Should Actors in Comic Book Movies Know the Source Material?

[spidermansidekick1]

Take a look at the Spider-man films:

Maguire- an embarrassment

Garfield- far superior and accurate

[Mrcool210]

i think the actors shoud know the source material, casue then they will know how the character thinks, and thus play the character better, for example. tobey maguire didnt read spider-man before doing the movie. andrew did, AND ANDREW IS already sooo much better then tobey

[juken16]

I have a question for you and vince would you read comics based of the film version of the characters. what i mean is would read a fantastic four comic and i mean on going series based of the characters from the movie same for any other comic book movie character batman (all version nolan schumacher or burton) superman iron man hulk daredevil elektra catwoman

[RobsRogues]

i also really liked Daredevil, one of my favorite Marvel movies to date

[JOKERSFREAK]

These videos are really hard to comment on because you two usually cover a lot of the points indepth for us! But I think ultimately actors should at least be familiar with the character. Not die-hard fans, but enough knowledge to know what makes them tick. The bit about Downey as Stark is spot on as well, good casting plays a big part too.

It really comes down to good casting and someone willing to take the part serious, regardless of if they're a fan.

[johnnyrockerfella]

its probably the person or ppl with the vision... who ultimately can see that vision so clear... they can choose actors.. but maybe then they are good at sharing that vision with the actor.. and everyone else.. so everyone knows the vision.. cause in the end the idea is to capture that vision on the big screen,, so the audience can see it too

[anakinfan8]

Wouldn't hurt for the directors to tell them abit, but then again they should. good video guys

[Bwkjam]

I don't think it's nesacary but it sure can help Heath Ledger stayed in a motel room and studied comics like scripture to get ready.

[lucafon18presents]

although I don't like it when actors don't understand who they're playing

I hate it when they are interviewed and say about how they "adjusted the character" or if they do an awful portrayal of them and say "I think fans will be glad about what I did to the character"

[xJoeEDangerouslyx]

I think it can help. I am a big fan of The Phantom. In my opinion, Billy Zane's performance was dead on. Just nailed it. And I think the fact that he was a fan really helped.

[KamisamanoOtaku]

I really hope you guys (Cap and Vince) watch this episode yourselves because some of your examples... because maybe you can do a remake where I can really understand you. Some of your supporting arguments seemed like counter-arguments. ;)

A movie is a collaborative effort. Everyone involved bears responsibility for the final project. If it calls for an original take, do an original take. If it is supposed to be an adaptation, learn the original characters and story first, then adapt it.

[BadInfluenceMan]

I don't know if they should necessarily fully research the history of the comic version of the character, but I'd prefer they at least have a minimum respect for the source medium. I can't tell you how maddening it is to hear an actor / actress talk down about comics when they star in a super hero movie; it feels like a slap in the face.

[jokerplainview]

I'm sure you get this all the time Cap but I'm sure I can speak for all your fans when I say we're eagerly anticipating the extended Dark Knight review. Hopefully soon.

[samh09]

I liked the part when they started snapping their fingers. I thought for sure when they started snapping their fingers they would break out into the Addams family theme song. Oh well!! Maybe next time.

[shakerzaman]

No, the truth is a intimate knowledge of the source material should not be required. However the Director and Writer's should have hand in crafting the source material into a great script. If its a great script and a good director the Actor should be able to do a fine if not amazing job.

[spidermansidekick1]

Definitely, all good actors research their parts. If they can't pick up and read a comic book they don't deserve to be acting.

[superrobz]

All I'll say to this is Ryan Reynolds as Green Lantern...

[drhploveboat]

did Michael Chiklis' really say that? I seem to recall him being quite vocal on how bad those films were. however maybe that was because he wanted to play the part but the movie still sucked anyway... 

[MyIronman2000]

I'm not sure. I mean, people can interpret those things differently.

[TimothyMably]

And what about Batman? Everyone knows his origin and who he is but Nolan/Goyer's take is extremely different. Same with all his other live action interpretations (and a few animated takes).

[TimothyMably]

I sort of think Andrew as Spider-Man will be the same thing as RDJ as Tony.

