Now that Phase II is finished for The High Republic, I figured it was time to do a casting call. This phase felt less important than the first phase, so this would probably be like a Disney+ series or something. I tried to find lesser known actors and actresses (OR if it was a bigger name, it was for a small role–or a completely CGI’d alien). Also, I may have been stuck watching a certain Disney series, which could have influenced a few of my choices.
JEDI MASTERS
I am not going to explain all my choices, but I do want to talk about a couple. Orin Darhga was one of my favorite characters, and I totally pictured Billy Connolly (the audiobook reads him in an accent). He is funny and very unJedi-like, which I think Pegg would pull off. I saw the concept image for Creighton Sun, and thought he looked like Tom Cruise. There is no way Tom is doing a phase two series. He is more feature film lead. But you know who kinda looks like him and has that leadership presence? Luke Hemsworth. I loved watching him grow into his role on Westworld and think he would be perfect as a Jedi Master.
JEDI KNIGHTS
I like the idea of Melissa Navia (who is fantastic on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds) as Aida Forte, who is very optimistic, compared to Creighton Sun who is a bit cynical. They would play well off each other. I went with Freida Pinto for Oliviah Zeveron because…well I do not want to spoil anything. Gella was probably one of the tougher ones to cast, so I went with Victoria Justice (hey, she was in Zoey 101, which also featured Austin Butler).
PADAWANS
Weirdly, I pictured a blue version of Asa Butterfield as I read the book. The others are just young actors. It is hard to cast for the Padawans.
PATH OF THE OPEN HAND
I really like my picks for the villains. The Ro cousins? I stole them from the MCU. Peter Mensah as the Herald? Perfect. Eric Stonestreet as Sunshine? It would give him the chance to flex his acting chops and be a more slippery type of character (I think he can do more than just Cam from Modern Family). I also love Vincent Cassel, and I think he has that fantastic voice for Binnot. And the Mother. She is enchantingly beautiful (or at least she appears that way). I think Penélope Cruz being her most seductive would be perfect.
GOVERNMENT FOLKS
Yeah, I wanted to find a spot for Sofia Carson and Thomas Doherty. I think they are the best part of The Descendants movies. Manny Jacinto as Axel Greylark was tough. I wanted someone that is very good-looking, but could also pull off being smug and charming. Jacinto was fantastic as Jason in The Good Place, and I think he has the skills to be the perfect Axel. Weirdly, I just read that he will be in The Acolyte.
So what do you think of my casting choices?
