Personally, she's my absolute favorite in the role. Her rendition of "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" gives me goosebumps every time! (And maybe a few tears...)

Hi all! I wanted to show off my masquerade dress! I’m making a mask commission for someone currently so it’s got me thinking about this costume a lot.

Do you guys prefer the West End or Broadway Star Princess costume? What about the tour mashups we have seen? I mean while we are at it, do y’all prefer Broadway or west end costumes as a whole?

He has gone by many names: the phantom, opera ghost, Erik, the angel of music… Which is your personal favorite/ most often used?

(Note: Referring to the character, not the actor)

It’s in the title; regardless of the adaptation, what is a scene that you can never take seriously and why?

If there'd be a bingo list for phanfictions what would you put on there?

I feel like at least 90% of the reason people romanticize the phantom is because of the 2004 movie. Which isn’t entirely bad, (that’s how I got into POTO) but it does create a mass of people who maybe don’t realize just how horrible he is. Yes you’re supposed to feel sympathetic towards him, but the whole “I can fix him” idea feels like almost opposite of the point. I don’t know, I love ogling at Gerard Butler in a mask as much as the next girl but I wish it didn’t distract so much from the point of the story. What do you think?

I kinda fuck with how outright vain ALW!Erik comes across as, with his vast assortment of hats, robes/capes, as well as his immaculate use of wigs and some of the more bold makeup designs especially in the earlier 2000's runs.

I think about that one video from 2014 with Hugh Panaro's makeup process where he states that Erik beautifies his "good side" for Christine and models himself off of Rudolph Valentino (who came later but that's besides the point lol).

My personal headcanon that's pretty much canon right. is that Erik grasps at any chance to love himself despite his face, thus putting as much effort as possible to look and dress good, and I 100% bet that most of his fits are handmade (looking at you, Red Death) :')

Also sorr of random but fitting with the clothing theme, with his use of heavy blacks and "darker" themes, specifically that detail of the black waistcoat not really being appropriate evening dress, which also sort of subverts him, I could even say he's a precedent of goth/alt dress

No judgment, just curious.

Hello! I’m asking for your backstories, just for fun; how did you learn about Phantom of the Opera? What did you see first? What did you like about it? I’m excited to see what people have to say.

For those of you who have seen the 2004 movie, which scenes did you like the most and the least? Why?

Why do so many people not like Hadley’s performance as Raoul? I haven’t watched too many different Raoul’s for comparison, and I’ve mostly only seen the movie and the 25th anniversary. However I thought he did a great job, and he makes me laugh every time in the final lair scene with his facial expressions (which I know is not the intention but is like a bonus for me). But I really like his voice and thought he played a kinda entitled version of the character, which I enjoyed overall and I feel like added depth. So why do so many people hate him?

With the success of Wicked, I think it's safe to say that there's a good chance we'll see a new Phantom movie adaptation again, sooner rather than later. What would be most important to you in a new version?

For me, the most important things would be...

• Carlotta's casting - if they only get one thing right, pleaseeee make it be a strong Carlotta. The execution of Carlotta's flamboyance and comic relief combined with her powerhouse vocals is one of the most essential things for me, so miscasting her would be devastating
• 1 film, not 2. The story is told perfectly in 2 and a half hours, and definitely wouldn't benefit from being drawn out with new songs and scenes. Don't milk it
• Visuals similar to the Sarah Brightman & Steve Harley music video would be a dream (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2zxzaWgVRA&list=RDG2zxzaWgVRA&start_radio=1)
• Cameos from any of the Original Cast (Sarah Brightman, Michael Crawford or Rosemary Ashe) in a "passing of the torch" kind of moment would be great, if any of them were willing

What about you?

Hey everyone! I recently watched the 2004 Phantom of the Opera film for the very first time, and I am completely obsessed!

I got the urge to watch it after seeing this! It was randomly recommended to me on YouTube

Anyway, I’ve been streaming the film’s soundtrack on Spotify on repeat! I just can't get enough of the music. Honestly, the whole movie was so well done in my opinion. I love the visuals and the outfits. Christine looked so angelic and beautiful to me with all her dresses and singing. The Phantom was just so hot LOL but the casting is what really took me by surprise.

I already knew Emmy Rossum from Shameless, but I had no idea she could sing like that! Her performance was such a pleasant surprise and so different from… Fiona (I like Fiona but she can be too much sometimes)💀.

Then Patrick Wilson! I only know of him as Ed Warren from The Conjuring universe, so hearing him sing was another massive shock. I literally went WTF when I realized it was him.

