Casting Call- Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer and Cress GIVEAWAY
Please note: the winner of the Cress ARC Giveaway (random drawing) is KIKID (Kierra D) and her book is in the mail. Thank you all for reading our blog and playing our casting call game. We enjoyed hearing your thoughts. This book series if VERY popular it turns out. Keep watching for more giveaways.
I am completely in love with this series. I tore through Cinder and went through Scarlet like CRAZY, and was one of those weirdos at ALA Annual who stood in line to get a copy of Cress, even though it does not come out for over 100 days. And, That Guy was sweet enough to stand with me, so I have TWO- one for me to drool over and one to give away!
Want it? Here’s what we want you to do. I’ve put together who I think would be awesome to play the main characters (so far- so spoilers with Cress, that wouldn’t be fair) and placed their pictures below the break (age is no barrier- didn’t take it into consideration). In the comments below, share YOUR casting picks for the Main Characters…. (Note: All casting is part of my own head and reading, not anyone else’s)
Please note: we need your casting ideas by Sunday, September 20th to be entered to win the Cress ARC.
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Cinder |
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Pearl |
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Adri |
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Prince Kai |
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Dr. Eckland |
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Lunar Queen |
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Scarlet |
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Wolf |
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Captain Thorpe |
Filed under: Cress, Giveaway, Marissa Meyer, Scarlet

About Karen Jensen, MLS
Karen Jensen has been a Teen Services Librarian for almost 32 years. She created TLT in 2011 and is the co-editor of The Whole Library Handbook: Teen Services with Heather Booth (ALA Editions, 2014).
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Your casting is fantastic! And Chris Eccleston! Yes yes yes!
Some I haven't thought about- BUT
I can totally see
Cinder – Mew Azama
Pearl- Keiko Kitagawa
Prince Kai- Gong Yoo
Adi- Ni Ni
Lunar Queen- Charlize Theron
🙂
I adore your choice for Scarlett! I holding win this contest I have been dying for Cress to come out XD
* I Hope I win this contest
Love your picks. Would love Cress too. Definitely thing Angelina better Lunar Queen than Charlize. Sorry Ellie.
Cinder – Yifei Liu, Skyler Samuels (with dark hair) or Ellen Page
Pearl – Julia Ling
Adri – Ming-Na Wen
Prince Kai – Kim Hyung Joon (When reading I was actually thinking of this one guy who I used to have a crush on but unfortunately he's not an actor lol)
Dr. Eckland – hmmmm I thought of Michael Caine while I was reading but Eccleston sounds like a better choice to me.
Lunar Queen – Angelina Jolie, Lana Parilla or Emmanuelle Béart (striking piercing eyes and a regal sort of look when she has darker hair but is a french actress)
Scarlet – Rachel Hurd-Wood
Wolf – Bradley Cooper
Captain Thorne – Too bad Flynn Rider isn't a real person T.T oh well….Justin Hartley or Jensen Ackles (I think it's the personality types their characters that they've played that have me convinced either one would totally pull it off XD)
I imagine Cress to look EXACTLY like this: http://24.media.tumblr.com/9a4e3765dae53446dcbbcaeb9bfca6fb/tumblr_mn6lbz380U1rw5phjo1_500.jpg( just with more unruly hair).
And Wolf: http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/30/16/90/3016904b875f2125793f75c93e8076a8.jpg
And Thorne(he is SMOKIN): http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/23/7f/01/237f01cef52d5e74af0cffcf85148742.jpg
And Scarlet(this one's obvious PLUS she's got the snark): http://s3.amazonaws.com/kidzworld_photo/images/2012528/4998d58e-927d-42c7-855b-7ed7b6365ddc/top10hottestactresses-emmas.jpg
I agree on the Lunar Queen being Charlize Theron. She doesn't have brown hair, but she has a very statu-esque pose that reminds me of her.
And FINALLY I have to say Cinder always reminded me of Emma Watson(I know, I know!).
Rally enjoyed doing this 🙂
Lunar Chronicles Casting so far
Adri- Li Gong (or Gong Li)
Pearl- Yiyfei Liu
Peony- Julia Ling
Dr Eckland- Benedict Cumberpatch
Captain Thorpe- Aaron Taylor-Johnson
Queen Levana- Cate Blanchett
Sybil Mira- Emmy Rossum
Iko (voice)- Sarah Michelle Gellar
Nainsi (voice)- Rachel Weiss
Wolf's Brother- Dean Geyer
Emperor Rikan- Chow Yun Fat
Konn Torin- Aamir Khan
Wolf- Robbie Amell
Kai- Kengo Kora
Scarlet- Sophie Turner
Winter- Rooney Mara
Cress- Amanda Seyfried
Cinder- Jessica Szhor
This comment has been removed by the author.
