Casting for the prequel series of ‘Psycho’ called ‘Bates Motel’ is underway as A&E has announced that Vera Farmiga has just signed on to play Norman Bates’ mother, Norma Louise.
Farmiga is a recognizable face as she was nominated for an Oscar for her work in the Tom Hank’s film ‘Up in the Air’. She also starred in the films ‘Safe House’, ‘The Boy in the Striped Pajamas’, and ‘The Manchurian Candidate’. She’s familiar to the sci-fi/horror/fantasy genre appearing in the TV series ‘Roar’ with Heath Ledger and in the films ‘Orphan’, and ‘Source Code‘. Farmiga will be seen next in the upcoming feature ‘The Conjuring’ where she plays Lorraine Warren, a demonologist and physic investigator that is called upon to examine the supernatural happenings in a Rhode Island home.
“We are delighted to welcome Vera Farmiga to ‘Bates Motel’,” says Carlton Cuse, the series creator and show runner, “She is a phenomenal talent who has demonstrated incredible range and intelligence in a number of landmark film roles, and we couldn’t be more excited to have her join our project.”
The role of Norma Louise Bates is described as a “complicated, passionate and compelling woman who is smart, multidimensional and always capable of surprising people.” This is quite a different description than the abusive mother who compels her son to become the serial killer that we know him to be.
The fascination for the film ‘Psycho’ seems to be a hot topic in Hollywood as not only is there this project from A&E, there is also a movie currently filming about the hardships that Alfred Hitchcock went through to make this. A&E seems to have a lot of faith in the series as it green lit the project a month ago ordering it straight to series and bypassing the pilot process. The network has so far ordered 10 episodes.
‘Bates Motel’ will explore the relationship between Norman Bates and his mother during his teen years and show what happened to help turn this young boy into the notorious serial killer we’ve come to know. “We’re reinterpreting the mythology a bit,” explains Cuse, “and we might discover that Norman has a sibling.”
The series is being dubbed as a cross between ‘Twin Peaks’ and ‘Smallville’ which seems like an odd pairing. At the moment, no one has been cast as the young Bates and I’m very curious to see who they get to play the future psychopath.
‘Bates Motel’ is slated to air sometime in 2013.
Source: THR
