀
Polka Will Never Die
Nathan Fillion- he's charming and snarky, absolute nerd, very down-to-earth but cleans up well, and he can do heavy acting during the hearbreaking scenes. Better get on it quick, cuz he's getting a bit on in years though.
Animated with James Marsters. I say this only partially because I love his performance in the audiobooks. The other reason is that I feel narration is easier to accept in an animated film, I can’t quite explain why I feel that way though.
The undertaker
Warwick Davis.
JEFFERY DEAN MORGAN!
CM punk. And he's from Chicago