Another actor who has made the news recently who i think would be worth a look at for Puddleglum is Rhys Ifans, who has been recently cast in the upcoming Spider-man reboot that no-one really asked for.
At a slender 6 foot 2 in height, he has the prerequisite physique to make him a suitable candidate for Puddleglum in my book, and his acting style would fit quite well with the dry and somewhat comedic nature of Puddleglum's personality. He is apparently set to be in the final Harry Potter movie, though that shouldn't put you off, as just about every British actor alive today has been in at least 1 Harry Potter movie by now.
I'm also quite interested by Lady Eowyn's suggestion of Matt Smith of Doctor Who fame for much the same reason as i was interested by the notion of David Tennant also of Doctor Who fame. Which is weird because on the whole i wouldn't say The Doctor and Puddleglum have much in common, but they both just seem like a good fit.
I have to agree with Lady Eowyn's post. Matt Smith has that long face I've always imagined Puddleglum having and I imagined him thin as well. I didn't like the casting choice for Puddleglum in the BBC Silver Chair. Matt Smith is what I imagined.
Matt Smith looks pretty good, but yeah, a tad too young for me. And I'm just not sure about Rhys Ifans. I'm not sure about Bill Nighy either. He could definitely do a good job, but it still just doesn't seem right to me. Some interesting options though.
I'm an enormous fan of Tom Baker in the BBC version! So naturally, I want an actor similar to him. I can understand why people don't like his interpretation though. People see Puddleglum differently. Haha. I feel like the line is drawn particularly on age. I personally favor an older Puddleglum, someone 50+, and in that category I very much like Frank Collison (mentioned by DamselJillPole and previously by myslef) and Peter Mayhew. On the younger side of things, I'm standing by Stephen Merchant.
I think my Top 3 are:
1. Peter Mayhew
2. Stephen Merchant
3. Frank Collison
If they do Puddleglum right, they almost have to do him part CGI. Marshwiggles aren't just tall and thin, they're ridiculously disproportional. Lewis describes Puddleglum of having a body the size of a dwarf, but arms and legs so long they make him taller than most men. I think I'd be slightly disheartened if the end result we get is just a tall and lanky person, without any enhancement of any kind. Still, they may end up doing it that way just the same; I guess we'll have to wait and see.
I like many of the suggestions here. I hadn't thought of David Tennant, but now that I do, I think that would work well. The only suggestion that I see repeated which I do not like is Johnny Depp. Don't get me wrong, I am a big fan of Depp; but I'm not sure I trust him with Puddleglum. He tends to reinvent characters, which is really great in most cases, but I would like Puddleglum to be as close to the book as possible.
Anyone consider Burn Gorman? Whenever I see him I'm struck by the thought that he has a sort of Marshwiggly face...
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Johnny Depp would be great; he's so good that I just know he could do it!
Now, I had a little thought, please don't take this too seriously. How about James McAvoy, like (if it is that way) White Witch being Lady of the Green Kirtle?
^I don't think that's a good idea. The White Witch being Lady of the Green Kirtle would make sense if they're the same (not that we want her to be ) because they're both witches, but a faun and a marshwiggle are completely different things. But I agree Johnny Depp would be great as long as they don't overdo it...
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I don't know about Johnny Depp, I just can't imagine him being the gloomy serious Puddleglum.
Again, I hope Bill Nighy plays him, though he is a little old.
You know what, while he would be good as Puddleglum, I would rather see Johnny Depp as Uncle Andrew.
Winter Is Coming
I always wanted Tim Burton to direct Silver Chair, and one more partnership of Tim and Johnny Depp is welcome.
Johnny Depp is a great actor, funny, have all the caracteristics of Puddleglum.
My thoughts exactly, Johnny Depp would be the perfect Puddleglum. This is just the type of unusual character that he seems to like to play. However I don't know if I can picture Tim Burton directing a Narnia movie, it just seems too... I guess "wholesome" would be the right word... compared to what he usually does. On the other hand SC is somewhat darker than the other books, almost literally (a good portion of it is set under ground, for goodness sake! ) so maybe Tim Burton could be a good choice. But we can discuss directors on another forum.
That's why I'm going to stand by the play world. I'm on Aslan's side even if there isn't any Aslan to lead it. I'm going to live as like a Narnian as I can even if there isn't any Narnia. -Puddleglum
If they do Puddleglum right, they almost have to do him part CGI. Marshwiggles aren't just tall and thin, they're ridiculously disproportional. Lewis describes Puddleglum of having a body the size of a dwarf, but arms and legs so long they make him taller than most men. I think I'd be slightly disheartened if the end result we get is just a tall and lanky person, without any enhancement of any kind. Still, they may end up doing it that way just the same; I guess we'll have to wait and see.
I like many of the suggestions here. I hadn't thought of David Tennant, but now that I do, I think that would work well. The only suggestion that I see repeated which I do not like is Johnny Depp. Don't get me wrong, I am a big fan of Depp; but I'm not sure I trust him with Puddleglum. He tends to reinvent characters, which is really great in most cases, but I would like Puddleglum to be as close to the book as possible.
Anyone consider Burn Gorman? Whenever I see him I'm struck by the thought that he has a sort of Marshwiggly face...
Your description reminds me of the Marillion song "The Man From The Planet Marzipan."
Rhys Ifans, Stephen Merchant and Bill Nighy are superb choices. How about Eric Idle? Too comedic perhaps?
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I've always been against Johnny Depp playing Puddleglum. Even though he's great at doing unusual characters, from everything I've heard he tends to make them his own, as opposed to following the original character. And we want our beloved Puddleglum, not Johnny Depp's "puddleglum."
What about Colin Morgan from Merlin? He's pretty skinny and lanky and is a really amazing actor. I haven't seen him in anything else, but he after seeing him play an 80 yr old man he seems like he could take on a character as challenging as Puddleglum...
He's not a tame lion, but he's good.
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Has anyone considered Adrien Brody yet? He's very tall, and is also a very good actor.
~Riella
What about Benedict Cumberbatch? That's the man in my avatar and signature. He's really tall and slender, adorable and unique face. He's a very great actor and would be perfect for Puddleglum!
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I was thinking that Dennis Christopher could be good in appearance but I don't think he has the right voice.
Link: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0160550/
Another person I think could work is Steve Valentine:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0884313/
If anyone thinks Alan Rickman would not be good, check him out as Marvin the Robot:
Hey what about Hugh Laurie? Maybe he's too craggy...
I would actually love to see BBC'S Sherlock Benedict Cumberbatch as Puddleglum! Who knows if Michael Apted is still directing Silver Chair it would be possible, Benedict is one of his favorite actors to work with.