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Casting Call: Bates Motel

We think young Norman might have an affair with an older, also very troubled, woman, possibly trapped in an unhappy marriage and possibly named Jean, to be played be Jessica Chastain.

 

As Jean's abusive husband, who gets in at least one physical altercation with young Norman, we nominate Liev Schreiber. Perhaps Schreiber's character is the first person Norman kills.

 

It just so happens Vera has a (much) younger sister, Taissa Farmiga, who is also an actress, with experience playing dark characters in darker shows (American Horror Story). We'd like her to play a teenaged Norman Bates' childhood friend and potentially his crush, the one vaguely sane person in his increasingly disturbed world, his hope at escaping from his serial killer future. We shall name this character Alice.

We think Norman has an older brother, Kurt, killed in a boating accident, whom he loved very much and who continues to haunt him via flashbacks. Kurt is taller, blonder, and generally much more affable than Norman and can be played by Jeremy Sumpter, who once played Peter Pan (2003).

 

It is tempting to cast Ezra Miller as young Norman Bates, but as he recently played another murderer-of-many in We Need to Talk About Kevin, we think he deserves a break—a romantic comedy or Disney movie perhaps. Instead, we nominate Henry Hopper, son of the late Dennis, to play a tormented young Norman, struggling between the realms of psychosis and salvation.

 

We like Vera Farmiga—she's proved herself as an actress and as a director, with 2011's Higher Ground—and we have high hopes for her portrayal of Norma Louise Bates.