Ashleigh Hill-Buxton
Casting agents were issued with a ‘yo! heads up!, they’re looking to cast Artemisia in the 300 sequel’ this past Friday.
“300 : The Battle of Artemisium” (yep, seems it’s undergone yet another name change; it was simply “300 : The Battle of Artemisia”)
Actresses will be testing for the part over the next fortnight or so. Murro isn’t after a “star” for the part.
The film, which Noam Murro is directing for the water tower troops, isn’t so much a sequel as it is a film that takes place concurrently with the events of the first “300” (as well as before and after). Only this time, we see the events unfold through the eyes of Xerxes and his people.
You’ll feel more for the jewellery-loving villain this time around.
This is what casting agents have been told about Artemisia and how she plays into the story :
Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro) is somewhat pushed into the bloody battle with the Greeks by the gold-covered maven goddess Artemisia. Artemisia, witnessing just how much his father King Darius’s death has affected him, persuades Xerxes – with her “vindictive charm” – to go into battle against those responsible.
Artemisia tells Xerxes that he has no choice but to avenge his father’s death and has to man up before becoming king. So, he sets off to become a God because that’s the only way he can win the battle.
Artemisia, on her hunt for a group of men to join Xerxes in the battle against the Greeks, doesn’t stop at brainwashing Xerxes. She also manages to convince Themistocles (the character “Animal Kingdom” star Joel Edgerton is in talks to play) to side with her somewhat. Though the Persians took his family, and he’s spent ten years training the Greeks for battle, Artemisia has such an allure about her that the muscly Greek is taken. Ultimately, she convinces him that his life will be better off if he swaps sides. But this guy’s also as good a liar as he is a fighter.
But as you can see, Artemisia is a central character in the story – she’s the one making opposing leaders jump through hoops.
Who do you think might make for a good Artemisia?
