Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events - Cast

Cast

See also: List of supporting A Series of Unfortunate Events characters, Count Olaf's theater troupe, V.F.D. members, and Baudelaire family

• Jim Carrey as Count Olaf and his assorted aliases.
• Emily Browning as Violet Baudelaire
• Liam Aiken as Klaus Baudelaire
• Kara and Shelby Hoffman as Sunny Baudelaire
• Jude Law as Lemony Snicket (voice)
• Timothy Spall as Mr. Poe
• Billy Connolly as Uncle Monty
• Meryl Streep as Aunt Josephine
• Catherine O'Hara as Justice Strauss
• Cedric the Entertainer as Constable
• Luis Guzmán as Bald Man
• Jamie Harris as Fernald the Hook-handed man
• Craig Ferguson as Person of Indeterminate Gender
• Jane Adams and Jennifer Coolidge as White-Faced Women
• Wayne Fleming as Captain Sam
• Dustin Hoffman as Critic
• Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket) as Photographer
• Deborah Theaker as Mrs. Poe
• Jane Lynch (uncredited) as the realtor
• Helena Bonham Carter (uncredited) as Beatrice Baudelaire
• Gilbert Gottfried (uncredited) as Duck (voice)

Author Daniel Handler initially viewed Count Olaf as being a James Mason-type. Carrey was not familiar with the book series when he was cast, but he became a fan of the series. "Handler's books are just a bold and original way to tell a children's story," the actor explained. Carrey was also attracted to the role despite self-parody concerns. Director Brad Silberling was open to Carrey's idea of improvisation for various scenes, especially the Stephano and Captain Sham alter egos. To make his prosthetic makeup more comfortable and easier to apply, Carrey shaved his head bald for the part. The actor's inspiration for Olaf's voice was a combining the voices of Orson Welles and Béla Lugosi.

Emily Browning was cast as Violet Baudelaire when she auditioned at a casting call in Australia. She was sent Handler's original script when Barry Sonnenfeld was planning to direct, and she screen tested for the part using an English accent. The actor was not cast until Silberling took over; her character's accent was then changed to American. Browning became a fan of the books after reading Handler's original script.