On James Cosmo, Nicole Kidman, and Narnia Filming

Who James Cosmo is playing is the question of the hour, the rest of the cast aside. The Chicago Sun-Times dispells the old Nicole Kidman rumor for those still not in the know, and what about the rest of the Chronicles?

Narnian Spy Biznis commented on James Cosmo, saying that “it isn’t a voice that he’s doing, or I don’t think so. It’s simple logic! Why would he be down here filming if he were just offering a voice? So, not “Mr. Beaver,” “Maugrim,” or “Aslan.” That leaves us with “the Professor” and “the Dwarf.” He appears ideal for “the Professor,” and he’s a tad too old to play “the dwarf.” So, must be “the Professor.” When I mentioned that Andy Serkis was on the set playing Gollum throughout the shooting of the Lord of the Rings, he replied “Yes, but Mr. Beaver is too small to have a normal-sized body double-ish thing and Aslan and Maugrim are being played by real animals.” But what we must remember is that Narnia’s Talking Beasts are man sized. The small creatures became larger, and the big creatures became smaller. The mystery goes on.

On the topic of Nicole Kidman, here’s what Bill Zwecker of the Chicago Sun-Times said: **Here’s a bit of rumor control about ”The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe,” the film based on the C. S. Lewis novel being filmed down in New Zealand. There have been reports that Kidman will star as the White Witch or narrate the movie. Fact is, Tilda Swinton will play the White Witch, and the voice of Aslan the lion (a CGI character in the film) has not yet been cast. Andrew Adamson (“Shrek,” “Shrek 2”) directs.

Narnian Spy Biznis pointed out that Christmas 2005 is a Sunday. While that’s true, the film could be released on that day. Christmas is a Holiday that a lot of people visit the Cinema. However, he believes, and we tend to agree, that the film will most likely be released on Wednesday, December 21st.

And although LWW doesn’t start filming until next Monday, the current rumor is that, should LWW be successful at the box office, Disney will most likely want to film the next few Narnia films at the same time. It’d be a way to save money and get more done, quicker. And hopefully release “The Last Battle” by 2011. Warner Brothers did this with The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, Newline with The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, and Disney is planning to do this with Pirates of the Caribbean 2 and 3. Let’s make the first Narnia film a success, and see to it that we finally get to see all seven Narnia tales come to life!