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Willem Dafoe Joining Andrew Stanton's John Carter of Mars

by Alex Billington
July 15, 2009

Veteran actor Willem Dafoe is the latest to join the cast of Andrew Stanton's John Carter of Mars movie in development at Disney/Pixar. In the story of a Civil War soldier transported to the red planet where warring races vie for control, Dafoe will play Tars Tarkas, a leader of the Thark race who knows that the only way his people can survive is if they turn away from war, a position that may cost him dearly. Jim Morris and Colin Wilson are producing John Carter, which will start shooting in early 2010. Dafoe has played almost everything - a vampire, a supervillain, now a martian, too. He's a great addition to the cast.

We already know that Taylor Kitsch will play John Carter and Lynn Collins will play Dejah Thoris, the heir to the throne of Mars' Helium kingdom whom he falls in love with. I'm hoping that Dafoe's role isn't the same one that Thomas Haden Church was going for, as I'd still love to see him be a part of this cast as well. Dafoe's involvement I think proves that this isn't a production to be taken lightly - and that it will be as big of a spectacle as we're all hoping. Variety describes his character as a "fierce green Martian warrior," so does that mean we'll see an entirely green Dafoe? Who knows? We'll be keeping a close eye on this as it develops.

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