Why not Jane Seymour?
I have watched War and Remembrance first and then Winds of thw War and cannot accept the actress who played the role of Natalie Jastrow in this series. It is a blasphemy to my beloved Jane Seymour!
shareParamont who financed insisted upon Ali Macgraw and it was agreed.
I think one reason why Ali is so hated in this role is due to how good Jayne was in W.A.R.
And when you facor in the ages of the actress'when they shot the the series Ali had just turn 44 when they did winds and jayne was 37 when she did her part. The age debate about ali does not hold up when you realize that Jayne was also playing 10 years younger then her actual age,
Difference was that Jayne is a better all around actress
MacGraw was 44 playing a woman in her mid to late 20s, who only ages 2 years over the course of the story. Had she returned for War and Remembrance, she would have been in her late 40s, playing a woman who only ages from late 20s to early 30s. MacGraw was playing far more than a woman ten years younger, and Seymour was playing a character much closer to her own age.
As much as I preferred Seymour to MacGraw, I thought Gielgud replacing Houseman was an even better choice; now I'm jealous my thread on that doesn't get as many replies.
I suppose I should be surprised that Paramount, of all studios, would insist on MacGraw. She lost out on some Paramount roles a decade before when she left Robert Evans to be with Steve McQueen. Evans, I believe, was still around then. No more sour grapes I take it?
I suppose I should be surprised that Paramount, of all studios, would insist on MacGraw. She lost out on some Paramount roles a decade before when she left Robert Evans to be with Steve McQueen. Evans, I believe, was still around then. No more sour grapes I take it?
Evans was still around, but he was on the outs with Paramount by then. He'd stepped down as studio head, and was also reeling from being busted for trying to buy cocaine during the production of Popeye, and being peripherally connected to the murder of one of the investors in The Cotton Club. I doubt his past relationship with MacGraw would have been much of an issue.
I definitely agree with you on the recasting of Gielgud as Aaron Jastrow. I wish they'd gone with him to begin with. share
Ali MacGraw is a dismal actress, beyond belief bad. In addition, I always found it ludicrous that throughout "Winds" every single male (and female) character gushes at how "gorgeous" Natalie Jastrow was. Excuse me... MacGraw was never remotely attractive in her prime, and she was merely average-looking as Natalie. And that's being charitible.
Seymour is far more beautiful and a much better actress.
I always wondered about this as well. Not so much about why Jane Seymour wasn't in the Winds of War, but how much better it would have been to have consistent casting between Winds of War and War and Remembrance, both for Byron and Natalie. I think Hart Bochner and Jane Seymour would have been great in Winds of War, and this would have made their story in War and Remembrance that much more convincing--Byron's frustration over his separation from her, their remaining (mostly) true to one another over their long separation and ordeals.
shareBoth Hart Bochner and Jan-Michael Vincent are terrible actors. I actually preferred Vincent as Brynie, though I thought Bochner was more handsome and more the proper age for Byron.
There was absolutely NO chemistry between the dreadful Ali MacGraw and Vincent, nor was there any chemistry between Bochner and Seymour.
It's sad to say the best chemistry (which was still virtually non-existent) was between Pug and Pam!
Just want to address the original question
jayne Seymour has just finished Somewhere in Time when they where casting this mini series--all actors who signed up had to sign up for the two year shoot. SEymour was doing other stuff at this point in time and trying to make movies.
She also turned down War and Remeberance 4 times before she took it
Vincent reminds me of the hot dude you grew up with but aged like *beep* due to his lifestyle. He looked way too over the hill for the role and his acting sucked.
share