With Angels and Demons debuting in theaters this week, I think it's time to publicly ask this question: Did you picture Hanks as Langdon when reading Dan Brown's books?I, for one, did not.
Now, don't get me wrong. I love Tom Hanks. He's great in Big, A League of Their Own, Philadelphia, Saving Private Ryan, Splash, Apollo 13, The Terminal, Road to Perdition and even those darn Sleepless in Mail and You've Got Seattle movies my wife makes me watch. Tom Hanks just never has been, and never will be, Professor Robert Langdon for me.
Besides Hanks, I've been real pleased with the casting in The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons. Ewan McGregor is exactly who I would have chosen for the Carmelengo, and with Ian McKellan as Sir Leigh Teabing, Alfred Molina as Bishop Aringarosa, Paul Bettany as Silas and Jean Reno as Captain Bezu Fache, the casting is impeccable.
But mulleted Hanks just does not scream to me to be the man who Brown described as "Harrison Ford in Harris tweed," who we also know was "a varsity diver in prep school and in college." So, Langdon is a handsome, athletic Harrison Ford.
1. Harrison Ford: So clearly, my first thought on who would play Langdon was a younger Harrison Ford. Ford has the subtle swagger and derisive confidence to be a Harvard professor; to be hyper intelligent, yet physically fit enough to run around Europe finding clues and baddies. If only it were 20 years ago. Plus, Ford looks a lot like the actor who Brown says Langdon looks like (because it IS him)...how's that for confusing?
2. Liam Neeson: We know he can do an American accent, we know he's great in an action sequence and we know he can play a professorial character really convincingly(Qui-gon anyone?). Liam would have made one hell of a Langdon.
3. Mel Gibson (pre-crazy): Now this one might be outlandish; Mel can do action, mid-action-humor and some gravitas. He's even got quite an artistic directorial eye. But, would we have bought him as a leading expert on religious symbology? Would you take a class with Professor Mel?
4. Clive Owen: He's still relatively unknown enough to define himself in Langdon. If you saw Inside Man or Sin City you'll know that Owen has that kind of sophisticated, brooding thing down pat. If you saw City of Men, you'll recall that he can withstand a serious physical role, while still maintaining an emotional tie to the audience. But, can this Brit heavy do an American accent?So, what do you think of these Langdons? Are any better than Hanks? Who would you cast?