[joshw0071]

Captain lagon - how can a superhero be influential? is it the person like peter parker,

tony stark, clark kent etc. or is it the hero like superman batman spiderman etc. may

you talk about this on Geeks Not Nerds

[TheMrgreenblade]

Captain lagon i want to know your thoughts on sopa and if it will effect you will anyway

plz

[goodfellas1001]

Gary Oldman is great. Have you seen the movie where he plays a black, dreadlock, drug dealer? He's believable, too. That's True Romance and it's probably my favorite movie of all time. Also Channing Tatum isn't as terrible as you might think. He was on A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints with RDJ and Shia Lebouf (before Transformers when his star was still on the rise). Sure anybody can have one good film, but still.

[gvert1213]

Tom didnt know anything when he first started the show but once he became an executive producer on the show he knew alot about the characters mythology from playing the character for 10 years, plus as u said its all about the script, tom never wrote an ep, he only directed eps like Absolute Justice & Booster.

[gvert1213]

If your doing an origin story of the character, you shouldnt know to much source material, if your a good actor, youll want it to be fresh and have those raw feelings, but if your jumping into a live action comic character you should know the basics.

[aslan1121]

A good example of a good director and a good actor who didn't know the part very well is Kevin Conroy. All he knew about before trying out for the part was the 60's show. All the director's did was explain some about the character and let him read the script and boom the perfect Batman. I personally stilt like him any of the live action Batmen nearly as much.

[supermanisbest]

i think actors should atleast have some idea of the character there playing ahead of time.and maybe it's just me but i think its pretty cool how for man of steel henry cavill used the comics to center his superman around.just shows he cares about the source material

[TheDarkwasp]

I only think it's required for an actor to have knowledge of the source material if the actor does not understand the character from the script.

[thecrimsonpool]

Holy! who is the big Two-Face fanboy? lol Awsome collection

[Geekvolution]

@thecrimsonpool LOL That's Vince-- he's been collected Two-Face ever since TDK. We'll be posting a Recommends soon with his most recent aquisition, and it's super cool :)

-CL

[Geekvolution]

@Geekvolution *collecting

[Weirdreviewsnerd]

Before I even started the video: YES!

[dvid22]

an actor should have some certain knowledge of the material to best protray what they are trying show. Micheal clark duncan was the best given the situation but imagine hellboy and abe not being ron perilman, doug jones.

[scifigrl92]

I think it's the writer and director's job to make sure they're making a good movie. kinda agree with vince. although research does help. It's like you read my mind when you mentioned tom welling. I read online that he wasn't into superman before smallville and turned down the role of clark twice. Yet he did a good job playing clark imo.

[SUPERSAYIANMEXICAN]

Its like you guys said the actor can go out and really read the source material and get an idea of who he or she wants to be but in the end its mostly the directors decision of where he or she wants to go.

[Juwan2good]

cap did you ever get to look at the links i sent you for my video topic a few weeks ago?

[Geekvolution]

@Juwan2good You'll have to remind me... sorry!

-CL

[Chosenstudios]

Still lovin your videos CL! You guys should do another contest like the Superman fan film thing! Was a lot of fun!

[juken16]

this question makes me think of something else why do we put so much pressure on live action adaptations

[Skyspidey14]

I think they need to know at least the basics, because a lot of the time when an actor doesn't know the basics of a character the performance ends up being terrible. "cough" George clooney "cough"

[ViewingReviewing]

With all due respect Aussie is pronounced Ozzie not Ussy.

[TheSwampShinobi]

@ViewingReviewing its actually ow-see

[ViewingReviewing]

@TheSwampShinobi, take it from an Australian. It's pronounced Ozzie. In Australia, s can mean z.

[magpie2541]

i think reseach need to be done before hand

[SupremeCommander85]

It helps, especially for characters like Spider-Man where Andrew Garfield was a big fan of the comics already.

