Scooby Doo, Who's Going to Play You?

It seems as though Hollywood can't leave classic cartoons alone. First it was "The Flintstones," then "The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle." "X-Men" and "Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas" were two of the hottest movies to hit theaters last year.

Now Warner Brothers Pictures will bring everybody's favorite crime fighting Great Dane to the big screen. After more than 30 years of stopping the bad guys on television, Scooby Doo and his gang of nomadic teen sleuths are headed to theaters in a live-action movie, slated for release sometime in 2002.

When filmmakers take a classic children's story or cartoon and transform it into a big budget Hollywood blockbuster, current college students -- children of the '80s -- are ready to debate every detail.

Warner Brothers has released the cast list for the film, which began production in February, and the list has students tossing around their own ideas regarding who should portray the crime-fighting team. The cast includes current "it" boy Freddie Prinze Jr. ("She's All That") as, who else but Fred. Sarah Michelle Gellar of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" fame is putting down her wooden stakes to play ditsy redhead Daphne.

Outside the project, Prinze and Gellar have been dating seriously. Prinze seems to be the guy to know to get in on the flick because his frequent co-star/sidekick Matthew Lillard ("She's All That") has won the role of Shaggy.

Of Scooby's four human companions, only Velma is being portrayed by a relatively unknown actor: Linda Cardellini of the short-lived teen drama "Freaks and Geeks."

Many students had some creative suggestions for the casting of Warner Bros. live-action take on "Scooby Doo."

Senior mass communication major Nicole Livingston felt a natural blonde should play the part of Fred and suggested Mark-Paul Gosseler of "Saved By the Bell" for the role.

"I think if he doesn't look too old he would make a good Fred," Livingston said. "Matthew Lillard as Shaggy is perfect. I love it. He's so wacky that he's perfect for the part."

Like her boyfriend, however, Gellar is not a popular choice to play Daphne.

"Kate Hudson would make an interesting Daphne," said sophomore electronic media and film major Brandi Chavis. "She's young enough, and cute. But she would have to die her hair red."

Linda Cardellini has managed to avoid much disapproval for her being cast as Velma, but only due to the fact that few people know who she is. Most are hoping she can pull off Velma's unforgettable geeky style.

"I have never heard of her," Chavis said. "But if she's been on a TV show for pre-teens then she's probably too cute to be Velma."

"Who ever plays her has too look like a nerd," Livingston said. In addition to the four crime-solvers, Warner Bros. has also cast Rowan Atkinson ("Mr. Bean") as Mondavarious, the mysterious owner of a creepy amusement park called Spooky Island.

But even though the full human cast has been selected, Warner Bros. has yet to reveal whether the film's K-9 star will be animated or played by a live dog. Everyone seems to agree that Scooby, no matter how he is put into the picture, should definitely be a talking dog.

"Scooby should be a real dog, but should still talk," Livingston said. "And he needs to have the same voice, too. What fun would it be if he didn't?"

Of course, there are those that were perfectly happy with the original cartoon and want to see as little changed as possible.

"[Scooby should be] totally animated," Chavis said. "Same style, same voice. Don't change a thing."

Even though not everyone agrees on Warner Bros. choices in casting and some are uncertain about the film altogether, "Scooby Doo" is an American icon that can easily stir up a surprisingly heated debate among those who grew up watching the cartoon.

Nearly every child in the '80s watched the gang's endless fight against crime in the psychedelic Mystery Mobile. The image is engraved in everyone's mind and few people like to change a classic.

"Personally, I think they should keep all the characters exactly the same way they were," Chavis said. "If they didn't, then it just wouldn't be Scooby Doo and the gang."