Cinder: Ellen Page, because Cinder isn't Asian and that drives me insane
Scarlet: Jane Levy or Emma Stone
Cress: Amanda Seyfried
Kai: Aaron Yoo
Wolf: Ian Somerhalder
Thorne: Lucas Till or maybe Chris Pine, he has that sort of rebel/womanizer thing down
and Ian McKellan as Dr Erland.
I adore the Lunar Chronicles, and the wait for Cress vexes me.
Since age doesn't matter, I'd kind of cast these people in their prime, not necessarily at the age they are now.
– Jewel Staite as Cinder (she's got that mixed mechanic girl thing down pat. Bit of Native American/Asian, bit of European, little bit of everything)
– Karen Gillan as Scarlet (think 2009 Doctor Who days)
– Anna Sophia Robb as Cress
– Nathalie Emmanuel as Winter
– Mew Azama as Peony
– Harry Shum Jr. as Prince Kai
– Emily Blunt as Mira Sybil
– Tyron Leitso as Thorne
– Lucy Liu as Adri
– Chrissie Chau as Pearl
– At first I thought Eccleston would be too young, but honestly, I agree, he really would fit the part of Dr. Erland.
– Stanley Weber as Wolf (He's a little old, but he's got the rugged thing going on) Or Kellan Lutz for a younger guy (He's so muscular, grow his hair out a little and he'd be perfect)
– Shiloh Fernandez as Ran (I think he resembles Lutz enough to play his brother, has the Lunar glamour beauty, but still has a skeevy-ish look about him)
– Bradley James as Jacin
– Allyson Hannigan as Iko's voice
– Taye Diggs as Aimmery
– I'd never thought of it, but Angelina Jolie would make a great Queen Levana, she's certainly gorgeous enough. I think Morena Baccarin would have been great as well back in her Firefly days, or maybe even now!
– James Franco or Tom Hiddleston as Jerricho (POINTY CHEEKBONES :3)
My phone is acting up and not letting me post anything lengthy. So I will just say that it's amazing that most of the people on your list I considered myself. Especially Adri, I went between Ming-Na Wen and Li Gong for a solid 15min before I decided on Li Gong. Haha.
Nice!
I picked Amanda Seyfried for Cress as well! Haha.
As for Cinder, she's not Asian, she's Lunar! Lol. I cast her with that in mind.
I decided to clarify my choices. Haha!
Lunar Chronicles Casting so far
Adri- Li Gong (or Gong Li)
She's regal and does mean beautifully! However, she can also be a sympathetic character at the same time. Her role in Curse of the Golden Flower made me pick her over my love of Ming-Na Wen
Pearl- Yiyfei Liu
She's so pretty. Pearl strikes me as a pretty girl (even though she can also be mean). Also, she's only played nice roles to my knowledge–actresses like that usually can't wait to let loose in a mean one. Haha!
Peony- Julia Ling
She's so darn cute! Also, she gets major Geek cred, having played a potential slayer in Buffy!
Dr Eckland- Benedict Cumberpatch
His power is persuasion, right? Well Cumerpatch has the voice and eyes combo that will convince me to Pied Piper my way off the nearest cliff.
Captain Thorpe- Aaron Taylor-Johnson
He's adorable! 'Nough said. 😉
Queen Levana- Cate Blanchett
She's so regal and beautiful. I went back and forth between her and Angelina Jolie, but decided on Cate because of her voice–deeper an huskier and mesmerizing.
Sybil Mira- Emmy Rossum
I just love her and wanted to fit her in the cast somewhere. Haha. Besides, although this isn't the most popular opinion, I liked her in the Beautiful Creatures movie.
Iko (voice)- Sarah Michelle Gellar
Her voice is adorable. Iko is adorable. Besides, she played a robot before, the Buffy-bot! (Two Buffy alumnus, oh my.)
Nainsi (voice)- Rachel Weiss
Her voice is awesome. Nainsi, as Kai's loyal droid, deserves an awesome actress.
Wolf's Brother- Dean Geyer
(I forgot his name and didn't have my Scarlet book handy… Sorry!) I only ever saw him in Glee. He was charming and skeezy. Plus, he's got the features to pull of wolf qualities.
Emperor Rikan- Chow Yun Fat
Regal and awesome! Love him!
Konn Torin- Aamir Khan
He can act many different kinds of roles. I loved him in Fanaa. He played tough soldier, and love-struck courtier wonderfully. He can do it!
Wolf- Robbie Amell
He can pull off wolf-like, and Hot! Plus, he's related to Green Arrow's Stephen Amell. The genes run strong in this family.
Kai- Kengo Kora
I'll be honest, I picked him on pure looks. Yay.
