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Tim Burton Sends Mia Wasikowska to 'Wonderland'

I don't know exactly what I was expecting from the announcement of who would play the lead in Alice in Wonderland for Tim Burton. I do know exactly that I wouldn't have guessed Mia Wasikowska. Nope. Probably would've lost that wager.

But we've come to expect the unexpected from Burton, so it's shouldn't be unexpected that he went outside the normal channels, plucking an Australian teenager for one of the biggest roles imaginable. Though there have been plenty of TV movies and odd offshoots of this story over the years, a live action film version of Lewis Carroll's novel has never been realized before. And at that, it still won't entirely be now.

That's because Burton will adapt Alice in Wonderland in live action and performance capture, presenting the whole thing in 3-D, according to a report in The Hollywood Reporter. An ambitious project to be sure, Alice in Wonderland begins filming in November.

There have been plenty of rumors about who would eventually wind up here in the role of Alice. Lindsay Lohan campaigned for it, there were rumblings of a former American Idol contestant, and as recently as last month, Amanda Seyfried from Mamma Mia! thought she had a shot, and she was probably right. But Burton has cast a relative unknown, which we could debate all day, but I think it's sound logic. This way, Burton can save the showy roles like The Mad Hatter and the Cheshire Cat for the showy actors. Alice should be overwhelmed by it all.

Of course, I've never seen Mia Wasikowska act, so this could be another Jake Lloyd hiring, which made Star Wars Episode I much harder to watch. But we'll trust Burton's instinct on this decision for now.

Posted on Thursday, July 24, 2008 at 09:55PM by Registered CommenterColin Boyd in , , , , | Comments2 Comments

Reader Comments (2)

I like the unknown actress and trust Burton's judgement. Mr. Depp could and probably will be cast as one of the many crazy characters.

What I both love and hate is the 3D bit, Burton's worlds are creepy enough thank you. I dont need his creepy crawlies to start coming off the screen at me.

Friday, July 25, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterOrinn

mia is a wondeful actress who holds her own against gabriel byrne in his hbo show, "in treatment". check it out. she plays sophie.

Friday, July 25, 2008 | Unregistered Commenterliz

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