"Total Film"

[GulPlum]

I spent some time looking through the next month's cinema magazines 
which were published today ("Empire" had nothing except for the 
photos we've seen all opver the place and "Film Review" has been 
delayed until Monday). Total Film though (sorry, they don't have a 
website), had several pages off stuff, including brief vignette 
interviews with Hardy, Henderson, Isaacs and Williams.

I don't remember all the details and the quotes below are 
paraphrases, but here are a few highlights, (I'm saving what I 
thought was a corker for the end):

All four were asked the same short 10 answers; the ones I 
remember/found interesting were: 

"What was it like to come into an established franchise?" 
All said it was great fun; I was amused by Jason Issacs' comment that 
he'd based Lucius on the way Tom Felton had played Draco in PS/SS. "I 
decided that Draco was bullied by his father which is what made him 
into the git he is" ("git" was the word Isaacs used) :-) "The first 
thing I did at our first rehearsal was to smack Tom Felton across the 
head just to make sure he knew what our characters' relationship was 
going to be. He took it in good spirit." 

"What great props did you get to use?"
Isaacs waxed lyrical about his snake-head staff, which he insisted 
did all his acting for him. :-) Williams ent on about Bonnie Wright 
choosing his wand.

"Did you have input into your appearance?"
Isaacs again: "I met the costume designers, and they said 'we picture 
you with cropped hair and a pinstripe suit'. Strange, 'cos I see 
myself with waist-length hair and a paisley robe. 'Shit', said the 
costume designers."

"Did you read the books before you got the part?"
Only Williams had ("since the beginning, and I mean beginning"), and 
revealed that he'd actively campaigned to do the audiobooks... Hardy 
said he hasn't even bothered reading them since he got the part 'cos 
he wants the scripts to be a surprise as he reads them. He considers 
them "not for his age range". (WHAT?!?) Isaacs admitted that he read 
the four books back-to-back over two sleepless days after he'd got 
the part. :-)

And the corker I'd promised:

"What about your future involvement in the franchise?"
Both Hardy and Williams said that they'll be reprising their roles as 
Fudge and Arthur in PoA, and have been told provisionally to make 
themselves available from February.

Both Henderson and Isaacs (Myrtle and Lucius don't appear in PoA)  
answered that they've been told to make themselves available for 
filming GOF "at the end of 2004".

This seems to go against Columbus's statement in the American 
interviews that they've not made any decisions about making GoF yet...

Incidentally, I knew along that Columbus would be eating his words 
about raising doubts about the kids going beyond PoA. :-)

BTW, a note on Richard Harris. Let's be honest: the news wasn't 
really *that* much of a surprise. After it sunk in and I had a little 
meditative moment for him, I thought to myself (and I mean this in 
the most affectionate way!):

Typical Harris. Trouble-maker to the end. He just *had* to die on the 
day of the press conference about his last film, didn't he? So that 
all the news programmes changed their HP-related stories from 
covering the press launch, to talking exclusively about him. :-)