Julia Hoffman Cast!

[darkshadowsweb]

the part of Julia Hoffman has been cast. What's left after kicking Wolverine's butt? Why discovering a Vampire!

Kelly Hu of X-Men 2 and the Scoripion King will now grace the small screen as Doctor Julia Hoffman in the WB version of the gothic drama Dark Shadows

[jtfolden]

Wow, that's a truly 'out there' choice! She's still older, though. 36.

[ShadowQueen]

Wow...

[bashshadows2004]

At first I was like WHAT...After a few hours though I think it may be kinda cool....Their throwing something new into the mix. I really cannot wait to see the finished product.

[Michael Evenden]

What kind of acting cred does the new cast need and have?

See my response (if anybody's interested, that is) under "African American" character--I had kind of hoped they'd go Asian for Julia.

I am beginning to get concerned, though, about how many of the cast are models-turned-actors with only a few smallish TV and movie roles as opposed to people who trained as actors. I have a professional bias toward stage training (and college education, too) and maybe that's a blind spot--talent comes from lots of directions; but consider how many of even the young-and-starting-out cast members of the original series had trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Art and had some stage experience (off the top of my head, Moltke was AADA, Scott was too I think, and Barrett--I may be getting fuzzy memories here, although I remember that Barrett had considerable stage work under her belt, and Crothers was Harvard Phi Beta Kappa and had done stage work, Parker had her first professional gig for Dark Shadows but had the maturation of a Vassar degree and a masters; the list goes on). In the 1991 series, Joanna Going did the AADA proud with her ability to subtly differentiate Victoria and Josette even in the same scene; Michael Weiss had a BFA from USC, had trained at Second City, and had toiled in a daytime soap, as had Barbara Blackburn, which offers professional discipline at least.) I don't mean to be snobbish, but I'm struck that the online biographies of several of the newcomers in the new series suggest professional beauties (male and female) who started modelling in high school and slowly graduated into TV commercials and small-part TV and movie acting--including a Joe Haskell withut prior acting experience and a Sophia (?) who to date has been dancer--although some do have at least the advantage of soap work to date. (The exception is the Juillard and stage-trained Jessica Chastain.)

I mention it because Dark Shadows does place special demands on its cast: they need to be able to handle the huge issues of the supernatural without becoming ridiculous or seeming trivial in the face of it all (like that poor lost beauty who played Paul's corrupted sister in Children of Dune and seemed to me totally in-over-her-head as an actress--a standout for all the wrong reasons and a weakness for the show); and--unless the writers don't intend to double the actors in multiple roles across time, which was such a central feature of both previous series--you need people who have the technique to create distinctly different characters through voice, bearing, mannerism, tone, possibly accent. If you have actors who can do that, the writers and the audience (and the cast) can have so much more fun. If not, you diminish one of the pleasures that hooked us as fans.

And chances are that it's stage training that helps with that kind of characterization: here Thayer David and Grayson Hall, those stage-trained chameleons, set the standard, with Louis Edmonds and Nancy Barrett and John Karlen coming in close behind, and whereas Joanna Going and the Dublin-trained Julianna McCarthy (whom I worked with once) ate the challenge up with a spoon in 1991, and Lysette Anthony had the smirky French maid thing down pat, yet poor Barbara Steele could hardly manage the accent for Natalie (and that was almost the only challenge left in that cut-down character) and others (like Michael Weiss) weren't even asked to differentiate characters much beyond the costume change . . . it's a loss. (I recognize that these abilites were scattered unevenly through both casts, of course. And some actors, like Moltke and Frid, got frustrated because they didn't get to shift characters more!)

I'm just saying that the new cast seems to come from two totally separate acting pools--experienced actors who combine substantial theater and film work and have played a wide variety of roles (Blair Brown, Martin Donovan, Alec Newman, with Jessica Chastain as an experienced and trained newcomer) and actress or actor/models (one a Miss Teenage America) who have used their looks and gotten a little TV and film experience playing attractive young people. For all I know, Marley Shelton can act the house down and play John Goodman's mother to the life--but if so, it's not because she had good training in college or worked these technical skills up on stage; it's raw talent we hope for there--and differentiating characters the way Joanna Going or Grayson Hall did isn't something most people are born with or incidentally pick up, it's technical training and experience that does it.