[comicbookprodigy995]

In my opinion, I believe they should, definitely. I mean how many movies have we gotten where they just read the script and interpret it in there own mind, that isn't "acting." Now let's say, And Cap Logan, I know you like Supes so let's say Henry Cavill doesn't read the comics, just the script, it won't exactly be the Superman we know and I say this even though with my dislike of Superman, we love. As compared to if he read the comics, and tried to act as Clark would, so all together, yes!

[CultOfPersonality91]

I think it's a good thing but not a iron clan rule. I mean, Heath Ledger knew the source material...did fucking amazing. Nicolas Cage? Not so much. Knowing the source material doesn't make a performance great or not, that's down to the script and the actors themselves, not if they know what the character is about. Does it help? Of course, especially with Ledger being the prime example but you don't HAVE to.

[SenorNerd]

I read a interview with Micheal Shannon (who's playing General Zod in Man of Steel) he doesn't read comics, in fact he's not a fan of comics. And he does mention Terence Stamp a lot in interviews so I wonder is he studying Stamps performance in Superman or Superman 2 or does he get Zod from the script he was handed? Kinda makes me worry that Micheal Shannon doesn't look at source materials to get inside the head of General Zod.

[van8ryan]

Best story I know involving this subject is Kevin Conroy's story of first auditioning for Batman. Conroy had never heard of the comic, but the casting director loved his voice. Then, as the producer explained to him about the character, Conroy said, "Oh, you're telling the Hamlet story." And most say to this day (including me) that Conroy's one of the best to play Batman...a man who never read the comics.

[rocketdave]

1st & foremost, it's most important for the people behind the camera, ie the writers and directors, to be familiar with the source material and make sure they cast the right person. If the actors are fans, that's a bonus. At the very least, it's nice if they develop some respect/passion for the project. If not, what are they doing it for? Even if they're great on-camera, if they display an ignorance/ lack of enthusiasm in the material in interviews, etc, I personally find that off-putting.

[ThePhoenixAvalon]

I think actors should always read the source material because then they can understand what attracts people to this character and therefore better display it on the screen. I think a good actor can take this and make the character feel fresh and yet familiar.

[ZipblockArchives]

I hoping you guys would mention voice acting as well but it's all good.

[stormtrooperwilliam]

Okay say I was cast to be Bruce Wayne/Batman. Would it be good to not know anything about the character besides what the script gives me? Most certainly not. Pretty much all movies are not in continuity so it would be diffrent from Batman we know from the comics. Such as all the other Batman movies. I think it would be good to have an average knowlege about the character, what motivates him and his enimes. Say I read the four or five most popular Batman tpbs. Then I would be ok for the movie.

[RedRobin696]

I think it really depends on the story your trying to tell

[nymetsfan9121]

i think they should know at least some knowledge of the character they're playing. they don't have to know the character exactly. i remember i saw an interview with kirsten dunst for the first spider-man, and she basically said flat out do i look like someone who knows about spider-man comics. to me thats partly why i think she didnt make a good mary jane

[TheKinKyMoFo]

It can help, but I think it all depends on the director in the long run.

[transfan1988]

What a great question. I think that, in the case of a very complex character, the actor should at least know what the core of said character is, his motivation or what made it so popular that a studio want to produce a movie about him or her.

[Xmenfan1963]

It helps. For example, Michael Fassbender had stated multiple times in interviews that he read a lot of X-Men comics to get a better grasp on the Magneto character as opposed to relying on Ian McKellen's performance in the original X-Men films.

[CoolioVids101]

I don't think they should be required to know about the source material before they are cast, I consider that a bonus. Now if part of becoming the character they need to go back and read comics or whatever that's fine, good for them.

When it comes to the movie I would prefer a great performance of a character rather than a person who "wants to be them" and gives a mediocre performance

The Director and Writers need to know the source material...they are creating the story

[remylebeuX1]

I don't think they need to know much to get the part but they should review it before production. With comic books they don't need to know all of it, but they should look over the well known stories (Spiderman-The death of Gwen Stacy, Batman- Long halloween). Being an actor myself i wouldn't dream of not reading a book if the show was based on it.

[therealmanos]

It helps, but I don't think it's mandatory.

[RSNCICREO]

yes they should 100%

[stormtrooperwilliam]

Yes they should!!!