There's more to report on the development of the MMORPG The Elder Scrolls Online. Bethesda obviously has plans of making the game as big as possible, so they've recruited talent to match. The company released a partial cast list of voices for the game, and it's a veritable who's who of acting heavyweights. You can check out the list below, complete with the roles they'll play, and where you might (or arguably should) know them from:
* John Cleese - Cadewell, a mad lost soul.
One of the oldest actors on the list, Cleese is a good place to start with. For one thing, he's worked in games before, having provided his vocal talents to Fable III, Time Troopers, and Jade Empire in addition to the games based on a few of his movie roles. As older readers know, he's best well known for being a member and co-founder of Monty Python, prattling on about dead parrots and cheese. Even if English comedy isn't your thing, he's a hard face to avoid. Younger readers will know him as Hogwarts' poltergeist Nearly Headless Nick. And funny thing I should mention Hogwarts...
* Michael Gambon - the Prophet, a mysterious blind man who guides the player through their journey to retrieve their soul.
Yep, Dumbledore himself is joining ranks as another bewildered figure of Tamriel. In recent years, the Hogwarts headmaster is perhaps where most will know him best, but he's also popped up in "The King's Speech," "Book of Eli," and a slew of TV movies and mini-series.
* Bill Nighy - High King Emeric, a merchant prince.
Slap a squid face on this British character actor, and you'll recognize him as Davey Jones, scourge of the seven seas in the meat of the Pirates of the Caribbean series. He's also had a role in each part of the so-called "Three Flavors Cornetto," or, "Blood and Ice Cream" trilogy, alongside the team of Simon Pegg, Edgar Wright, and Nick Frost. He'll play supernatural again as the main villain in the upcoming "Underworld" styled "I, Frankenstein."
* Kate Beckinsale - Queen Ayrenn, the leader of the Aldmeri Dominion and Queen of the High Elves.
Interesting, we just mentioned "Underworld," and who should pop up but the star of the series herself? She also has the distinction of appearing alongside Nighy in the god-awful "Total Recall" revamp, but her role as a werewolf hunting vampiress is easily what launched her into pop culture.
* Alfred Molina - wily old wizard and politician Abnur Tharn, head of the Empire's Elder Council.
Doc Ock, 'ol eight arms of "Spider-Man 2" is where you, dear reader, would perhaps know Molina the best. His early role helped the audience see him as a villain when he played he double crossed Indiana Jones as Satipo in "Raiders of the Lost Ark," a trait he continued as the deceitful Bishop Manuel Aringarosa in "The Da Vinci Code." He's also lent his voice as Ares in the animated "Wonder Woman" movie. Know who else is known for playing a role in that particular DC mythos?
* Lynda Carter - Azura, the Daedric Princess of Dusk and Dawn from Skyrim.
Might as well get an actress whose biggest role is as the Amazon warrior princess, Wonder Woman, to play another strong female character with God-like powers. Having worked on four other Elder Scrolls works, Carter is familiar with the series, providing her voice for Morrowind, Bloodmoon, Oblivion, and Skyrim.
* Malcolm McDowell - Molag Ball, the evil Daedric god and key figure of the game
If you don't know this name, then I can't help you. While he had a number of roles prior, his first (and arguably still the most) prominent role was as the ultra-violent Alex in "A Clockwork Orange," who spends his nights with his droogs committing random acts of violence. He's worked on dozens of projects since then, but gamers will know his voice from another Bethesda property, Fallout 3, where he played the A.I. amalgamated president John Henry Eden.
* Peter Stormare - Jorunn the Skald King.
You may not know the name, but you'd recognize the face (and probably the voice too). With a string of roles, including various episodes of Prison Break, Satan from "Constantine," the toe-removing nihlist from "The Big Lebowski," the really disturbed eye doctor from "Minority Reporty," the "un-pimp zee auto" commercials for Volkswagon, and about a 306 or so other titles, give or take, Stormare is prolific. He'll be taking on the role of Jorunn the Skald King in the MMORPG. Not his first role in video games, you also might recognize him as the original of the Replacer from those Call of Duty: Black Ops II commercials before J.B. Smoove came in.
You can check out the trailer below to see the various actors talk about their upcoming roles. Just make sure you have some popcorn handy, it weighs in at a lengthy 17 minutes. Great news for fans waiting for the game.
The Elder Scrolls Online is scheduled to hit PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, and Mac this Spring.