Dan Curtis always loved actors with a large theatricality, and favored those with stage experience. Is he being overruled here? Or does he see something wonderful that previous casting directors haven't seen?

I want to be fair--credentials never tell an actor's whole story, and these newcomers may have talents that no one's ever let them use before, or they may be fast learners ready to take these challenges on. I want their success with all of my fan-deluded heart. But on paper, they give me some concern. Good luck to them all--I so want this to work!

[bashshadows2004]

^Michael Evenden

First off, let me say that your knowledge of the actors backgrounds is VERY impressive. I think you made a good point though, that there seems to be a blending of trained stage actors and actors/models. I for one am hoping that this turns into an advantage for them. Even though some of them are not trained, when they all come together and bring their own backgrounds into it, they may be able to give us something very special.

[Venefice]

Yeee Hawww, Kelly Hu. ** Happy Dance ** I for one am very very pleased with this casting choice. Kelly Hu will be an amazing Julia Hoffman, SHe has the strength of character and nobility of spirit to give Julia everything she needs. Also, since the original Julia by Grayson Hall was so tough, it strikes me as delicious that a beautiful, soft looking woman will be playing such a tough cookie. Three cheers for the casting agent. they made an excellent choice.

[zahir]

Michael--I see your point. Indeed, methinks I share some of your preferences in this regard (I have a degree in Theatre, and attended the National Shakespeare Conservatory in NYC) but I also look at the performances of those actors cast whose work I have seen--Blair Brown, Martin Donovan, Marley Shelton, Alec Newman--and I am impressed. That gives me real hope as far as the new show is concerned, because the same folks who hired them hired the rest (and that includes any execs from the WB).

Regarding this last, I'm not axiomatic about how network execs make choices either. For example, Alyson Hannigan was not Joss Whedon's choice to play Willow on Buffy but a compromise choice with the WB. And she turned out to be perfect!

Anyway--an exotic, even beautiful Julia Hoffman several years older than Victoria. I like it!

[charles202]

Originally posted by Venefice
Yeee Hawww, Kelly Hu. ** Happy Dance ** I for one am very very pleased with this casting choice.

Me too.

I am completely surprised by this one, and very happy! What a cool bit of casting. Seems like I'm more curious and more excited to see this new incarnation every day....

[Collinwood]

At first I was kind of shocked at this choice. But I agree that Kelly brings a fresh excitement to an already established character. My only little gripe, not to sound nit-picky, is reconciling the whole German Hoffman thing with her look.

[charles202]

Re: What kind of acting cred does the new cast need and have?

Originally posted by Michael Evenden
I am beginning to get concerned, though, about how many of the cast are models-turned-actors with only a few smallish TV and movie roles as opposed to people who trained as actors.

I hear ya, Michael. When I first heard the new series would be on WB, I joked to several friends that they'd probably cast a former underwear model as Barnabas. I'm glad to see it ended up being Joe instead ... that seems more appropriate to me, at least.

I'm reserving judgment on this one ... after all, Tom Welling is the main reason I watch Smallville.

[darkshadowsweb]

Well I certainly hope she has a glimer of the kick butt character she had in X2. I can't wait to see how all of these casting choices work out!

[Tori]

As to her having the surname of Hoffman, peoples last names are often not tied to their heratage anymore. She could have been adopted, or she could have a German father.

Tori

[Collinwood]

Originally posted by Tori
As to her having the surname of Hoffman, peoples last names are often not tied to their heratage anymore. She could have been adopted, or she could have a German father.

Tori

That's true. Now that the initial shock is wearing off I'm starting to look forward to the story possibilities this bit of casting has to offer.

[zahir]

I got intrigued and made this wallpaper. If things go well, methinks I'll make more for all the cast...