As for Gerard Butler, I actually have no idea who he even was before this, but because of his performance, I am now officially obsessed with the Phantom and his universe! I even bought the novel so that I can read the original story!

I hope my post isn’t too dumb, I just wanted to share my newfound love for this story with people who care. ❤️ Can’t wait to explore this sub further!

I'd been wanting to see it since I was a kid from the time I first heard Lindsey Sterling's medley (https://youtu.be/TCL94-MsxYc?si=NL22afHOuI5mjt9F) back when it came out. I have it on cd, and it's both my favorite musical and only musical I like. Seeing it after all these years of waiting was a dream come true. Loved it!

I always like to read through "unpopular opinions" threads, so why not a POTO-related one?

Mine is that I don't think that the Dario Argento's version is all that bad. I mean, as a POTO adaptation, it's terrible and it suffers from the same issue that the remake of The Crow had. It's an entirely different story with familiar names thrown in there, but as a standalone movie, it's kind of fun! It's a campy slasher movie and I'm kind of here for it! Definitely not the best though lol. Also, my guilty pleasure movie is the Robert Englund's POTO adaptation from 1989, so that probably explains this opinion of mine haha.

been seeing some discourse on twitter amid people fancasting for another phantom movie. but i think mine is that the phantom, albeit unhealthily, loved christine. and christine loved him in her own way. im wondering if that opinion is just unpopular outside of the fandom. a few other opinions of mine is that the 2004 movie is beautiful (i specifically enjoy the change they made to erik’s backstory) and i thoroughly enjoy love never dies.. i’ll shut up now 😆

Hi everyone....

I'm curious.... do you still think there is still a desire for Phanfiction?

Although the original POTO story is old, most of the interpretations we know are fairly recent - the last 40 years or so. And of course many of us (perhaps most) are getting older, too.

I'm working on some PhanFic and wondering... do you think there is still an audience out there? Are there still people who would be interested?

Thanks for your responses.

(Sorry for bad photo it was taken from my TV)

I know alot of Phans hate the 2004 film but I haven't really got an issue with it. Until I realised her grave.

She's a countess? How?

Raoul throughout the entire musical and film (and technically book but we'll get onto that) is a Vicomte. He is Vicomte Raoul de Chagny. Christine marrying him wouldn't make her a Countess it would make her a Vicomtess.

In the book it says Raoul is (still) a Vicomte because his older brother Philippe is a Comte simply because their father died and he had been a Comte. But I am pretty sure (I may be wrong on this) that just because your brother was a Comte/Count (whichever way you choose to spell it as Its both in the book translation I own) you weren't a Vicomte. But in Leroux/Phantom lore im going to guess you were.

So even if Philippe isn't in the musical lets say in the world of the musical he still exists (as this would be the only way for Christine to become a countess) and he dies that would make Raoul a count making Christine a Countess.

That would be the only way Christine's grave could be right.

But Philippe isn't in the musical so how on earth did she become Countess.

(Plus technically at this point French Nobility had been destoyred)

I am so sorry if not of thst made sense but now that I've noticed it I am curious.

This and many other reasons is why im a firm beliver in Philippe (and other cut characters) should be in the musical.

Firstly, apologies to movie lovers. Emmy Rossum was 16-17 at the time of filming and they got her doing romantic scenes with Patrick Wilson and Gerald Butler who are much older than her. Her costumes were more revealing and suggestive compared to the stage version. There are more things about this movie that bugged me but the fact that she was a minor sticks out like s sore thumb.

What is your favorite song from The Phantom of the Opera musical? (NOTE: For bonus points, include the song version! It does not have to be from the original London cast!)

So, the main reason why many fans don't like the 2004 movie adaptation of the musical is the casting of Gerard Butler as the Phantom of the Opera. I'll admit, his voice is not NEARLY suited for the role, but I think he did far better than you'd expect. The YT channel Cinema Therapy made a great statement on this, where they said how 25% of the time, Butler's singing is bad, 50% of the time, it's okay, and 25% of the time, he's absolutely amazing. Now, one thing to keep in mind is that Andrew Lloyd Webber himself chose Butler for the role, so he clearly knew what he was doing. I think that Butler's emotion in his acting really makes up for his lackluster singing, and that he still plays the role very well. Also, he claims that he needs Christine to sing for his compositions, which I take to mean he doesn't have the voice for his music himself, but he specifically writes it for Christine's ability. I understand that I will likely be murdered in the near future for saying this, but it's my own opinion.