Speculation about Vin voicing Smaug?!
omg that would be great... I hadn't read the transcript of the latest chat of TheOneRing.net’s Larry Curtis with Sohaib on ‘Fictional Frontiers with Sohaib,’ on WNJC 1360 AM, Philadelphia, but now found a link to it at vindiesel.hu. :D I totally agree with Larry and Sohaib - Vin just has the perfect kind of voice for a dragon and would be fantastic for Smaug! And yes, just listen to Vin's voiceover at the beginning of Pitch Black if you're doubtful!
http://www.theonering.net/torwp/2008/08/18/29485-fictional-frontiers-8-17-2008-transcript/
Relevant excerpt:
When I was in San Diego, we had a couple of minutes left, I know there was a segment during the Panel about speculation as far as the cast of certain characters - the casting of certain characters of the films - Are we getting any other rumours about Smaug? It’s funny, I was there (SDCC), Initially, I think one of the first people mentioned was Vin Diesel for Smaug, and I actually liked the idea of Vin Diesel as Smaug - maybe I was actually a minority, but there were rounds of boo’s - are we hearing anything more about Smaug at all - is there anything you’ve heard - maybe if there’s nothing, you could let our listeners in on other rumours other than Vin Diesel, as far as the character of Smaug is concerned?
Larry: Ah - I’m actually one of the people who kind of advocates Vin for that as well In fact in San Diego, after those boo’s, (laughs) I was like ‘Hey, hold on’ - you know, he has a reputation sometimes of (as whatever) as an action star - or whatever, but that guy has a tremendous voice, and if people take a minute to listen to his voice, there’s a film called Pitch Black, if people aren’t familiar with that - he opens that film with some narrative dialogue, and I mean his voice is pretty tremendous. I mean he actually can act, he’s a pretty talented guy - it’s just that he’s so big and bald and buffed that people forget that he’s doing some actual performing through his voice - but as far as more rumours go, Smaug is probably one of the very most closely guarded secrets about the film.
In conversation with Guillermo he’s been very definite that he has a ideas, he has very specific ideas as far as casting as far as how he’s going to reveal Smaug, he has all these visuals are in his head, but of course he’s keeping them to himself - and in my opinion Smaug is one of the real elements that film will succeed or struggle with - it can’t just be a dragon and it can’t just be a creature on film, it has to be a fully realized character that’s not human, that talks, that communicates and is one of the WOW moments of the film, and it will be fascinating to see how Guillermo will direct that, and how he’ll visualize that and how the WETA workshop people will fulfil the visions and how they make him talk realistically and most importantly - the element you brought up - how they cast that and get just the right voice for Smaug, and how they present that.
Sohaib: Exactly - you talk about Vin Diesel and for those of our listeners who are interested in an acting performance … actually I thought it was an amazing performance by Vin was actually in Boiler Room (Larry agrees) which was about an investment banker and basically about corruption in respect to Day (?) Traders and its an amazing film but as far as his acting is concerned I thought he was excellent - and like you said - Pitch Black. You put the visceral image of a dragon with the voice of his character in Pitch Black and it fits perfectly - cause you have to remember, cause what I think people are forgetting is that the dialogue in that film, and even like the iron giant, it’s very minimal, it’s basically you’re doing it with 4 or 5 word sentences - you’re talking about long drawn out paragraphs so to speak, and a lot of the dialogue in the Hobbit, as far as the conversations with and the riddles between Frodo, actually Bilbo and Smaug are not just one or two word answers - once that voice is given off and flow - I think it’s going to be very impressive but …
http://www.theonering.net/torwp/2008/08/18/29485-fictional-frontiers-8-17-2008-transcript/
Relevant excerpt:
When I was in San Diego, we had a couple of minutes left, I know there was a segment during the Panel about speculation as far as the cast of certain characters - the casting of certain characters of the films - Are we getting any other rumours about Smaug? It’s funny, I was there (SDCC), Initially, I think one of the first people mentioned was Vin Diesel for Smaug, and I actually liked the idea of Vin Diesel as Smaug - maybe I was actually a minority, but there were rounds of boo’s - are we hearing anything more about Smaug at all - is there anything you’ve heard - maybe if there’s nothing, you could let our listeners in on other rumours other than Vin Diesel, as far as the character of Smaug is concerned?
Larry: Ah - I’m actually one of the people who kind of advocates Vin for that as well In fact in San Diego, after those boo’s, (laughs) I was like ‘Hey, hold on’ - you know, he has a reputation sometimes of (as whatever) as an action star - or whatever, but that guy has a tremendous voice, and if people take a minute to listen to his voice, there’s a film called Pitch Black, if people aren’t familiar with that - he opens that film with some narrative dialogue, and I mean his voice is pretty tremendous. I mean he actually can act, he’s a pretty talented guy - it’s just that he’s so big and bald and buffed that people forget that he’s doing some actual performing through his voice - but as far as more rumours go, Smaug is probably one of the very most closely guarded secrets about the film.
In conversation with Guillermo he’s been very definite that he has a ideas, he has very specific ideas as far as casting as far as how he’s going to reveal Smaug, he has all these visuals are in his head, but of course he’s keeping them to himself - and in my opinion Smaug is one of the real elements that film will succeed or struggle with - it can’t just be a dragon and it can’t just be a creature on film, it has to be a fully realized character that’s not human, that talks, that communicates and is one of the WOW moments of the film, and it will be fascinating to see how Guillermo will direct that, and how he’ll visualize that and how the WETA workshop people will fulfil the visions and how they make him talk realistically and most importantly - the element you brought up - how they cast that and get just the right voice for Smaug, and how they present that.
Sohaib: Exactly - you talk about Vin Diesel and for those of our listeners who are interested in an acting performance … actually I thought it was an amazing performance by Vin was actually in Boiler Room (Larry agrees) which was about an investment banker and basically about corruption in respect to Day (?) Traders and its an amazing film but as far as his acting is concerned I thought he was excellent - and like you said - Pitch Black. You put the visceral image of a dragon with the voice of his character in Pitch Black and it fits perfectly - cause you have to remember, cause what I think people are forgetting is that the dialogue in that film, and even like the iron giant, it’s very minimal, it’s basically you’re doing it with 4 or 5 word sentences - you’re talking about long drawn out paragraphs so to speak, and a lot of the dialogue in the Hobbit, as far as the conversations with and the riddles between Frodo, actually Bilbo and Smaug are not just one or two word answers - once that voice is given off and flow - I think it’s going to be very impressive but …