Casting news for Damon Lindelof's HBO pilot The Leftovers continues to trickle in. Following word that Justin Theroux would play one of the lead characters in the small screen adaptation of Tom Perrotta's novel, Liv Tyler has also boarded the project, playing the role of Meg. That'll be a shift to television for Tyler, who's made a name for herself as an actor in films like Empire Records, the Lord of the Rings trilogy and somewhat more recently, The Incredible Hulk.
The Leftovers takes place in the wake of a strange global occurrence during which a sizable portion of the world's population just ups and vanishes. This "Rapture," which may or may not be the actual biblical rapture, has left the rest of the population to grieve the absence of their loved ones and wonder why they might have been left behind. From what I remember of the book, the tone is dark, but not apocalyptic, with the biggest change on earth occurring in people's beliefs. Some people have joined a cult-like group called the Guilty Remnant, which is full of people who have taken a vow of silence, believing the "Sudden Departure" was God's judgment. And others are following a so-called prophet going by the name Holy Wayne, whose popularity seems to be growing. And then there are people who are really just trying to resume their lives, or what's left of their lives, in the hopes of finding some semblance of normalcy. Justin Theroux's character Kevin is among the latter group, having taken over as Mayor of his small town after his wife Laurie leaves him to join the Guilty Remnant.
THR says Tyler will play the role of Meg, another new member of the Guilty Remnant. In the book, Meg befriend's Kevin's wife Laurie, who helps Meg adjust to cult life after she leaves her fiancé to join the group. If the Lindelof's pilot adheres to the book in reflecting the habits of the cult members, both Meg and Laurie will smoke often and they won't have much to say, at least when they're out in public, staring down people who need a bit of extra judgment in their lives. It's kind of a dark role, as is probably the case for anyone involved in the Guilty Remnant, but it would certainly be an interesting one for Tyler to tackle. It'll also be interesitng to see who's cast to play Laurie.
In addition to Tyler and Theroux, the cast includes Carrie Coon (The Playboy Club), Ann Dowd (Compliance) and Amanda Warren (The Adjustment Bureau), as well as Christopher Eccleston, likely best known for playing the first of the modern era Doctors in Doctor Who. THR says Eccleston will play Matt Jamison, a tabloid editor who was once a reverend.
The project is still in the pilot stage, and there's no guarantee that HBO will push this one to series. But on the bright side, The Leftovers now has one familiar - and very pretty - face attached to star.
