Lin-Manuel Miranda (Lee Scoresby) and Dafne Keen (Lyra) took to controversially redesigned Twitter hours before they joined co-stars James McAvoy (Lord Asriel) and Ruth Wilson (Mrs. Coulter), executive producers Jane Tranter and Jack Thorne, and moderator / Entertainment Weekly editor-in-chief JD Heyman for HBO and BBC One’s His Dark Materials panel in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con today.
We’ve seen more #HisDarkMaterials footage. Y’all ain’t ready. #SanDiegoComicCon @DafneKeen pic.twitter.com/G4h5MgvTFc
— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) July 18, 2019
BBC One was tweeting early, too, sharing pics from the upcoming adaptation of Philip Pullman‘s award-winning trilogy of young/adult novels.
*NEW PICTURES*
Enter the world of #HisDarkMaterials, coming to @BBCOne and @BBCiPlayer later this year. pic.twitter.com/XRjkRUnjz4
— BBC One (@BBCOne) July 18, 2019
About to start the panel at @Comic_Con.#HisDarkMaterials pic.twitter.com/Oq7fXTa0wb
— His Dark Materials (@darkmaterials) July 18, 2019
What we learned during the panel:
- Lin-Manuel Miranda was a HUGE draw in his SDCC debut. His fanbase showed up for the panel, so let’s hope they show up for the show.
- Jack Thorne tried to “get a PhD” in the material for the adaptation- the same approach he took with Cursed Child.
- Ruth Wilson finds her monkey daemon “particularly nasty,” while Dafne Keen calls her Pan the more sensible side of Lyra.
- Puppeteers helped actors visualize the daemons and how they’d move.
- Lin-Manuel was working on Mary Poppins Returns when approached about HDM. He said yes before getting any details about his part because he loves the books– he and his wife read them together when they were dating. (Aw!)
- Lin-Manuel joked that he’s getting typecast as an outcast guy who flies balloons between these two projects.
- There WILL be a second season!
- If Philip Pullman wrote “adult books that children should read,” Jane Tranter hopes this is an adult TV show equivalent.
- Jane and Jack wrote 46 drafts of episode one!
- The books came out before Dafne was born, if you want to (probably) feel old.
- Neither Ruth nor Dafne had read the books before getting their parts.
- James McAvoy was cast very last minute– just days before he began filming.
- Jack calls this an “anti-superhero” story, as Lord Asriel would be the superhero, but it’s Lyra who is good.
- James says his “badass” “solitary” snow leopard daemon, Stelmaria, is voiced by Helen McCrory.
Quotable Quotes:
“Imagine a world where your soul lives outside your body…” – JD Heyman
“I thought it was time for the books to be liberated in a space that would do them justice.” – Jane Tranter
“They called her a cesspit of moral filth and I thought, ‘Okay, I have to play her.’” – Ruth Wilson
Primo Tweets:
James McAvoy describing his daemon as a “bad ass snow leopard” in his Scottish brogue is a whole mood. #HisDarkMaterials #SDCC0219
— Annalise Ophelian @ SDCC (@Dr_Ophelian) July 19, 2019
Me: Damn, this show looks good.
Twelve Year Old Me: Buh Buh Buh Mom said those books are Satan. SATANNNNNNNN!#HisDarkMaterials https://t.co/uVRSDg82PI
— Joe Brueggemeyer (@JoesTakeOnStuff) July 19, 2019
Talking about #HisDarkMaterials the series without spoiling #HisDarkMaterials the books is quite the trick. #SDCC2019
— Libby Hill (@midwestspitfire) July 19, 2019
A lot of people have been wondering what would replace Game of Thrones for HBO now that it’s over. This. This right here. This is their new sweeping adult dark fantasy series. #HisDarkMaterials
— Alisha Grauso (@AlishaGrauso) July 19, 2019
These books are not attacks on religion or faith. They are attacks on control, and on withholding the truth from people. #SDCC #HisDarkMaterials
— TheGeekiary🏳️🌈 (@TheGeekiary) July 19, 2019
Please keep asking McAvoy questions Mr. Moderator, I could listen to him all day. 😍 😅 #HisDarkMaterials #sdcc #sdcc2019 #HallH
— Becky @ SDCC (@BeckyEscalator) July 19, 2019
“One of the crew asked me if I was going to take a vacation after filming and I said ‘are you kidding? I get to play a cowboy that flies a balloon & hangs out with a polar bear, this is the vacation!” – Lin-Manuel Miranda #HisDarkMaterials #SDCC @Lin_Manuel pic.twitter.com/DjagvX4DPH
— NerdsandBeyond.com (@nerdsandbeyond) July 19, 2019
If HBO is good at anything, it’s good at making me read books so I know the story before I watch the shows. #GOT #TrueBlood #HisDarkMaterials
— Jodie with an IE (@crimsonrambler) July 19, 2019
.@Lin_Manuel first scene in #HisDarkMaterials involves a “duet with his demon” and I already love this show #SDCC pic.twitter.com/5b40RQVT07
— Nora Dominick @ SDCC (@noradominick) July 19, 2019
What everyone’s spirit animals would be:
James McAvoy: sea otter (or as he calls it a water dog)@Lin_Manuel: pizza rat #RuthWilson: cat @DafneKeen: tiny tropical monkey bouncing around all the time @jackthorne: woodpecker #JaneTranter: wolf #HisDarkMaterials #sdcc
— Verena Cote @SDCC (@verenaxcote) July 19, 2019
“I brought a bit of monkey into Mrs C.” – Ruth Wilson #HisDarkMaterials #SDCC
— His Dark Materials (@darkmaterials) July 19, 2019
The trailer you’ve been waiting for:
Went to sleep thinking about Lyra and Will. Woke up this morning screaming LYRA & WILL!!!#HisDarkMaterials is coming this fall to HBO. pic.twitter.com/fF92nZpa0V
— HBO (@HBO) July 18, 2019
RELATED: Read all Geek Girl Authority’s San Diego Comic-Con coverage here!
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