I’ll take The Hobbit movies as an example. As usual 😉 Not talking about the book.

I wonder if people choose their favorite characters based on who they are played by.
Is Thorin liked because of the character or is it because it’s played by Richard Armitage?
Or Kili because it’s played by Aidan Turner?
Legolas because of Orlando Bloom?
Not to mention Thranduil played by Lee Pace?

I watched Youtube videos where actors are interviewed or scenes from the movies (in general that is) There’s lot of comments about how wonderful (about their looks etc.) they are.

“Thranduil is such a bad-a§§ but oh so hot”
Not an actual quote.

Would they say like that, if it was played by someone else?! Or is it because they find Lee Pace hot?! If the character was played by, let’s say, Robert Pattinson. (just an example) Would Thranduil still be hot? Or would he be something else?

I usually like a character better if it’s acted by a good actor. It doesn’t matter how the actor looks like. For example, one of my favorite actors is Christian Bale. But sometimes he plays characters I don’t like at all. And would still not like it if it was played by someone else. If anyone has seen Harsh Times. The character he plays there is really irritating for my liking. I wouldn’t like it no matter what.

How about the other way around? An actor you don’t like but still plays a likeable character. Maybe that actor does a good job and that way, you start to like him/her. Or someone you liked before but plays a character you don’t like, would you still like that actor? There’s no actor I don’t like so I don’t know how it would be. Maybe Robert Pattinson but since I haven’t seen any movies with him, it’s hard to tell.

There’s people that think the character Tauriel shouldn’t be in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug because it’s not in the book. Maybe the real reason is that it’s played by Evangeline Lilly and they’ve got issues with her. For me that character is likeable whoever it’s played by. But she just does it best. Could not think anybody else in that role.

Sometimes when reading what people think about a character, makes me wonder what the real reason really is. Maybe it’s just teens that like a character because of the actor it’s played by. But as some might remember what a big fuss it was when Ben Affleck was hired to play the next Batman. The character is loved and people were used to see Mr Bale play it so maybe that was the reason they got upset. Batman (Bond, Spiderman etc.) is always gonna be loved. The character itself will never be disliked. In this case it’s just the actor that gets the negative comments.

Confused? Don’t worry, so am I 😀 If you got any views on this matter, don’t be afraid to comment.