Elden Ring is a 2022 video game where you play as a warrior exploring the Lands Between, an ancient country blasted by war and want. A brutal conflict tore this world apart before you arrive, and it's your goal to rule over what's left.
Elden Ring is both light and heavy on story. Your hero character is basically mute, and the various monsters, gods and demigods you encounter along your way only offer cryptic hints about what happened and what it all means. A lot of the particulars must be puzzled out from item descriptions and other clues.
And yet the atmosphere is thick enough to swim in. That's why fans are still obsessing over the details years after the fact, and why there have been rumors of an Elden Ring movie pretty much since the game came out. There's been no official word on a film, but plenty of whispers, including from creator Hidetaka Miyazaki and author George R.R. Martin, who helped develop the game's lore. Recently, we heard that A24 may produce the movie, with Civil War director Alex Garland on board as director.
Could it actually happen? No idea. But if it does, we want Hollywood to be ready. So let's dream-cast way-too-famous people to play the denizen of the Lands Between, just in case:
Cate Blanchett as Queen Marika the Eternal
Queen Marika is the ruler of the Lands Between, the closest thing to a god most of the citizens have ever known, and a key figure to why the world is now in ruin. Driven to despair over the death of her son Godwyn, she shatters the Elden Ring, pieces of which are picked up by her children, who soon go to war with each other to get the rest. Because people in the Lands Between can't die, their wars drag on eternally, until the land was wrecked almost beyond repair.
Queen Marika is regal, beautiful, powerful, mysteirous and tragic. I'm not the first, second, or seventh person to suggest Cate Blanchett could play her in a movie. Blanchett's performance as Lady Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings movies is all the evidence you need that she would kill it.
Josh Brolin as Godfrey/Hoarah Loux
Queen Marika has a few consorts in her time. The first was Godfrey, who waged war against the giants on her behalf. He became the First Elden lord, ruling the Lands Between at her side. But eventually, Marika sent him and his followers away, to be called back one day for a chance to brandish the power of the Elden Ring.
In his banishment, Godfrey took up his old mantle of Hoarah Loux, a fierce warrior. Godfrey is his fancier, more respectable persona, fit for a king consort. The players encounter both towards the end of the game, fighting first the genteel Godfrey and then the bloodthirsty Hoarah Loux.
Josh Brolin is best known as Thanos in The Avengers movies and as House Atreides swordmaster Gurney Halleck in the Dune films, but his work goes back way further; he's a modern movie actor who exudes the charisma of the tough guy stars of old. He can do genteel, he can do fierce, he can match Blanchett for presence and power. And sure, he isn't as impossibly muscular as Hoarah Loux is in the game, but no one is; Josh Brolin has the magnetism this character needs.
Jason Momoa as Radagon of the Golden Order
After Godfrey left the Lands Between, Marika took up with Radagon, who became her new Elden Lord. You could say she moved on awfully fast, but it's complicated, because Radagon is...Marika herself.
Or maybe an aspect of Marika; as a god, she can do that kinds of things. Radagon is a part of Marika, but he's a guy. Just go with it.
We don't know a ton about Radagon's personality, or even whether he can truly be considered different from Marika. What we know is that he has long, flaming red hair and weilds a mean hammer. He's one of the final bosses in the game and fights with a ferocity that makes players shake in their boots. Game of Thrones veteran Jason Momoa brings ferocity to everything he does, and he has long hair. He even played a king, kind of, in the Aquaman movies. Swap out his trident for a hammer, add some red hair dye, and he's ready.
Florence Pugh as Melina
Melina is one of the most mysterious characters in Elden Ring, and considering how little of itself this game gives away, that's saying a hearty mouthful. She is probably Marika's secret child, although her parentage is never spelled out. She helps the player on their path to become the new Elden Lord, not the least of all by giving them access to the magical steed Torrent. She is soft-spoken, strange and sad.
There's very little to hold onto with Marika. Whoever plays her will need to be able to hold the audience's attention without much context to draw on. With her compelling performances in movies like Midsommar and Little Women, not to mention her turn as Yelena in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we know that Florence Pugh can pull this off.
Henry Cavill as Godwyn the Golden
Godwyn the Golden was the firstborn child of Marika and Godfrey, and by all accounts was a stand-up guy. He was handsome, powerful, well-liked and probably the next in line for the throne. He even defeated and then became best buds with a fearsome dragon, bringing the dragons into the fold of the Golden Order.
