Kristin Kreuk and Shawn Ashmore may be starring in the Sci Fi Channel’s 4-hour TV movie, but their characters don’t even meet up until late in the story. Kreuk (Smallville, Eurotrip) plays Tenar, a priestess protecting the ancient tombs of Atuan, while Ashmore (Iceman in X-Men) is Ged, a young wizard struggling to master his skills. As the plot progresses, Ged’s journey takes him close and closer to Kreuk.

"He has visions of her, and she has visions of him," Kreuk told Sci Fi Wire. "She sees him doing what she [believes are] evil things, and so through the entire movie she’s constantly aware that he’s getting closer to where they are. I think she’s torn in her feelings about him," Kreuk said. "In her head, he’s this evil guy. [But] in her heart she feels like he’s good."

Kreuk herself has not read the Earthsea novels by Ursula Le Guin. Her sister, however, is an avid reader and fan. The advice given to Kreuk by her sister when she got the job was simple: "don’t ruin it."

Also part of the Earthsea cast is Hollywood veteran Danny Glover, who wears the robes of the wizard Ogion, and Sebastian Roché (Odyssey 5) as King Tygath.

The four-hour miniseries will premiere in December on the Sci Fi Channel.