Very well said. While Poe certainly identified in himself enough sadness/macabre for such stories, his actual identity was far more complex than what is portrayed by popular media. This sort of ignorant fascination really undermines all horror in general. Mainstream audiences have it in their mind that it takes the talent of a truly disturbed individual to create such grim tales when all it really takes is a bit of imagination. The greater public has always found solace in typecasts. Poe was magnificent.

As for Weaving, he’s often misunderstood as well. He doesn’t in fact work exclusively in scifi/fantasy/horror and prefers Australian independent films. Though he’s good enough to play lead roles in Hollywood films, I don’t think producers find him well known enough to sell a film on his own– Natalie Portman was most prominently featured in the advertising for V for Vendetta. Weaving deserves top billing in a US project, but he’s very picky with scripts. I’d say Johnny Depp is a better physical match for Poe, but he already played a tortured, chemically-addled, loosely historical, Goth-ish detective in From Hell. ;)