And then his half-sister Ranni kills him for reasons we'll get into later, which leads to Marika shattering the Elden Ring, which leads to a brutal war between her remaining children. That's why the Lands Between are in the sorry state they're in when the game begins.
Godwyn is dead by that time, so when we're thinking about an Elden Ring movie, we only want someone for a cameo appearance. Why not Henry Cavill, who seems pretty universally popular among the target audience for this thing? He was Superman, he was Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher, he builds PCs, etc. Everyone likes him, so he'll be perfect as a guy everybody likes. Wouldn't you go to war if Henry Cavill were killed unjustly?
Ron Perlman as Morgott, the Omen King
Marika had children with both of her partners. Margott was one of her sons with Godwyn. He was born an Omen, a race of ogre-like monsters doomed to live in the subterranean shunning grounds under the golden city of Leyndell. Margott grew up lonely and despised, but nevertheless learned to love from a distance the civilization that Marika his mother had brought to the Lands Between, known as the Golden Order.
After the shattering, Margott took up the name of Margit the Fell Omen and slew Tarnished warriors hoping to become the new Elden Lord. The player is one such Tarnished warrior, and Margit is the first major boss. Meeting him is the point where a lot of players learned just how hard this game was going to be.
Margott is a tragic monster with a sensitive side he tries to hide. My mind goes to Ron Perlman playing Hellboy in the Hellboy movies. He'll be used to being under pounds of makeup, and he can bring the bone-weary grit the role needs.
Julianne Moore as Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon
Remember when we discussed the confusing situation of Marika actually being two people, herself and her husband Radagon? Well, it gets even weirder: before Marika and Radagon got together, Radagon was married to Rennala, a powerful sorceress and the head of the Carian royal family.
In her time, Rennala was a great warrior, but by the time the player meets her, she is much diminished, mentally scattered and a shell of her former self; apparently she took Radagon leaving her for Marika hard, and enduring forever in the ruins of a once resplendent kingdom can't have helped.
Julianne Moore is a veteran actor who can play pretty much anything, but she may be at her best when she's playing melancholic, faded powerhouses. Whether it's Boogie Night, Far From Heaven or Magnolia, there's often something a little sad and desperate about Moore's characters, but also bright and potent. It think she would relish diving into the nuances of this role.
Emma D'Arcy as Ranni the Witch
Ranni the Witch is the daughter of Rennala and Radagon, which technically means she's the daughter of Rannala and Marika. Whatever, she's a demigod and she's very powerful.
The player encounters Ranni pretty early in the game, and unlike a lot of the people you run into, she doesn't try and kill you. Instead she tries to recruit you into her schemes, and she has a lot. As I mentioned before, Ranni successfully killed her half-brother Godwyn, effectively setting off the War of the Shattering. How she did it is a long story we don't need to get into here, but the why is interesting: as the daughter of a god, Ranni was bound to the Golden Order and the direction of the Greater Will, the divine force that gave Marika her powers in the first place. But Ranni wanted to be free to live her own life. Killing Godwyn was part of a ritual that allowed her to do that.
So Ranni is dangerous, but she may have good intentions. She seems fed up in general with gods from beyond the veil of reality directing the lives of people in the Lands Between, and wants to start a new age on her own terms. She has a lot of contradictions within her.
Emma D'Arcy has blown up in recent years thanks to their nuanced performance as Rhaenyra Targaryen on House of the Dragon. As Rhaenyra, D'Arcy is powerful and commanding, but also gentle and kind, and also angry and mysterious. They have a wonderful face for acting, able to convey lots of emotion with stillness. I think they have that magic mix of elements that would make for a great Ranni the Witch.
Robert Pattinson as Blaidd the Half-Wolf
Ranni was an Empyrean, a demigod chosen by the Greater Will as a potential candidate for full godhood down the line. When you get chosen as an Empyrean, you get a shadowbound beast, a personal bodyguard and agent created just for you. They are forever loyal to you and incapable of going against your will.
Blaidd is Ranni's shadowbound beast, a wolf-man players can encounter fairly early in the game. He's also a decent guy: well-spoken, polite and a gentleman.
