Editing The Night of the Hunter (film) (section)

===Casting===
[[File:Robert Mitchum and Shelly Winters in Night of the Hunter.png|thumb|[[Robert Mitchum]] playing [[Preacher Harry Powell]] and [[Shelley Winters]] as Willa Harper]]
Laughton's initial thought after reading the novel was to cast himself in the role of the preacher, but Gregory convinced him that no studio would finance a film unless they cast someone else.{{sfn|Clubb|Rosas|2010|loc=4:24}}{{sfn|Algar|1995|loc=3:15}} For the most part, he did not hold traditional auditions for the actors; he simply met with them to get a sense of their personalities and whether they were right for the role.{{sfn|Clubb|Rosas|2010|loc=30:33}}

Laughton considered casting [[Gary Cooper]] as Harry Powell, but Cooper declined the role as he thought it might be detrimental to his career.{{sfn|Callow|2000|p=32}} [[John Carradine]] expressed interest in the role of the Preacher,{{sfn|Jones|2002|p=74}} as did [[Laurence Olivier]], but his schedule was not free for two years.{{sfn|Clubb|Rosas|2010|loc=5:29}} [[Robert Mitchum]] was eager for the part of the preacher. When he auditioned, a moment that particularly impressed Charles Laughton was when Laughton described the character as "a diabolical shit", and Mitchum promptly answered "Present!"{{sfn|Callow|2000|p=32}} Laughton liked Mitchum for the role partly due to his sexual persona, but Grubb was concerned about the character of the preacher being considered sexual. Laughton told him, "If you want to sell God, you have to be sexy."{{sfn|Clubb|Rosas|2010|loc=27:16}}

[[Agnes Moorehead]], [[Grace Kelly]], and [[Betty Grable]] were all considered for the role of Willa Harper.{{sfn|Clubb|Rosas|2010|loc=28:45}} In the end Laughton chose [[Shelley Winters]] because he felt she had a vulnerable quality and was more of a serious actor than a movie star; she committed to the role only two weeks before filming began.{{sfn|Clubb|Rosas|2010|loc=29:44}} In her 1989 memoir, Winters described this as "probably the most thoughtful and reserved performance I ever gave".<ref>{{Cite book |title=Shelley II: The Middle of My Century | last=Winters | first=Shelley | publisher=Simon and Schuster|year=1989|isbn=0671442104|location=New York|pages=[https://archive.org/details/shelleyiimiddleo00wint/page/29 29] |url=https://archive.org/details/shelleyiimiddleo00wint |url-access=registration |via=Internet Archive |access-date=May 13, 2020}}</ref>

Laughton's first pick for the role of Rachel Cooper was his wife [[Elsa Lanchester]].<ref name="oderman">{{cite book | first =Stuart| last = Oderman | title =Lillian Gish: A Life on Stage and Screen | publisher = McFarland | year= 2015| isbn=978-1476613697 |page=278 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UWosAAAAQBAJ&q=%22Lanchester%22+%22night+of+the+hunter%22&pg=PA278 |via=GoogleBooks |access-date=February 8, 2020}}</ref> [[Jane Darwell]] and [[Louise Fazenda]] also were considered.{{sfn|Clubb|Rosas|2010|loc=31:04}} Lanchester, for reasons unknown to Laughton, turned down the role, suggesting silent movie star [[Lillian Gish]] for the role.<ref name="oderman" /> A doubtful Laughton went to New York for the purpose of watching films in which Gish starred. These included the shorts and feature films she made with pioneer [[D.W. Griffith]]. Gish had gotten word of his watching these old movies, and when she asked him why, he replied, "When I first went to the movies, they sat in their seats straight and leaned forward. Now they slump down, with their heads back, and eat candy and popcorn. I want them to sit up straight again."<ref>{{cite book |last=Kashner |first=Sam |last2=MacNair |first2=Jennifer |title=The Bad & the Beautiful: Hollywood in the Fifties |publisher=W. W. Norton & Company |year=2003 |isbn=0393324362 |page=192 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GC0X-2FGdx8C&q=%22they+sat+in+their+seats+straight+and+leaned+forward%22&pg=PA192 |via=GoogleBooks |access-date=February 8, 2020}}</ref>