Mcavoy’s fantasy turns to reality with 11th-hour call to join His Dark Materials

JAMES MCAVOY was drafted into a leading role in the BBC adaptation of His Dark Materials just days before filming for the series began after telling the makers he was a huge fan of the fantasy novels, the actor has revealed.

The X-men star plays Lord Asriel, an explorer and father of the main character Lyra, but he was cast by chance after executives were unexpectedly forced to find a replacement for the part.

“It was actually very last-minute – I happened to be chatting to the casting director, who’s a friend of mine, waxing lyrical about how much I love the books, and then they got let down by whoever else was doing it originally,” Mcavoy, right, told the Radio Times.

“So she called me up and said ‘Do you think you can start on Monday?’ That was on the Friday!”

Despite the fast turnaround, the actor said he had no issue learning the role – played by Daniel Craig, the James Bond star, in the Hollywood adaptation of the first novel – with little preparation as he knew the books so well.

“I know that character inside out, I know the books inside out, so I just hit the ground running,” he said.

“I was prepared for it without having to prepare for it. I have a vision of that character, and I have a belief, or certain goals and beliefs, for what that character should achieve, and what should come across.

“But I’m not just a fan – I actually deeply care about the books

– so I would hate to watch this and go ‘Oh, that’s not the Lord Asriel I’ve always wanted to see!’ And I’m playing it!”

Lin-manuel Miranda, the man behind theatre phenomenon Hamilton, was also a great fan of the His Dark Materials books, written by Philip Pullman, before being asked to help with the BBC adaptation. He plays Lee Scoresby, a Texan aeronaut and adventurer. The actor told the BBC: “My wife and I read them together when we were first dating – they were the books we fell in love to. I love living inside that world.”

The film did not perform well, with disappointing box office takings and no sequels commissioned. However, Miranda does not think that this will be an issue with the TV adaptation.

“I think what is exciting is that with the TV series we have the luxury of time,” he said.

“We get to dig deeper on everything, on the themes and on the adventure.”

The cast also includes Ruth Wilson as Mrs Coulter. Miranda said: “Ruth is genius casting… she is also fearsome – she has got it all.” His Dark Materials aired last night and continues next Sunday.