Any athletic affable guy willing to wear a wolf mask could pull off the role of Blaidd, but why not make it a famous athletic affable guy? Is Robert Pattinson willing to wear a wolf mask? I'm not sure, but in my version of the Elden Ring movie he is.
Dave Bautista as Starscourge Radahn
Starscourge Radahn is another child of Radagon and Rennala, and Ranni's brother. Before the Shattering, he was known as a great warrior, in addition to being decent and kind. After the Shattering, he is among the last demigods left standing after the fighting had gone on for years. And and his half-sister Melania, who we'll get to, engage in an epic battle that leaves her incapacitated and him insane. After that, he wanders the corrupted expanses of Caelid until the player comes along and defeats him.
Dave Bautista is an ex-wrestler who has the physical presence to play a bruiser like Radahn. But of all the famous pro wrestlers who have gone into acting in recent years, Bautista is the one who has taken on the most diverse set of roles, appearing in heavy dramas like A Knock at the Cabin, sci-fi epics like Dune, and franchise fare like the Guardians of the Galaxy movies. He can deliver on Radahn the terrifying boss fight, but also the character underneath.
Bill Skarsgård as Godrick the Grafted
Bill Skarsgård is a talented actor who's gained a reputation for playing villains, most notably monsters. He broke out as the murderous clown Pennywise in the IT movies and recently played the title character in Nosferatu. So when I thought of who could play Godrick the Grafted, the decaying, mutant-like lord of Stormveil Castle, my mind immediately went to him.
Godrick is descended from Queen Marika, so he has divine blood flowing in his veins. It's gotten a bit thin, though. To make up for his comparative weakness, he's grafted other creatures onto himself, leaving him twisted and half-mad. He seems right up Bill Skarsgård's alley.
Josh Gad as Patches
We've talked a lot about gods and monsters. Refreshingly, Patches is just a guy living in the Lands Between, trying to get by. He sells you items. He also regularly tries to deceive you, betray you, and even attack you, although he generally doesn't get very far with that last one; Patches is more of a grifter than a fighter.
No one takes Patches very seriously, which means he represents a great opportunity to bring some levity into this very dense, very heavy, very self-serious fantasy world. Josh Gad has been providing comic relief his entire career, from The Book of Mormon to Frozen to Beauty and the Beast. And although I'm sure he's a lovely person, he can play annoying and punchable very well. He's our Patches.
Morena Baccarin as Fia, the Deathbed Companion
Fia is a deathbed companion, someone who absorbs the warmth and vitality of warriors and then lays with the bodies of exalted nobles, granting them a second chance at life. That was what Fia was doing before she traveled to the Lands Between, where she intended to help mend the Elden Ring and usher the Lands Between into a new age, one which accepted death as part of life.
Fia's story, like a lot of the stories in Elden Ring, is vague and confusing, but we know that she is tender, serious, and committed to achieving her goals, even if it means she has to do some unsavory things along the way.
Morena Baccarin is a veteran actress best known as Deadpool's love interest Vanessa in the Deadpool movies and as the companion Inara in the TV show Firefly. As Inara, she was restrained and warm, but we also get the sense that she's always thinking and planning. That's Fia.
Finn Wolfhard as Sorcerer Rogier
Sorcerer Rogier is a fellow Tarnished players meet fairly early on in their quest, when he helps them defeat a fearsome boss in Stormveil Castle. Rogier is friendly and polite and doesn't seem to be hiding any deep dark secret, a rarity in this game. He's looking into the history of this world and does his best to help other people. He's a stand-up guy, which is why it's sad to watch him waste away from a mysterious infection later on.
It's doubly sad because Rogier looks pretty young. Why not cast Stranger Things veteran Finn Wolfhard in the role? He already has experience in the sci-fi/fantasy space, and he'll soon need a new genre job now that Stranger Things is wrapping up.
Bryan Cranston as Sir Gideon Ofnir, the All-Knowing
Fia is one of several characters players can meet at the Roundtable Hold, a resting place for Tarnished warriors attempting to become the new Elden Lord. Gideon is the leader of the Roundtable Hold. He has dedicated himself to attaining knowledge and has become a powerful sorcerer. He shares his knowledge with the player, but is also playing his own games behind the scenes.
