As Dame Olga’s put-upon husband and Ella’s loving father, Sir Peter, O’Haver cast accomplished Irish screen and stage star Patrick Bergin. But when it came to casting Lucinda Perriweather – the self-proclaimed “fairy par excellence” who gives Ella the unwanted gift of obedience – O’Haver went farther afield, casting Vivica Fox, the American actress and comedienne better known for her feisty portraits of modern women. “Vivica brought a sassy attitude and contemporary vibe to the role that gives you the idea right away that this is a different kind of fairy tale,” explains O’Haver. “And she’s very funny.”
To play Ella’s stepsisters – who do their best to enslave Ella to their own ambitions for power and pretty things – the filmmakers turned again to London auditions, uncovering Lucy Punch, a rising young British star mostly seen on television so far, and Jennifer Higham, who makes her film debut as the clueless kleptomaniac Olive in ELLA ENCHANTED. Both young women were a wonderful surprise to the filmmakers. “They were fantastic because you just never knew what was going to come out of their mouths,” observes Tommy O’Haver. “Lucy and Jennifer truly took their parts and ran with them, and with Joanna Lumley, they were able to improvise some hilarious scenes.”
For Lucy Punch, playing the shamelessly treacherous Hattie was a chance to do all kinds of things she would never even consider in real life. “It was a bit difficult at first, but I found out that it’s really great fun to play somebody so hideous, mean and outrageous,” says Punch. Jennifer Higham agrees. “I really had fun playing an airhead kleptomaniac,” she comments. “Really, though, I see Olive as being kind of sweet. She just kind of follows everyone else’s lead – her mother craves money and glittery things so she does too and her sister is mean to Ella so she is, too. But she’s a very girlie girl, and I can identify with that!”
For the role of Mandy, Ella’s loyal Nanny who raises her into young adulthood knowing about her curse of obedience, the filmmakers went for another unexpected twist. “We wanted someone who was young, fun, attractive and had a kind of zany quality. Minnie Driver is beautiful and a big star who has never done a role like this before, so when she said she’d do it, we were absolutely delighted,” explains Jane Startz. Says Driver of taking the role: “I liked the inventiveness of the story and I thought just seeing me in the role of a nanny would be quite funny, because I’m probably not who you’d expect!”
Another character who defies expectation is Slannen, the elf who breaks all the rules by wanting to be a lawyer instead of an elfin entertainer, but is prevented by the Kingdom’s restrictive laws. Tommy O’Haver set out looking for a new face and came up with one in comic newcomer Aidan McArdle. “Aidan really popped in his audition and I think he’s going to be a great discovery,” says the director. “We took a chance on him and he lived up to it.”
McArdle had a blast with the role. “Slannen is such a feisty little character who’s sick of elves being just a joke. He takes himself very seriously, which of course makes him very funny. Then Ella comes along and convinces him that he can buck the system and make his dreams come true,” he says. “I loved Slannen, but it also has been a very strange job because, over the course of filming, I was tied to a revolving wheel, flung against a wall and pursued by super model Heidi Klum as a giant whose knee is the highest point I can reach. All I can say is that it’s been a very unusual experience!”
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