James McAvoy was a Huge Fan of ‘His Dark Materials’ Books But Didn’t Think He Could be in the TV Adaptation
James McAvoy was a huge part of the promotional push for the HBO and BBC collaboration series His Dark Materials. The HBO young adult fantasy show was the second shot at a major adaptation, and it needed big names involved to assuage fan fears. But McAvoy — a fan of the original books — was convinced that he wouldn’t be in the series at all at first.
So how did McAvoy end up landing his dream role? And how do other fans of author Philip Pullman’s popular books think the X-Men: First Class actor handled bringing Lord Asriel to the small screen?
James McAvoy is a longtime fan of ‘His Dark Materials’
McAvoy recently broke down his most iconic roles — of which there are many! — on the British GQ YouTube channel. The interview is full of insights on everything from Filth to his long run in the X-Men franchise. One of the most revealing portions is when he touches on his history with His Dark Materials, a franchise he has held near and dear for years.
Early in his acting career, the man who would become Charles Xavier was in a stage production alongside future Game of Thrones actor Indira Varma. They got to talking about fantasy literature, leading McAvoy to suggest Varma read The Lord of the Rings. Varma agreed — as long as the young actor would check out her favorite trilogy in the genre, His Dark Materials.
From then on, he kept an eye on potential adaptations. After the box office misfire of the first attempt, the film The Golden Compass, it always seemed like a long shot. That changed when HBO, looking for young adult material to add to their repertoire, started putting out feelers.
How did James McAvoy land his role in the series?
Years later, when the HBO/BBC adaptation was announced, he was excited. But, knowing the books “inside and out,” as he told GQ, he wasn’t sure there was a role for him.
“My good friend Kathleen Crawford, who cast the show, started talking to me about the fact that she was gonna cast His Dark Materials,” McAvoy said. “But I kind of felt there wasn’t a part for me in it.”
He stewed on the situation for a few weeks, assuming he wouldn’t end up with a role in the series. That abruptly changed when an unnamed actor turned down a major role: Lord Asriel. Getting another shot at the series, everything seemed to fall into place, Slash Film reports.
“I went, when would you like me to start? And she said Monday. And I was like, ‘okay, great, I’m doing it,’ I happened to be available, and I loved it,” he said. “I knew exactly what I was gonna do with the character from the minute she said, ‘do you want to do this?'”
What do fans think of McAvoy’s performance as Lord Asriel?
This latest attempt at His Dark Materials for the screen has been met with largely positive responses from viewers. That’s how the series managed to last long enough in a competitive fantasy TV space, and make it to the third and final novel of the series. Season 3 finally achieves what The Golden Compass film couldn’t, and completes the story cycle.
So what about McAvoy as the brutal, aristocratic explorer Lord Asriel? Did the actor have the right feeling at the start, that he wasn’t right for any roles in the series? Or did his sudden shift when he got a second shot at the series turn out to be the right instinct?
A great indicator, alongside all the obvious praise from critics, is how fans on Reddit reacted to the revelation that a standalone Asriel episode was axed from season 2.
“I feel like if they wanted to, they could,” Reddit user and-bob wrote. “Nothing stopping them from reworking this as a TV movie with a slightly didn’t framing.”
“Truly the worst consequence of the covid pandemic,” user Chills1 wrote. Clearly, fans want more of Asriel — and would love to have an hour focusing entirely on McAvoy find its way to the public one way or another.
