Exclusive: Ben Barnes on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

When ComingSoon.net visited the set of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (read Part 1 of the visit), we got to talk briefly with Ben Barnes, who reprises his role of King Caspian:

ComingSoon.net: What’s is it like to return to Narnia as King Caspian?

Ben Barnes: What I was most looking forward to is that this has always been my favorite of the seven books. I just thought it was the most magical and adventures story. I’ve watched this BBC series when I was younger and Sam West playing Caspian. He always seemed so in control and just seemed like a really cool character to play. Once we finished the last one I was looking forward to revisiting the same character. Then when I learned that it was a new director and then eventually a new studio, I knew it was be a new imagining of it and you can sort of start from a clean slate, but still with a lot of the things that people have loved from and enjoyed from the first movie.

CS: This book seems to be the fan favorite so does that add more pressure on you to get it right for them?

Barnes: I don’t know. I’m not sure if I do personally since the character has mostly been established already, but I think there is a pressure on the crew as a whole, yes. The reason I think it’s also so popular is because it’s such an episodic book to read. It’s so satisfying to read to read to your child or to read yourself. I used to read them before going to bed. You can read a chapter and it told the story of those few days on the ship before they landed on a particularly island. You can read the story of that one island. You could read about the invisible Dufflepuds or you’d read about the gold water pond or Ramandu’s Island with the sleeping lords. You saw it all progress through and it would all be satisfying each night to having concluded that part of the quest. I always thought that was the reason this was the best book.

CS: How is Caspian different in this film?

Barnes: Well I think the major difference people will notice is the accent is gone. Andrew Adamson always said he was filming the “Narnia” films how he imagined them, not how a bunch of adults sitting around would make this sort of perfect imaging of the book. The new director decided he should sound English since the author is. The major difference in terms of his character is he’s much more authoritative. He’s been a king for three years now and he’s gotten used to being in charge and being in command. I think that he’s got a lot more confidence than he did in the first one.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader opens in 3D and 2D theaters on December 10.

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