Ooh, I like that suggestion, Anfinwen! Aside from making Shakespearean language sound effortless and natural, he also seems like he could handle Rilian's desperation/madness quite well, too. He's a big name, but Rilian likely wouldn't be in the film very much, so perhaps the filmmakers could swing it. His involvement would definitely draw people to the theater, I would think.

He's a big name, but Rilian likely wouldn't be in the film very much, so perhaps the filmmakers could swing it. His involvement would definitely draw people to the theater, I would think.

My thoughts exactly! Perhaps I will send him a letter and tell him to try for the part. I've heard he reads all of his fan mail.

I could see Hiddleston as Rilan, he's a little more well known then I would like though.

My first choice would be Aiden Turner who played Kili in the hobbit movies, sure they were fantasy movies too, but he played a very different part. he's a good actor, who has a background in stage productions (he was in Romeo and Juliet). he definitely looks like he could be related to Ben Barnes, and he's in the right age range (33).

Hiddleston certainly wouldn't be a bad choice, but I really want to see them keep the budget in check for this film, and I don't think there's a huge argument to be made that he's much of a box-office draw. LOKI is a draw; Hiddleston isn't. Besides, I personally think he's still a bit young. Most of the choices people are putting forth are, although this is in large part due to the fact that the Narnia timeline that C.S. Lewis wrote is so contradictory to what is stated in the books that it should probably just be disregarded entirely. I think whoever is cast to play Rilian should be in his early 40s.

According to Lewis's timeline, Rillian went missing at 20 and was rescued at 31, and Caspian is about 66 at the time the story takes place. The problem here is that the actual BOOK states that it's been about 70 years since Eustace was last in the world of Narnia during VDT.

Personally, I don't actually think that either of these time tables make a whole lot of sense. As much as I love C.S. Lewis and Narnia, the finer details of coherent world-building REALLY weren't his strong suit (Then there's Tolkien, who focused FAR too much on this at times). There's a charming little anecdote in the docu-drama Beyond Narnia. I'm not sure if it's true, but I imagine that it is, and if so it is it perfectly illustrates this. Joy Gresham asks Lewis a question that her boys had been afraid to ask of him: Where do the Beavers get the fruit and vegetables referenced in the book if it's always winter and nothing grows? Lewis is caught off guard and flummoxed. It's pretty clear that Lewis made up the stories on the fly and didn't overly concern himself with hewing to a rigorous continuity (The abundance of humans in the world that CLEARLY weren't supposed to exist in LWW, anyone?), though that really isn't a bad thing.

Anyway, 66 just seems a BIT too young for the way that Caspian is portrayed in the book. A 66 year old can certainly be in failing health (especially in a medieval society), but everything about his fragile portrayal seems more consistent with a man much nearer 80 than 60. This timeline does give Rilian a sensible age, but even then the idea that Caspian and his wife didn't have a child for 15 years is kind of strange. It also states that Caspian and Ramandu's daughter didn't get married until 4 years after they met, which doesn't seem to be at all what the book implies, and just seems to be thrown in to make Caspian's youth during VDT more plausible.

On the other hand, the 70-year figure should put Caspian in his late 80s or early 90s (Without Lewis's timeline, I don't really buy that Caspian is just 16 in VDT). That's consistent with Caspian's portrayal in SC, but it means that Rilian should realistically be AT LEAST in his 50s, if not his 60s. And that isn't really consistent with Rilian's portrayal in the book.

Thankfully, the films have already provided us with a perfect solution/compromise here by just giving us an older Caspian to begin with. Lets just say that Caspian was in his late 20s when VDT took place, just like Ben Barnes was in the film. By the time they had returned from their Voyage and he and Ramandu's daughter had married, he would have probably been 30. Rilian is born a few years later when Caspian is in his mid-30s. 20ish years later, the queen is killed and Rilian goes missing. 20+ years later, Eustace and Jill find and rescue Rilian. Caspian dies pushing 80.

I think this works for a number of reasons.

