Jennifer Ehle cast as Catelyn Stark

[antisocial]

Here's some good clips of her from "Possession." She's even got the right hair color in this role and that hooded costume looks like it could easily be something Catelyn would wear.

Hey I wondering from our British forum members. How well does she pull off the English accent?

As an American (born in the deep south) I couldnt tell she was from North Carolina.

Oh and BTW, some really nice clips, thanks for the find Brude.

[red snow]

She isn't tall enough, though.

Yeah, they should have definitely gone for Gillian Anderson ;)

(5ft3 by the way)

[Venardhi]

:: thumbsup ::

[Soporta]

Hey I wondering from our British forum members. How well does she pull off the English accent?

As an American (born in the deep south) I couldnt tell she was from North Carolina.

Oh and BTW, some really nice clips, thanks for the find Brude.

I've only ever seen her play English characters. I didn't know she was American. Anyone know what her real accent sounds like since she was raised in both places?

I love this casting. I never even considered her, but I think she'll do a great job.

[Ran]

Ehle being interviewed. Pretty general American, with some English undertones on occasion. But she's obviously capable of what seems to be a pretty flawless English accent, which stands to reason when she spent a lot of her childhood there.

[Silverstar]

I always thought she was English, to be honest. I didn't realise that she'd spent so much time in the US.

[NoSpeakEnglish]

A perfect choice IMO, she has the kind of beauty that you see in renaissance paintings, when I watch any of her tv or movie roles I see a person from a different age.

[About Yea High]

(Reposted from a reply I made on Winter Is Coming so y'all can have these links)

The more I see of Jennifer Ehle, the more I love this casting choice; I think it will stand up to the Dinklage choice when all's said and done. Is it based off her ability to pantomime a "Catelyn-like performance?" No, it's about her ability to act. At the end of this, I'm going to post up some clips from YouTube. If people come back at me with "bone structure" arguments then there's really no more to say.

Catelyn is beautiful, noble, elegant. She's a Tully who became a Stark. She's the mother of five children; certainly not a Playboy centerfold. I don't want a Playboy centerfold for any of the roles on Game of Thrones, but Catelyn would be one of the last I'd even consider. Jennifer Ehle has what Catelyn should have; she radiates both beauty and dignity.

What matters is talent (which she has), and the ability to emote a scene without speaking a word (which she has in spades - my god, look at her eyes). Not whether or not she's "your" Catelyn. Your Catelyn's not my Catelyn, and she's not the Catelyn of the person posting after me, or the next. Everyone pictures characters from the book differently.

The question is simply: can she become Catelyn Stark?

I think it's evident she can. I'll go on record as saying "I told you so" ahead of time.

For those of you who have time (this could take a chunk of it - some of these are long), take a look at some of these clips, just for a glimpse of what we're getting with Jennifer Ehle:

This one if from the movie Melissa. If you want, skip to the gun scene starting at 5:20. Pure terror and desperation.

The next clip is from Possession (no nudity, but sexual situations - might not be entirely work appropriate). Jennifer's part starts at 1:10

People talk of "rounded and soft" versus "stark" (pun intended). You're just seeing her in the wrong roles. Look at her face at the beginning of this

.

Oh, want gaunt? Ehle can do gaunt, with a touch of hopeless despair. I already posted this, but it bears a repeat: She's bald!

And finally... WARNING: NOT WORK APPROPRIATE AT ALL (and shuffle the kiddies off):

(Also, this might take a while to load, if you can at all - and I think the text is in Czech.)

Now this is a WOMAN! No wonder Ned was irked at Maester Luwin's presence in her bedchamber.

We got the right woman for the job, assuredly.

[Tears of Lys]

Inspired choice. :thumbsup:

[Werthead]

I always thought she was English, to be honest. I didn't realise that she'd spent so much time in the US.

I think her official designation is English-American, since she has an English mother and an American father, has spent a lot of time in both countries but got her big acting breaks in the UK and has spent most of her career here, although her home is in the USA and she's married to an American, and more of her recent work has been over there.

[Sis Who Swears]

Good post AYH, good post. *clapclap*

[SergioCQH]

I hope they cast a Robb who has good chemistry (platonic) with Jennifer Ehle. Mother and son have a lot of scenes together. Oh, the Red Wedding will be so bittersweet to see on TV. Let's all pray the series makes it to the third season, even if you're atheist like I am.

[Silverstar]

I'm already dreading watching the Red Wedding, and we haven't even got the first series commissioned yet.

[red snow]

I'm already dreading watching the Red Wedding, and we haven't even got the first series commissioned yet.

I'm already watching ADWD while reading ADOS ;)

SergioCQH has a good point with regards to getting the chemistry right between Robb and Catelyn. I wonder if any of the casting for the kids (Robb and Bran specifically) has been done with Jennifer Ehle present? I imagine Arya will also have to work well with the actors playing Sansa, Jon and Ned. But I don't think anyone would want to waste Sean Bean's time with that. I'm sure those casting folks have an ectra sense for these things

[Silverstar]

I'm already watching ADWD while reading ADOS ;)

Can I borrow your time machine next time we end up in the pub, please?

[xanoquita]

I'm really happy with the casting od Jennifer Ehle. To this day I find her the perfect Lizzie Bennet and I believe she has the required range to play Catelyn.

The more I see these clips from Possession, the more I think that Jeremy Northam would make a perfect Ned also. Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled that we have Sean Bean! It's just that, physically, Northam is more like the Ned I imagined. He also has that sad, tortured look, that I always thought Ned would have, although I'm pretty sure that Bean will make an outstanding job.

Greetings from Portugal to you all ;)

[cat catching]

I'm thinking of the dungeon conversation scene between Jaime and Catelyn... Jennifer Ehle has the ability to make that scene work as well on screen as it did on the page.

I just keep repeating to myself how awesome watching this show will be.

[Silverstar]

I'm thinking of the dungeon conversation scene between Jaime and Catelyn... Jennifer Ehle has the ability to make that scene work as well on screen as it did on the page.

I just keep repeating to myself how awesome watching this show will be.

That's one of my favourite scenes. I really hope they get a talented Jaime so that they can bounce off each other.

Cat and Jaime are, IMO, probably the two most complex characters to portray well on screen, because both of them have a kind of split personality, with their external persona being so different from their internal dialogue. I think it's interesting that they end up so connected in a lot of ways, and that scene is the pinnacle of it.

[xanoquita]

That's one of my favourite scenes. I really hope they get a talented Jaime so that they can bounce off each other.

Cat and Jaime are, IMO, probably the two most complex characters to portray well on screen, because both of them have a kind of split personality, with their external persona being so different from their internal dialogue. I think it's interesting that they end up so connected in a lot of ways, and that scene is the pinnacle of it.

I totally agree with you. I can't wait to know who's going to play Jaime.

[Matarreyes]

Yeah, me too. Actually, the more wonderful actors they cast, the more I get worried when there still aren´t any news on Jaime/Cercei parts. Well, actually, Jaime´s part. A beautiful she-bitch must be a relatively easy part to play, compared to her brother´s transformation through the series. And don´t get me wrong, I would prefer a talented actor to a handsome one any day of the year, but ASOIAF is an mature adult fantasy, and the books do not have that many officially die-for handsome men.

And yes, I am also worried that the Catelyn in the series will come off as too sympathetic. But then, wasn´t it was point of the books as well? The POV structure is there so the readers can understand each character in all its shades of gray.