‘The Maze Runner’ director Wes Ball (‘A Work in Progress’, ‘Jacob: The Movie’) announced on Twitter over the weekend that Alby and Teresa had been cast, which is great news for the fan base, who has heard very few breaking news updates on this front-runner for the next big teen franchise.
The film will be based off James Dashner’s novel of the same name, and centers around the confusing experiences of a young man named Thomas who wakes up in an ascending elevator, with no memory but his own name. He comes to a stop in the middle of a field surrounded by a crowd of teen boys who all arrived in the same manner. With little hope for escape from their strange environment, the boys have built a working society to sustain life while the fastest and strongest try to solve the dangerous maze that surrounds the isolated landscape.
When it was first announced that Will Poulter had been added to the cast, there wasn’t even confirmation on the character he’d be playing, but Ball confirmed fans’ hunches that he will be playing Gally, the Glade’s angry and distrustful antagonist. Also confirmed by Ball was the addition of Aml Ameen (‘Red Tails,’ ‘Harry’s Law’) as Alby, the strong and confident-as-one-can-be leader of the Gladers. His job in the Glade, along with a few other of the fastest and strongest young men, is to run the Maze daily, looking for a way out and perhaps an answer to the question of why they were all brought to the Glade.
Runners! We have two official cast members. Aml Ameen is our Alby. Will Poulter is our Gally. Both amazing actors. We’re lucky to have them.
— Wes Ball (@wesball) March 15, 2013
Thomas Brodie-Sangster, the voice of Ferb from ‘Phineas and Ferb’ and the recently premiered Jojen Green from season 3 of ‘Game of Thrones,’ will play Newt, the lanky and British second-in-command.
Pleased to finally confirm Thomas Brodie-Sangster is indeed our Newt for The Maze Runner. Another great actor joins our cast!
— Wes Ball (@wesball) March 25, 2013
Kay Scodelario
Featureflash / Shutterstock.com
In Ball’s recent tweet, it was revealed that Teresa will be played by Kaya Scodelario (‘Moon,’ ‘Skins’), the first-ever girl to arrive in the Glade, a bit suspiciously right after Thomas, and before factors in the Glade begin to malfunction. In this reader’s opinion, all four confirmed actors seem perfect for their parts, with features and personalities exactly as described in the book.
With quite a talented cast of characters already making up many prominent roles in this film, it’s looking really good that the final result will be just as engaging and suspenseful as the book it was based on. Fan favorites Minho and, of course, Thomas, have yet to be cast, but the casting agents so far have been making excellent decisions.
‘The Maze Runner’ is set to premiere on Valentine’s Day, 2014.