Gideon Ofnir reminds me a little of Walter White, the character Bryan Cranston plays in Breaking Bad. He's extremely smart, but also twisted by bitterness and anger. Gideon's motivations are complicated, but it suffices to say that he isn't helping the player purely out of kindness. He's manipulative and crafty, both things Cranston can play very well. Plus, Cranston just seems to have the right build and be the right age for the part.
Storm Reid as Nepheli Loux
Nepheli Loux is a Tarnished warrior born in the Badlands, far from the Lands Between. Her biological father is probably Godfrey, but her adopted father is Gideon Ofnir. She carries out his orders, but late in the game has some misgivings when she finds out the fuller extent of what he's been doing.
Like Sorcerer Rogier, Nepheli Loux is one of the few people in Elden Ring who is by-and-large decent and well-meaning. She's brave and dignified. Even rarer, she actually gets something resembling a happy ending, if you follow her quest line all the way to the end.
Storm Reid is a young actor who has nevertheless appeared in some major movies and TV shows, including Euphoria, A Wrinkle in Time and The Last of Us, for which she was nominated for an Emmy. If she's looking for a new challenge, I can easily see her slipping into this small but memorable supporting role.
James Cosmo as Smithing Master Hewg
Hewg is a member of the Misbegotten race, a group of animal-like beings often kept as slaves throughout the Lands Between. He is held captive in the Roundtable Hold, where he forges weapons for the Tarnished. Despite his deplorable conditions, he's fairly friendly to the player, if gruff in manner. He upgrades the players' weapons and shows more vulnerability as the game goes on.
I hope this doesn't read as an insult, but 77-year-old Scottish actor James Cosmo sort of resembles what Hewg would look like as a human: elderly, bearded, and wise. More importantly, he has the experience to be believable in this role, having appeared in historical dramas like Braveheart and Troy as well as fantasy franchise like The Chronicles of Narnia and Game of Thrones, where he played the stern-but-fair Jeor Mormont, Lord Commander of the Night's Watch.
Freya Allen as Roderika, Spirit Tuner
Roderika is a pure-hearted young woman who travels to the Lands Between with her companions, only for the lot of them to be killed by Godrick the Grafted. She finds her way to the Roundtable Hold and strikes up an unlikely kinship with Hewg, whom she reminds of somehow he used to know. Hewg teaches Roderika all he knows about spirit-tuning, and she is able to help the player upgrade special items called spirit ashes.
Freya Allen has a history of playing pure-hearted young women who enter into a mentor-mentee relationship with an older man in a fantasy setting: she's in Netflix's The Witcher show as Princess Ciri, the protégé of professional monster hunter Geralt of Rivia. More recently, she got the role of the human lead in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. She's an actress on the rise, and Roderika would fit her like a glove.
Ewan Mitchell as Brother Corhyn
Brother Corhyn is a cleric of the Golden Order, the civilization that bloomed in the Lands Between under Queen Marika...until she smashed the Elden Ring and war tore apart the land, anyway. He is a devoted scholar of the Golden Order, earnest in his desire to see a new Elden Lord installed, and able to teach the player incantations.
Brother Corhyn is basically a monk. That made me think of Ewan Mitchell, who played the earnest young monk Osferth in Netflix's The Last Kingdom. Mitchell is more famous for playing Aemond Targaryen on HBO's House of the Dragon, but even though that character is much less wholesome than Osferth, there's still something stoic and monk-like about him. Mitchell has a type, and Brother Corhyn fits the bill.
Krysten Ritter as Sorceress Sellen
Sorceress Sellen is a more or less friendly character who sells the players wares. But just because she doesn't attack you doesn't mean she's to be trusted. She was kicked out of Academy of Raya Lucaria for toying with dark magic, and she has designs on how to get back in there and resume her experiments.
Sellen is a crafty character willing to cross lines to get what she wants, so we want an actress with some edge. Krysten Ritter is known for playing good guys with a dark side, like Jessica Jones in the Marvel Netflix series or Jane in Breaking Bad. I'd be curious to see her push herself just a little further towards outright villainy.
Mads Mikkelsen as Mogh, Lord of Blood
Alright, that's enough talk about human beings. Let's get back to mad demigods.