Scarlet- Sophie Turner
I went between her and Emma Stone. And although Sansa in Game of Thrones pisses me off, I have to respect the actresses' acting chops. She does well and is a pretty little thing. I ended up going for her because I felt that she is the less clichéd choice. Eh? Ehhhh? *nudge*
Winter- Rooney Mara
She looks like a Snow White. Plus, she's a really talented and versatile actress. We haven't gotten to know Winter yet, but I feel as though Rooney can pull off whatever Marissa Meyer throws at her. Lol.
Cress- Amanda Seyfried
The hair, the eyes, the heart-shaped face… Come on now. She's Rapunzel already! Haha.
Cinder- Jessica Szhor
People are picking Asians for Cinder, but that confused me. Even without knowing she's a Lunar, she is thought to be adopted from the European Commonwealth… Anyway, I picked this actress. I don't know much about her. She's pretty, and seems like she'd be able to pull off tough. She's seems to have had pretty diverse acting experiences.
For me, I love them cast as these actors/actresses:
Cinder – Shay Mitchell
Kai – Lee Min-ho
Pearl – Yifei Liu
Peony – Suzuka Ohgo
Adri – Maggie Q
Queen Levana – Scarlett Johansson
Sybil Mira – Mila Kunis
Dr. Erland – Benjamin Whitrow
Scarlet – Holland Roden, Jane Levy, or Jacqueline Emerson (I have a hard time deciding who is best for Scarlet!)
Wolf – Grey Damon
Captain Thorne – Max Irons
Cress – Elle Fanning
Winter – Lupita Nyong'o
Thanks for this giveaway!!
Well, I know she isn't Asian. That's why it drives me crazy, people keep on casting her as Asian.
I agree about Cinder. She doesn't have to be Asian she's LUNAR. I imagine them to be a mix of everything on earth because they get to choose their own beauty except for Cinder because she's stuck with what she was born with unless she decides to take up a different look with her glamour powers. I always saw her as tan, long black stringy hair and big eyes. But I love your choices too! If I had put in Cress I would have gone with Amanda Seyfried too.
Lunars can be any race, Aimmery and Winter are black. Anyway, it's been stated before by Ms. Meyer herself that Cinder is mixed (I believe you can check it out on her FAQ page, but I could be wrong), so there is probably some Asian in her, as well as a bit of caucasian. She's fancasted Shay Mitchell before and Mew Azama was her original inspiration. I think Cinder was originally intended to be Asian, but was switched to mixed to give her a more ambiguous, all-around feel.
Sorry for the rant, I like your casting, though!
Thanks!
Oh oh oh and to continue
Scarlet- Emma Stone
Wolf- Taylor Hoechlin
Thorne- Ben Barnes
Dr. Eckland- Ben Kingsley
Few!
Oddly (or not), the easiest character for me to picture was Dr. Erland. And, as I tend to listen to audiobooks after I read the real book, Rebecca Soler (the narrator of Cinder and Scarlett) will always be Iko in my mind. This is also assuming all of these talented actors were alive today. So here goes:
Cinder: Jennifer Lawrence
Kai: John Cho
Peony: Bailee Madison (she's amazing in Once Upon a Time!)
Pearl: Mandy Moore
Adri: Lucy Lawless
Dr. Erland: Saul Rubinek
Queen Levana: Morena Baccarin
Torin: Daniel Dae Kim
Scarlett: Christina Hendricks
Wolf: Liam Hemsworth
Captain Thorne: Nathan Fillion
Cress: Brittany Murphy
Voice of Iko: Rebecca Soler
Alright, two teens and I put these together at the library one day. We're all keeping out fingers crossed because we love this book. Here we go:
Cinder- Anne Hathaway
Scarlet- Ashley Clements (Lizzie Bennet Diaries anyone??)
Prince Kai- Choi Seung- hyun
Wolf- Ashton Kutcher
Adri- Julie Chen
Peony- Stephanie Hwang
Pearl- Hana Mae Lee
Dr. Erland- Walter White
Queen Levana- Charlize Theron
Captain Thorne- Johnny Depp
Voice of Iko- Ellen Degeneres
I've been thinking about this, and for Queen Levana, I would cast Lena Headey. She was Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones so well, and Cersei was an insane power hungry b-word.
For Sybil Mira, Scarlett Johansson, without a doubt.
I cannot wait for the Lunar Chronicles movie!! And here's my cast:
Cinder- Summer Glau
Scarlet- Jane Levy
Cress- AnaSophia Robb
Kai- Qiao Zhen Yu
Wolf- Ian Somerhalder
Thorne- Chris Pine
Levana- Angelina Jolie
Dr. Erland- Elias Koteas
Peony- Suzuka Ohgo
Pearl- Selena Gomez
Adri- Michelle Yeoh
Did you announce the winner yet?
We announced it on Twitter and I have added a note at the beginning of the post with the winner's name (drawn in a random drawing). Keep watching for more giveaways. And thank you for visiting our blog.