Attempting to Stay Calm....

...with only moderate success.  At least the spazz hasn't overflowed yet (and wow I just tried to spell "overflowed" with two Ws).  The reason?  

This time, it's serious.

As some of you may know, movies for both The Hunger Games and The Mortal Instruments series are underway (and possibly the Vampire Academy series as well, but seeing as how I STILL haven't finished Last Sacrifice, I won't research that right now.  I don't think I could handle it).  My current twitchiness (that is too a word, dang SpellCheck) results from developments regarding the adaptation of City of Bones, the first book in The Mortal Instruments series.

If you're Caroline or Daria, then I know you've seen Camelot, a new show on STARZ whose first season wraps up next week.  And because of that, you've seen the actor Jamie Campbell Bower (JCB).  His previous records include Gellert Grindelwald in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I (which I have yet to see) and a role in Camelot I will wait to unveil for dramatic effect.  Also, if you've been keeping up with news regarding the Twilight Saga, you know that the role of Caius has been recast for The Twilight Saga:  Breaking Dawn Part I.  JCB has been cast for this role.

Caroline and Daria, since I know you two haven't read The Mortal Instruments series, this little ramble won't mean peanuts to you, and I begrudge you for that.  (You really should read them.  They're effing amazing.  Not that I have any room to talk, seeing as how I'm sort of taking my sweet time rereading the first three so I can do City of Fallen Angels some justice.  The poor book has been glaring at me from my bookshelf for several weeks now, and it kills me but, alas, I must go on.)  But anyway, the three of us commented on King Arthur's general rat-like appearance (though I said he looks more like a mouse, and only in some shots).  The actor who plays King Arthur is none other than JCB.

And he has been cast for none other than the role of Jace.

Also--some time back, evidently--the actress Lily Collins, whose track record includes the character Collins in The Blind Side; Lucy Pace in Priest, which came out last week; co-starring as Karen opposite Taylor Lautner in Abduction, which is in its post-production stages and is slated for release later this year; Snow White in The Brothers Grimm:  Snow White, which is in its pre-production stages and is scheduled to come out in 2012, as is the final movie I will mention here:  the role of Clarissa Fray in the movie adaptation of City of Bones.  (Run-on sentences for the win.)  A brief article on these two casting choices can be found at http://www.movieline.com/2011/05/jamie-campbell-bower-cast-opposite-lily-collins-in-the-mortal-instruments.php as well as http://hollywoodcrush.mtv.com/2011/05/31/jamie-campbell-bower-jace-wayland-mortal-instruments/ .

I'll admit, these two are an odd pair when put alongside my mental images of Jace and Clary.  However, Cassandra had this to say on her LiveJournal blog (which you can find at http://cassandraclare.livejournal.com/ ) :

So, as it says in big letters on my website, I don't choose the actors for the movie. There's quite an incredible process of auditioning, and then auditioning for the director, and then finally auditioning with your co-star (in this case, Lily Collins). Screen Gems auditioned an enormous number of people for this part, known and unknown. I first heard about Jamie when I heard from the producers that he had done an amazing read for the director. I don't know how on their radar he had been before, but I know that was enough to have him brought back to test with Lily. And that was the audition they sent me to watch.

Which I replied to with, I believe, the one word unfuckingbelievable. (Sorry for the swearing.)

He was Jace, down to the snark, and the vulnerability, and the humor and the romantic side. (You'll be happy to know one of the scenes in the audition was the "greenhouse scene", and the chemistry between Jamie and Lily was intense.) So then after that I just sat around and hoped they picked him. There were other actors in the mix (names I think you largely wouldn't recognize, at least not in a discussion of the casting for this film) [Cara here; one of these names included Alex Pettyfer, known for playing Number Four in I Am Number Four, as mentioned in the Movie|Line article I linked above.] and I wanted Jamie but — beyond saying I liked him, I knew I was the smallest cog in a big machine. For casting a lead role like this, all the producers (there are like eight, nine of them), the financial guys, the head of the studio, all have to agree that this guy is the best.

And they did.

So, if Cassie was that blown away by him, and by Lily, then hey, who am I to say anything?  I trust her judgment; she's the creator of Jace and Clary, and I'm just an interpreter.  If she says JCB is Jace, then hell, he's Jace!  I've seen a lot of bashing going on around the interwebs, and it's kind of startling.  I think JCB does a fine job as King Arthur--sometimes he's a bit of a ditz, or not very compelling, but he's no Kristin Stewart.  He has real personality with his characters, as Cassandra raved about.  So I'm withholding judgment until the trailers come out.  If you're worried about JCB not looking like Jace more than you are him not acting like Jace, well, Cassandra also had something to say about that (again, a quote from her LiveJournal) :

They'll cut his hair, they'll work him out, they'll give him contacts — if you can't imagine how that's going to look, then just think of other movie transformations you've seen in your life. And Jamie is already a tall, blond, hot guy, so he doesn't have that far a road to travel.

So let's everyone take a deep breath and hold off on the rage-rants, shall we? 

For more on Cassandra's reaction and views, or for general movie news that's sure to come, keep an eye on Cassie's LiveJournal, which, again, can be found at http://cassandraclare.livejournal.com/.  Also, check out her interview with Hollywood Crush at http://hollywoodcrush.mtv.com/2011/06/01/cassie-clare-on-jamie-campbell-bower-mortal-instruments/.

No doubt I'll be back eventually with more rant-news regarding The Mortal Instruments movies, The Hunger Games movies and The Vampire Academy movies, as well as various and sundry other items.  Keep flying, and don't forget to be awesome,

~Cara