Guy of Gisbourne in Popular Culture
Although he has made many appearances in 19th and 20th century variants of the Robin Hood legends, Guy's only constant is villainy. In Howard Pyle's influential novel the Merry Adventures of Robin Hood (published in 1883), he is shown as a crude, coarse outlaw, known for his cruelty and murderous habits. In the Douglas Fairbanks-dominated Robin Hood silent movie and the highly-rated 1938 Errol Flynn Technicolor The Adventures of Robin Hood, he is a nobleman, played by Sam De Grasse and Basil Rathbone. In these two versions, Guy is Prince John's chief supporter, and a far more prominent and dangerous man than the Sheriff of Nottingham. Prince John proposes Guy to Maid Marian as a prospective husband. Henceforth, Guy often appears as a bitter rival to Robin for Maid Marian's affections. In the Flynn film, Robin engages Guy in a duel to the death, one of the most famous sword fights in cinema history, whilst in Douglas Fairbanks' movie, Robin takes him on without a sword and kills him with his bare hands.
The role of Guy of Gisbourne has been interpreted on film since Rathbone in 1938, by Tom Baker (The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood, 1984), Robert Addie (in the British television series Robin of Sherwood, 1984-6) and Michael Wincott (in the movie Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves) where he is said to be the Sherrif's cousin. In the 1991 TV movie, Jürgen Prochnow plays "Sir Miles Folcanet," a character with much in common with modern versions of Guy.
In the 1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Qpid", Guy is a character in a scenario set up by the entity known as Q to teach Captain Jean-Luc Picard a lesson in love. The bridge crew of the Enterprise-D are transported to this scenario and Guy is slain in a sword fight by Robin Hood, who is portrayed by Captain Picard himself.
In the 1990s CBBC comedy show Maid Marian and her Merry Men, Guy—played by Ramsay Gilderdale—is the nephew of Prince John, and is portrayed in the series as an overgrown mother's boy. He is foolish to the point of being delusional, believing himself to have a friend from outer space named "Plop Bop". He dresses occasionally as a sugar-plum fairy or more usually as a court jester, and is generally held in contempt by the heroes and villains alike.
However, in the BBC's 2006 Robin Hood, Guy is portrayed much more seriously by Richard Armitage, and is the Sheriff of Nottingham's second-in-command. He is originally depicted as a dark character, and is shown as an active enforcer of the Sheriff's cruelty, but at the same time, he is in love with Marian, showing conflicted attempts to redeem himself in her eyes.
As to the big-budget 2010 movie Robin Hood directed by Ridley Scott, actor Mark Strong mentions in promotional interviews that his character, Sir Godfrey, is based upon Guy of Gisbourne.
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