1) Being nearly 80 makes Caspian's frailty instantly believable.
2) 20 years to having past since Rilian went missing makes for a more atmospheric, almost mythic long-cold mystery than a decade old disappearance does.
3) Rilian leaving with his father a sturdy middle aged warrior and returning to find him a frail, decrepit old man 20+ years later allows for far more poignant imagery in their flashback and reunion scenes than the change a mere decade would result in does.
4) Rilian's age here works well with Caspians, but still leaves him young enough to cut a handsome and heroic figure.
5) If the ages of the characters are merely implicit and not expressly stated in the film, Rilian being a 40-something man should throw off non-book-readers who hear the term "prince" and arbitrarily assume a very young man.
6) This timeline allows for the Queen to be a very beautiful woman in her early 40s when she dies, which is a more striking image than it would be if she was 55+ as in Lewis's timeline.

I just really want someone who can pull off Rilian's almost Shakespearian dialogue. That's more important than looks for me. Tom Hiddleston doesn't look at all how I imagine Rilian, but if he can pull off the dialogue, I wouldn't complain if he was cast.

Rilian's speaking style may seem like a minor detail, but to me it's one of those details that makes Narnia unique. An adaptation can be killed with a thousand shallow cuts. Each one seems like a minor detail, but when taken all together you've robbed the book of what makes it stand out.

I just really want someone who can pull off Rilian's almost Shakespearian dialogue.

Yes! the speech Rilian gives when he's in the chair is one of my favorite scene in the entire series, who ever is cast need to be able to convey the agony and torment he's in without it coming of over the top or goofy.

According to Lewis's timeline, Rillian went missing at 20 and was rescued at 31, and Caspian is about 66 at the time the story takes place. The problem here is that the actual BOOK states that it's been about 70 years since Eustace was last in the world of Narnia during VDT.

Personally I've always thought that maybe Eustace was guesstimateing when he seid it's been 70 years, but regardless I don't think it's unrealistic for Rilian to be in his early 30's eventhough his father is pushing 70 (I'm 20 and both my parents are in there early 60's)I think that the exact ages of Rilian and Caspian are a non-issue, I think that they could cast them close to the ages given in the timeline without it being distracting for the audience, thought I do kind of like you're idea of maybe having Rilian look different then what audience's might expect.

My first choice would be Aiden Turner who played Kili in the hobbit movies, sure they were fantasy movies too, but he played a very different part. he's a good actor, who has a background in stage productions (he was in Romeo and Juliet). he definitely looks like he could be related to Ben Barnes, and he's in the right age range (33).

That's an interesting suggestion; I hadn't thought of him before. He certainly does look as though he could be related to Barnes! It's also good to hear that he has a stage background as well.

I think [aging Caspian up in VDT] works for a number of reasons.

1) Being nearly 80 makes Caspian's frailty instantly believable.
2) 20 years to having past since Rilian went missing makes for a more atmospheric, almost mythic long-cold mystery than a decade old disappearance does.
3) Rilian leaving with his father a sturdy middle aged warrior and returning to find him a frail, decrepit old man 20+ years later allows for far more poignant imagery in their flashback and reunion scenes than the change a mere decade would result in does.
4) Rilian's age here works well with Caspians, but still leaves him young enough to cut a handsome and heroic figure.
5) If the ages of the characters are merely implicit and not expressly stated in the film, Rilian being a 40-something man should throw off non-book-readers who hear the term "prince" and arbitrarily assume a very young man.
6) This timeline allows for the Queen to be a very beautiful woman in her early 40s when she dies, which is a more striking image than it would be if she was 55+ as in Lewis's timeline.

I like your reasoning here. It seems like it could be a net benefit for the film and I don't think even most purists would be very bothered by it.

Having Caspian be twenty years younger at the time of Rilian's disappearance would make his almost-violent confrontation with Drinian much more dramatic, and having Rilian be forty when our trio meets him could allow for casting another actor to play him if they have flashbacks to when he was in his youth. (Between that and his hair growing darker and his skin growing paler from being underground for so long, the audience may well be skeptical that it's actually the lost prince.) Plus, I also think that having a forty-year-old Rilian could potentially be more frightening than a thirty-year-old one; his ravings and threats might be more chilling coming from an older man. Since drama is associated with youth and reticence and steadiness tend to increase with age, it's arguably more disturbing when middle-aged people are acting very erratically.

