Big news, "True Blood" and "Harry Potter" fans! Fiona Shaw, who you likely know and love best as timid, squeaky and Dudley-absorbed Aunt Petunia in the "Harry Potter" flicks, has been cast as the newest series regular for season four of "True Blood," according to Deadline. She'll play Marnie, a storefront medium and palm reader described as "mousy, timid and secretly self-loathing." And as if the parallels didn't run close enough, she'll also be dealing with witchcraft!
Alan Ball has already said that season four is going to involve some witches, but anyone who's read "Dead to the World"—the Charlaine Harris novel that this season will mostly be based on—should already have figured out exactly who Marnie is (hint: she's pretty important). Deadline added that Marnie will be "taken over by the spirit of a powerful witch" during the course of the season. Uh, can anybody say "Hallow"?
(SPOILER ALERT IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK SERIES!)
In "Dead to the World," the novel's central baddie is a female witch and werewolf named Hallow, who steals Eric Northman's memory and wreaks havoc in Bon Temps and Shreveport. Hallow's real name in the book is actually Marnie Stonebrook, and we don't think that's a coincidence. Though, it does seem like "True Blood"'s Marnie is going to be a bit of a different character than the novel's.
Fiona definitely fits the description of Hallow in the book, though she is a bit older than the character was described (Deadline said Ball was looking for someone younger, but is altering the role so it fits Fiona). Hallow is supposed to be tall and slim with short brown hair and broad shoulders. Yeah, we can see it. But is "True Blood"'s Marnie supposed to be an unsuspecting victim or a blood-thirsty villain like in the books?
As a huge fan of both "True Blood" and "Harry Potter," I'm glad to see Fiona cast as Marnie. I'm hoping the role gives her a chance to be truly wicked, because she never was entirely evil enough in "Potter." And, okay, maybe I'm getting a bit sentimental because Fiona is getting to play a witch, which is what Petunia always wanted to be. Oh, Alan Ball, bringing closure to the "Harry Potter" series in ways I never dreamed imaginable!
Are you excited for Fiona Shaw to be on "True Blood"? Do you think Marnie will only be possessed by Hallow, or actually be evil like Hallow in the books?
** Hollywood Crush Twitter