SPOILER ALERT: Warning, this article contains spoilers from Trollhunters Part 3 on Netflix. Proceed at your own risk.
It’s always challenging to replace a cast member, and especially tough when the circumstances are so tragic.
The late Anton Yelchin had voiced Jim Lake Jr., the lead character in Netflix’s Trollhunters, for two seasons before his untimely death at age 27. For series co-creator and executive producer Marc Guggenheim, it wasn’t a question of how, but of whom, to move forward with.
“We made a decision very early on that we were less interested in finding someone who could clone or parrot Anton’s performance than we were just finding the right person,” Guggenheim told FANDOM on the eve of the Season 3 premiere.
“It was about getting the proper actor,” he explained. “The fact that Emile was friends with Anton made it particularly special. The moment Emile said yes — that was the moment where we felt it was going to work, because it was going to work the way we wanted it to.”
Of course, each actor brings something different to Jim.
“I think he brings a slight edge to the character of edge that we didn’t ask of Anton,” Guggenheim described Hirsch. “That ended up working extremely well in the story we were telling.”
That story — the crux of Season 3 — is Jim’s final confrontation with his archenemy, the warload Gunmar. Like many heroes in fiction, he seeks something that will give him an edge in battle.
“What he doesn’t have to rely on is something deeper than just a weapon,” Guggenheim teased. “It’s going to require Jim to make certain sacrifices. You can’t ask a hero to be victorious without some sacrifice. The choices Jim make in the back half of the season really up the stakes.”
Some of Jim’s most difficult choices come from having to side with one mentor over another, which can be seen in this exclusive clip.
“We were interested in a conflict between his two mentors — Strickler and Blinky. As you saw in that clip, we wanted to put Jim in the middle of his two father figures with two different points of view.”
The showrunners upped the stakes by adding a third figure. “And then Merlin comes in and requires Jim to make an even larger sacrifice that Blink and Strickler are NOT supportive of. It felt to us like this is a very bold way of going even deeper into Jim’s emotional arc,” Guggenheim explained.
What a Witch
Merlin’s own nemesis — the witch Morgana — also presents a constant danger to Jim and company. She’s voiced by none other the Games of Thrones’ Lena Heady. But don’t think Morgana and Cersei Lannister are one in the same.
“While Morgana is every bit as evil as Cersei, there’s a lightness about it,” Guggenheim explained. “Morgana is a far less tortured individual than Cersei is. [Heady’s] not just doing Cersei Lannister in an animated form. She’s really crafted a different performance.”
“I think Cersei is a very unhappy person, whereas Morgana exults in it, she really delights in being evil,” he added. “Lena is having such a good time, it’s just infectious.”
New Faces
Two newcomers join Hirsch and Heady in the new season. Orphan Black’s Tatiana Maslany and Rogue One’s Diego Luna voice Aja and Krel, respectively.
Maslany’s experiencing playing multiple characters on Orphan Black allowed her to hit the ground running.
“Tatiana’s first record really was a revelation,” Guggenheim said. “The moment she opened her mouth and starts speaking in this foreign and alien accent that she created for the character … we were blown away.
“Diego brings so much energy and passion to his role that during his record we had to start video recording him. We had to share that information with the animators. Diego is bringing so much more than just his voice, he was bringing facial expressions, body movement — things quite frankly I wanted to see reflected in the actual animation,” Guggenheim admitted, revealing that the writers were inspired by the newcomers’ strengths.
Aja and Krel will anchor the next series in the franchise, 3 Below, which he says “has all the heart and humor and action that Trollhunters does but it comes about in an original, wholly different way.”
But before that, Jim and company must complete their journey in Trollhunters, which contains a tribute to the late Yelchin.
“The final ten minutes of the finale, I mist up every time. I’m not a big crier, but it’s so emotional,” Guggenheim said. We came up with a way to revisit Anton and his performance and it’s just incredibly powerful.”
Fans can catch the emotion-filled Trollhunters Part 3 on Netflix now. 3 Below will premiere later this year.
