Kim MacQuarrie's "The Last Days of the Incas"

Kim MacQuarrie is a writer and is perhaps the only American to have been chased up a tree by a female grizzly bear, to have lived with a recently-contacted Amazonian tribe, and to have won four national Emmys for his documentary films. He is the author of The Last Days of the Incas and, most recently, of Life and Death in the Andes: On the Trail of Bandits, Heroes, and Revolutionaries.

Here MacQuarrie shares some ideas about casting the adaptation of The Last Days of the Incas:

I’m perhaps fortunate in that the FX Channel is currently in the process of developing one of my books—The Last Days of the Incas—into a 13-part dramatic series. It’s the (non-fiction) story of how 168 conquistadors, led by a band of four brothers, managed to conquer an Inca Empire of ten million. The truth is, I hadn’t really considered the casting, but now that there is this opportunity, here goes:

Francisco Pizarro: (the eldest brother, shrewd, uneducated, a great leader of men): Jeremy Irons

Hernando Pizarro (arrogant, power hungry): Javier Bardem

Gonzalo Pizarro: (the handsomest of the brothers): Colin Farrell

Juan Pizarro: (the youngest—brash and impetuous): Gael García Bernal (played Che Guevara in The Motorcycle Diaries)

Atahualpa: Inca emperor whom Pizarro captured: Wes Studi

Manco Inca: (young Inca emperor who ultimately leads massive rebellion against the Spaniards) Martin Sensmeier

Manco’s wife: Julia Jones (who played Leah Clearwater in the Twilight Saga films; the younger Pizarro brothers lusted after her, even though she was both the emperor’s sister and wife (!?))

Visit Kim MacQuarrie's website.

The Page 99 Test: Life and Death in the Andes.

My Book, The Movie: Life and Death in the Andes.

--Marshal Zeringue