NarniaFans Mailbag #34: Anna Popplewell and Georgie Henley’s books, William Moseley and Prince Caspian

I apologize for being late with this week’s mailbag. Wednesday was the season finale of Lost and then Thursday was the season finale of The Office. It was a very busy week besides all of that as well. Anyway, let’s get started.

Q: I heard that Georgie Henley wrote 2 books while LWW was being made. Where can I get them? Also, where can I get Anna Popplewell’s book?

-Queen~of~Narnia

Paul: Good question. Neither book has officially been published, though Jonathan Fletcher answered about Susan in Mailbag #32. I’m not sure if they ever will be published, though. We’ll see.. if demand is high, it’s possible.

Jonathan Fletcher: Part of Anna’s Journal from LWW was published in the illustrated movie companion. It wasn’t the full thing but it was a small part.

Q: Having tried to keep up with the news about the production of the “Narnia” films, I’ve read that the plan is to make all seven books into films. I’ve also read that “Prince Caspian” is the last movie William and Anna plan to be in. However, Susan is in “The Horse and His Boy” and Peter is in “The Last Battle”. Do you know if the movie makers plan on trying to get William and Anna back for these two films, or if they will get someone else to play Peter and Susan? Thanks a lot!

-Reepicheep, Knight of Narnia

Paul: Anna and William have signed contracts only for the films they were in, so far. I believe that’s what they are talking about, as they don’t want to assume that, no matter when the films are shot, they get the parts. At this point, the filming of those movies is a major unknown. In a perfect world, they’d all be a sure thing. But so far, each sequel has hinged on how well the last had done. However, it seems that this series has a lot of studio support, as, if done well, they could all be big movies themselves.

Now, in an effort to lengthen this mailbag some, because we only got a couple of letters this week, I’m going to go back and answer another archival e-mail that I received. This one is especially timely, as you’ll see:

Q: Hi,
I really enjoy your site! I have a couple of questions on the production of “Prince Caspian”:
1. If post-production ends at the end of this year, when can we expect the first trailer?
2. When will they release actual promotional photos of the cast?
3. Are they going to have Ben Barnes alias Caspian in a lot of action scenes, and is he doing his own stunts?
4. Why are they releasing “Prince Caspian” not earlier next year?
Thank you!

-Isabell

Paul: Thanks, Isabell… I’m more than happy to answer these questions, now, a year after the release of Prince Caspian.
1. The first trailer hit in December 2007!
2. Promotional Photos hit around the same time as the first trailer.
3. Yes and No. Caspian appeared in a lot of action sequences, as we know… but there were some stunt double sequences in the film.
4. This question is the reason I kept this letter. The reason that they wouldn’t have released the film earlier, is because they only finished the final shots in the film about 3 weeks prior to release. Special effects and editing take a long time, and they don’t want to rush it out the door. It would have been sloppy and slapped together.

Alright, that’s it for this week. Sorry it’s so short this time… I’m short on time as it is. Hopefully I’ll be back next Thursday with a mailbag to make up for this one. 🙂