Mogh, affectionately known as the Lord of Blood, is another child of Marika and Godwyn. Like his brother Margott, he is an Omen, meaning he was condemned to live and die in the the subterranean shunning grounds. Unlike Margott, he embraced his lot, and delved deeper underground until he came in contact with an outer god powerful enough to potentially challenge the Greater Will. From there, he hatches a diabolical plan to spread his Mohgwyn Dynasty throughout the Lands Between.
Mogh is straight-up malevolent, so we want an actor who can play a great villain. Mads Mikkelsen has made a specialty of playing sociopaths and psychos, from a James Bond villain in Casino Royale to Dr. Hannibal Lecter in Hannibal, probably his most famous role. He has the intensity and experience for the job.
Javier Bardem as Praetor Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy
The gods don't come much madder than Praetor Rykard. Another child of Radagon and Rennela, Rykard was once a brutal enforcer of Marika's Golden Order, mercilessly torturing those considered heretics. But then he discovered a god-like serpent in the bowls of the volcanic Mt. Gelmir, merged with it, and became the biggest heretic in the history of the Lands Between. When the player meets him, he's a enormous half-man/half-snake creature. His mission is to eat as many powerful heroes as he can until he's strong enough to "devour the very gods."
So yeah, Rykard is creepy. Javier Bardem is a versatile actor, but some of his best roles have been his villains, from James Bond baddie Raoul Silva in Skyfall to Anton Chigurh in No Country For Old Men. He will bring the sickening, creepy vibe this character needs.
Anya Taylor-Joy as Malenia, Blade of Miquella
Malenia is yet another child of Marika, this time from her union with Radagon, which basically means she's the product of Marika mating with herself. Naturally, that means she is very powerful; in fact, Malenia is considered the hardest boss in the game. She wields a sword as long as she is, is lightning quick, and after you knock down her health she turns into the goddess of rot, visiting fresh hell on any players foolhardy enough to test her.
One of the most visible actors of her generation, Anya Taylor-Joy recently proved she can hold down an action movie in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, where she gave a tour de force performance. Plus, she has the right look for Malenia: long, willowy and ethereal.
Malenia works closely with her twin brother Miquella, who doesn't actually appear in Elden Ring, at least not conscious. Miquella plays a much bigger role in the DLC, but we have to leave some things for the sequel, right?
Matt Berry as Iron Fist Alexander
Iron Fist Alexander isn't a demigod, but he isn't a human being either. He's a walking, talking giant jar. There's a whole race of talking jar people in Elden Ring, and they're generally considered pretty friendly. Alexander has a lust for life and helps the player face down foes. He can be found throughout the Lands Between on one quest or another.
Iron Fist Alexander is a sort of noble knight character. He's also a giant jar, which is funny. What We Do In The Shadows star Matt Berry would be perfect for his role. He has a big booming hero's voice and a ton of comedic experience. He would push Alexander's chivaly and bluster just far enough to make it funny without losing what makes the character likable.
Aidan Gillen as White Mask Varré
Varré is one of the first people the player can meet upon starting Elden Ring, but we're only getting to him near the end of the list. He's friendly to the player...almost too much. There's an unctuousness about Varré that sets people on edge; they can tell he's concealing his true intentions.. And indeed, we later find out that Varré is a diciple of Mogh and wants to help usher in his tyrannical dynasty. It's always something in the Lands Between.
Aidan Gillen is best known for appearing on Game of Thrones as Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish, another character who presents different faces to different people depending on the situation. He has the oily charm to make this character work.
Joaquin Phoenix as the Loathsome Dung Eater
The Loathsome Dung Eater is a Tarnished warrior who has a yen to curse the entire world. To this end, he murdered people and then defiled their bodies. How exactly did he defile them? The game leaves that blessedly vague, but his name gives us a clue.
Joaquin Phoenix is known for playing twisted characters like Commodus in Gladiator and Arthur Fleck in Joker. I guarantee the press trail for the Elden Ring movie would be funny if he played the Loathesome Dung Eater. Let's just hope he doesn't go method.
If an Elden Ring movie ever did come to pass, it's very unlikely it would include everyone on this list, but I've tried to cover a lot of bases. Even so, Elden Ring is a huge game and there are plenty of characters I've left off, and that's without getting into the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. Maybe they can use that DLC for Elden Ring 2. In the meantime, who would you cast in an Elden Ring movie?
To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and Twitter account, sign up for our exclusive newsletter and check out our YouTube channel.