HBO is casting lead roles Sunday and Monday, Nov. 2-3, in Lapwai for its upcoming miniseries “Lewis and Clark,” to star Casey Affleck as Meriwether Lewis.
HBO has a nationwide open casting call for the project and is seeking American Indians who can speak Nez Perce and other American Indian languages, a young woman to play Sacajawea, and American Indian men who are fit and skilled horseback riders, according to the casting call posted at www.rhcsearch.com.
Auditions are being held 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday and noon to 6 p.m. Monday at the Pi-Nee-Waus Community Center Gym in Lapwai.
Rene Haynes, the casting director of the production, is seeking actresses that look like they are 17 to early 20’s for the lead role of Sacajawea, according to the call. Directors also seek American Indians of all ages who are familiar with several languages including Shoshone, Nez Perce, Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara, Blackfeet, Chinook, Clatsop, Walla Walla, Sioux and Shawnee.
American Indian horseback riders are also encouraged to apply. The call’s specifications state: “Ages 20 – 50. Lean and Physically Fit. Long hair is a plus — but not necessarily a requirement. Looking for horseback riders with above average skills.”
Casey Affleck is set to star in the miniseries about the explorers based on Stephen E. Ambrose’s book “Undaunted Courage,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. The new series will be produced by National Geographic, Tom Hank’s Playtone production, Plan B’s Brad Pitt and Edward Norton’s Class 5’s production company. Norton, John Curran (“The Painted Veil”) and Michelle Ashford (Showtime’s “Masters of Sex”) will pen the script which will focus on the achievements of Lewis and Clark as well as the physical, spiritual and emotional toll the expedition takes on them, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
The show will be a 10-part miniseries, according to variety.com.
“Lewis and Clark’s expedition is as great a story as you could ever hope to tell, and like so many people, Brad (Pitt) and I have both been drawn to it for years. We both always agreed that compressing that story into a feature-length film ruined the spirit of it ... so we sat down and said, ‘How can we really do this justice?’ ” Norton told Variety. “HBO is really the only company committed to this kind of long-form storytelling, and so we’re ecstatic that they wanted to take it on with us. With National Geographic in the mix, it’s a great team.”
Open casting started last week in Idaho at Idaho Falls and Fort Hall. Casting directors will hold calls in Spokane Saturday and in Montana next week before continuing on to Canada.
Video auditions can be submitted by Nov. 12 online at www.rhcsearch.com where more casting locations can be found.
