Johnny Depp was "first choice" to play J. M. Barrie, FINDING NEVERLAND screenwriter Magee tells New York audience~~
Several lucky Zoners attended the New York City screening of FINDING NEVERLAND on September 14th. They heard screenwriter David Magee discuss the filming of his first screenplay and explain some of the choices that were made in the storytelling process. Magee confirmed that Johnny Depp was the production staff’s first choice for the role of J. M. Barrie. Asked in what way Johnny’s performance differed from the way he had written the Barrie character, Magee replied that his original Barrie was very jocular. Johnny muted the laugh-a-minute aspect of Barrie and introduced “a strong underlying sadness” which gave him much more emotional depth.
The Zoners’ reactions to FINDING NEVERLAND are overwhelmingly positive. FANtastic JD calls the movie “a treasure,” Linda B says Johnny’s performance is “simply magnificent,” and rosearlene reports that she had a lump in her throat “the size of China.” Fran-is-a-fan, who saw the screening in Shreveport on Saturday night, calls Johnny’s performance “perfection.” Fran writes, “The on-screen chemistry between Johnny and Freddie Highmore (who plays Peter, the inspiration for Peter Pan) is immense–Johnny finally has met his match in this sprite of a child.” Thanks to all for posting their screening experiences–you can read all about it on the Zone’s News and Views forum.