That's an interesting anecdote about Lewis and the vegetables! I wouldn't be at all surprised if it's true, based on what I've read about his story planning.

Rilian's speaking style may seem like a minor detail, but to me it's one of those details that makes Narnia unique. An adaptation can be killed with a thousand shallow cuts. Each one seems like a minor detail, but when taken all together you've robbed the book of what makes it stand out.

This is very important to me as well. With so much of the book set outside of Narnia, Rilian's speech patterns are one of the few glimpses we get into Narnian culture. I really want him to sound as though this is the way he has spoken all of his life: completely effortless and natural. This is very necessary, too, because if the style of speaking isn't pulled off well, it could make or break his scene in the silver chair, as narnia fan 7 said.

I'm thinking one of the Hemsworth brothers might get the role.
Considering this is a reboot, I think Rilian will be blonde. Even if it wasn't, his mother was a blonde, so I think it's highly likely they'll cast a blonde as Rilian.

I'm thinking one of the Hemsworth brothers might get the role.
Considering this is a reboot, I think Rilian will be blonde. Even if it wasn't, his mother was a blonde, so I think it's highly likely they'll cast a blonde as Rilian.

Since Joe Johnston is now directing it, I wouldn't be shocked if a Marvel actor did get the role, though Chris Hemsworth doesn't seem like a good fit too me, and Liam well, I'm not the biggest fan of his acting.

I could really almost see Chris Evans being a good fit, sure he's not british but he's a very decent actor, as worked with Johnson before, and would most likely be a draw in this kind of film, however he'd probably also be very expensive.

I wonder if this link will work. This is John Bayne, a local NZ actor currently appearing in a season of Shakespeare. He's mid 20s, and very talented, with an excellent singing voice (so he speaks well!).

The book is stating that it has been about 70yrs Narnia time and a different period of time on earth. So I was thinking maybe this Guy

Michael Charles Roman

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0738722/mediaviewer/rm4106865664?ref_=nm_ov_ph

Or this Guy

Alistair Brammer

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4337810/mediaviewer/rm2958038784?ref_=nm_ov_ph

Or this Guy

Lincoln Lewis

Lookswise, all the actors you suggested are fine. Honestly, I don't really care about how Rilian looks. What I do care about is the acting. He needs to be able to portray a madman convincingly and speak Shakespearian without sounding pompous.

About his age: I've always seen Rilian as a 30ish prince. Seeing him 40+ would definitely throw a lot of the audience and myself off. And to explain Caspian's fraility, they could definitely say he has wasted away with grief from losing his wife and only son. It's perfectly believable.

Though I said I didn't care too much about how he looks, I have to admit, both Hiddleston and Harry Lloyd would be pretty amazing Rilians.

Though I said I didn't care too much about how he looks, I have to admit, both Hiddleston and Harry Lloyd would be pretty amazing Rilians.

Hwinning, I thought the name Harry Lloyd sounded familiar. He played Mr. Monks in Focus on the Family Radio Theater's production on Oliver Twist! He pulled off insanity quite well, and he has a great look. I would love for him to be in the running for Prince Rilian!

I'm thinking one of the Hemsworth brothers might get the role.
Considering this is a reboot, I think Rilian will be blonde. Even if it wasn't, his mother was a blonde, so I think it's highly likely they'll cast a blonde as Rilian.

Since Joe Johnston is now directing it, I wouldn't be shocked if a Marvel actor did get the role, though Chris Hemsworth doesn't seem like a good fit too me, and Liam well, I'm not the biggest fan of his acting.

I could really almost see Chris Evans being a good fit, sure he's not british but he's a very decent actor, as worked with Johnson before, and would most likely be a draw in this kind of film, however he'd probably also be very expensive.

What about Luke Hemsworth? He is definitely not already
in a well known series and he does have a look that I like for Rilian.
He is 36, so he is not too old for the part.
https://goo.gl/images/eE4nGY

Guys, I found another possible choice for Rilian.
Joseph Morgan.