Casting Call: Melinoe

Finding my Melinoe was one of the hardest choices I needed to make when thinking about a dream cast for Walking Shadows. I needed a figure slightly older than the rest of the cast, yet one that can blend with them. The healthy dose of evil and the need to look good topless all add up into a difficult casting choice.

After far too long contemplating my choice though, I realized the best answer was appearing on one of my favorite series already, Da Vinci's Demons. English actress Laura Haddock encompasses pretty much everything I need in a Melinoe outside a good dye job: beauty, subtlety, and a penchant for treading the line between evil and good.

Image credit: Wonderland Magazine.

Casting Call: Peach

Casting Call is a feature where I choose the actor or actress I consider ideal for my character. This isn't a demand to any future producers, but the actors I see in my head when I'm writing.

Peach is actually a hard character to find an actor for as well. Covered in tattoos, I would basically need a Suicide Girl to really make the character work with minimal makeup. But instead of going that route, I decided I would find a natural redhead that has also shown a willingness to sit in a makeup chair for long periods when necessary.

It doesn't hurt Karen Gillan also has a monstrous fan following that would probably love seeing her as a sexy tattooed woman.

Casting Call: Doppelganger

Casting Call is a feature where I choose the actor or actress I consider ideal for my character. This isn't a demand to any future producers, but the actors I see in my head when I'm writing.

Doppelganger's basic appearance is chalk white and more alien than man. He's like a blank featureless slate that would need to be accomplished through computer graphics or, preferably, makeup and prosthetic technology. I can think of only one actor willing to wear prostheses that can also do amazing work in this film. A bonus of course will be that much of his work would only be voiceover work from when he has transformed.

His name is Hugo Weaving.

Sadly, he may have to shave his awesome beard though.

Casting Call: Rosa

Rosa isn't the easiest character to cast. I need to have someone that can portray the repressed energy of the character. But I also need someone that can show the fears and insecurities she feels every time she uses her abilities in a dangerous situation.

Image credit: BerkantCalisken under Creative Commons license.

Though her acting chops sometimes get downplayed by her history as a Disney Channel star, Selena Gomez is pretty much the perfect fit for the character. She would have to downplay a bit of her current style as an international pop star, but I think she could pull off the dichotomy of Rosa's life to near perfection.

Casting Call: Marilyn

Marilyn is probably the most unique casting feature here, because I simply have to find the right actress to portray Marilyn Monroe today. Michelle Williams played Marilyn to perfection in 2011's My Weekend With Marilyn. She has almost exactly the perfect build for the legendary actress as well, while far too many choices to play her are often a bit too waifish for the real Ms. Monroe.

She would be a bit older than the rest of the cast, but I see no problem with her handling herself against the other stars here.

Casting Call: Alli

Image Credit: Nylon Magazine

Alli is one of the toughest characters to crack when it comes to casting a celebrity. She's suppose to be of average appearance with short hair and a large upper arm tattoo. Not many folks fit that category well, though the tat can obviously be added.

In the last couple years, Shailene Woodley has risen to fame as a major star in Hollywood. She might prove beyond any budget a Walking Shadows film might get, but the Divergent and Secret Life of an American Teenager star would be nearly perfect to fill the role of Alli. Perhaps a character as out of place in a standard super-film as Alli is might prove a challenge for the up and coming star.

Casting Call: Cyrus

Cyrus Kanakarides is a character with a hidden past he keeps closely guarded. He isn't one to share his secrets, nor is he one to get involved if he can help it. But deep down he has some heart and will protect his friends fiercely and loyally.

When I started to think about someone that could bring him to life I needed both someone that had the range to play such a guarded character and that would look good in black, Cyrus's favorite color. So I racked my brain for a bit and I decided I would go for an actor known for playing anything but heroic figures, whether it is in Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Belle or most famously, the Harry Potter film franchise. I think the perfect Cyrus would be none other than Tom Felton.

Casting Call: Stomp

Garrett Vos has a limited pool of young actors that can play him. A mixed kid with a crazy afro isn't exactly the most common casting call in Hollywood or anywhere else. But one young actor made a name for himself with that look. And while he spent a bit too much time singing and dancing in High School Musical, Corbin Bleu certainly has some acting chops. He would make a fine addition to the cast of the mythical Walking Shadows movie.

Casting Call: Ian Page

Like many people in the world I like to take fiction and design my cast around it. My own writing often comes with a sense of casting early on as I attempt to visualize the figures I'm writing about. In Casting Call, I share my thoughts of who would make the perfect actor to bring a character to life.

Ian needs an actor with depth and range. I've been more than impressed with the work of Nicholas Hoult both in his more blockbuster movies (the X-Men franchise, Mad Max: Fury Road) and in his edgier or more artful work (Skins, Warm Bodies). I think he has all the range to play Ian, although he might need to play a figure a bit more meek than the other damaged figures he has played.

Nicholas Hoult. From a Flaunt magazine photo shoot.