In the sudden flurry of new pictures from the start of filming, one of the pictures caught my attention....

https://www.narniaweb.com/2025/08/first-look-at-polly-and-digory-in-greta-gerwigs-narnia-movie/

Picture number 3/6 down below in the line up. Is there any chance the lady following along behind probably-Digory is Aunt Letty? She could be an extra, but as an actress she looks REALLY familiar. I can't place her though. 

While he only appears in PC as a supporting character, he's a character I'm definitely fond of. His perseverance, kindness and loyalty definitely make him stand out, and on top of that, he's a badger, which are definitely cool creatures. 

Now..on to the tricky part. I'm not sure exactly how to say this, but I'll try. I really didn't like the portrayal of Trufflehunter in the BBC adaptation. There are two reasons. One is that they had to use a person in a costume---which I'm sure everyone will agree that, despite the limited technology at the time making it the only option, just didn't work. But the other reason---and again, I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way---is thatI didn't like the choice they made to make him female.

I know there's been some talk about Aslan potentially being female in the new adaptation, which is itself a whole discussion. I don't want to say that a character shouldn't be allowed to be a different gender. But when we're so used to a character being a certain gender, it's hard to imagine them a different one. As a male, I tend to associate more strongly with male characters, so seeing that happen with Trufflehunter and potentially Aslan---two of my favorite characters---is rather difficult. But ultimately, I also think it comes down to the choices of the creators. If they want to give certain characters the chance to be portrayed as a different gender, I can accept that decision, even if it's not one I would personally make if i were adapting Lewis's books.

I will add that, despite BBC's portrayal of Trufflehunter not being my favorite, I still felt that they were able to retained the important aspect's of the book's character, and applaud them for that, since ultimately that's what's most important. I guess I should keep this in mind for Aslan in the upcoming adaptation.

As I'm sure you can guess, I liked Walden Media's Trufflehunter a lot more. Aside from being male, he looked a lot more like an actual badger. While the CG on him definitely looks dated by today's standards, it was pretty good for the time. (I also read about how the creators based the design of Trufflehunter's den on that of a real badger's, which was a nice bonus.) My only real complaint is that I feel he could have been in it more. 

As for future adaptations? I think if the PC book is adapted for the next adaptation, Ken Scott's voice for Trufflehunter is a good example for what the character's voice should sound like, assuming they keep him male. (However, Scott is also the only male I'm positive I've heard as the character, since I'm not sure I heard Trufflehunter's parts in the radio play adaptation. I don't know if the audio adaptations are online, I'd like to hear Trufflehunter's voice in them to compare.) Assuming they go with a voice like Scott's, I think a good way to set the portrayal apart from Walden's would be to perhaps make Trufflehunter a bit bigger (as well as maybe give him more lines). 

Anyways, I didn't realize this post would become quite so long when I started it! Sorry about that. And again, I hope I didn't come across as too sexist; I apologize if I did. 

MN- As this will be the first to be adapted in the new franchise, why not start here? There’s not any character I could think of. Any ideas?

LWW- I’ve actually seen a stage adaptation where Mr. Tumnus was changed to a female, with her name being changed to Miss Tumnus and the line where he’s worried about the White Witch having his beard plucked out to her brow plucked out (I don’t know if there are any female fauns, but that’s besides the point). That could be a possibility, but there’s probably other characters, too. 

HHB- This a tough one. Maybe Swallowpad the Raven could be a female raven. Then I don’t know. Any other ideas?

PC- In the BBC TV series, Trufflehunter was portrayed by a female, and I didn’t mind it. I was in a Narnia stage production of LWW years ago and we had Reepicheep narrate the story, and was played by a girl. So maybe a female Reepicheep or Peepikeek could be a possibility. There’s probably ideas, too.

VDT- This is a tough one. Any ideas?

SC- This is also a tough one. Maybe some of the gnomes underground could be girls, so that there could be both boys and girls. Any other ideas?

LB- This is also a tough. In the BBC Radio 4, Ginger was voiced as a female and in the Focus On The Family Radio Theater, the lamb was voiced as a female. I don’t know. Maybe instead of the beech dryad, maybe a male tree (oak, holly, elm, or rowan) could be the one to alert Tirian of the felling trees at Lantern Waste. Any other ideas?

Discuss away! {ym}:smile:  

Carey Mulligan Joins Greta Gerwig’s ‘Narnia’

”Carey Mulligan is in negotiations to nab a key role in Narnia, Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia fantasy novels.“

“Mulligan will play the very sick mother of Digory, one of the two kids in the adventure.”

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/carey-mulligan-joins-greta-gerwigs-narnia-exclusive-1236214317/

Ah! But could this Emily Mackie really stand on the bonnet of a hansom cab & drive poor Strawberry, I wonder? (Actually, I'd be interested in how this particular scene would be put together. And which animal would be able to play that part? They had a demonstration of carriage driving a week or so ago, at the Royal Easter Show, at Olympic Park in Sydney. 

There are a variety of different breeds that can pull something the size of a hansom cab. They only weighed about 300-400lbs. Thoroughbreds were used as well as other lighter breeds. They didn't need the heavy drafts that we mostly see today. 

For reference, most minis can pull a human and carriage totalling up to 300-400lbs. 

What breed could you see Strawberry being? What color?

Would you like to see a change of color from Strawberry to Fledge?

What kind of voice would you want to hear? Who would you like to see in that role?

Emma Mackey to Star as the White Witch in Greta Gerwig’s ‘Narnia’ (Exclusive)

"The Netflix adaptation reunites the English actress with her 'Barbie' director.

Netflix is backing the adaptation of the books, with Gerwig’s feature reportedly tackling the sixth novel of the series, The Magician’s Nephew. Gerwig wrote the script and is directing. The casting marks a reunion between Gerwig and Mackey; the latter appeared in the filmmaker’s billion dollar grossing Barbie."

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/emma-mackey-white-witch-in-greta-gerwig-narnia-1236201064/

Boy One: 9-12 year old, British boy of Indian descent (Indian father, white mother) described as the “lead character”

... and I've remembered something that may be very pertinent: Charli XCX, aka Charlotte Emma Aitchison, aka the pop star who is said to be in talks to play Jadis, is herself the daughter of a British father and an Indian mother.

Could Boy 1 be related to Jadis in some way?? {ym}:hmmm:

We've been puzzled by the fact that Netflix has sent out such a specific casting call for a third child when a much more general casting call for only two child actors was sent out in January. But if casting this third child needed to take into account the appearance of the actress playing Jadis, then it would make sense that they would have to wait until casting Jadis had been finalized.