William Shakespeare Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Sir Paul McCartney as she officially reopened the National Portrait Gallery after its extensive three-year refurbishment. She met the Beatles member and his wife, Nancy, at the gallery on Tuesday, and was left laughing at the musician’s joke about the age gap in his marriage. The 81-year-old has his own photography exhibition at the gallery next week, depicting the Beatles in 1963 and 1964 – and joked about whether his wife would have been born then.

but not for much longer.“Fat Ham,” currently on Broadway at the American Airlines Theatre, closes on Sunday, June 25.And it’s a show you won’t want to miss.The story, a modern re-telling of “Hamlet” at a cookout, has more than won over Broadway fans during its three-month run in Midtown.“I’m a huge Shakespeare nerd so I went in super excited about that but also went in knowing that Hamlet himself is one of my least favorite characters in the lexicon,” theater veteran Kelly Klotz told the NY Post. “This production and the actor playing the Hamlet role (Marcel Spears) completely changed my mind.

A Global Day of Solidarity will take place in London’s Leicester Square next week as writers from around the world join together to show support for striking scribes in the U.S.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International Polish filmmaker Krzysztof Skonieczny is set to go into production on the feature film “Wrooklyn Zoo.” “Wrooklyn Zoo” is a modern retelling of William Shakespeare’s classic “Romeo and Juliet” in which Romeo, a skilled skateboarder, finds himself captivated by Julia, a Romani girl seeking to emancipate herself from her environment. Their love becomes a powerful force that transcends cultural and societal barriers, leading them on a journey of self-discovery and resilience. Skonieczny is known for directing the critically acclaimed HBO drama series “Blinded by the Lights,” which launched on HBO Europe in 2018, becoming the platform’s third most watched show in the region. The show debuted in the U.S. in 2019 — a rarity at the time for European HBO programming.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International U.K. screenwriters are set to gather in London’s Leicester Square in support of the Writers Guild of America and its ongoing strike action. The Writers’ Guild of Great Britain is inviting members to join a major June 14 protest for the U.S. writers strike, which has passed its first month. The protest is part of the Global Day of Solidarity, which is organized by the International Affiliation of Writers Guilds and the Federation of Screenwriters in Europe, of which WGGB is a member. WGA members, as well as members of the Federation of Entertainment Unions, will be joining the protest, according to the WGGB.

10 Things I Hate About You is a bonafide cult classic film, but star Andrew Keegan initially couldn’t predict its success.

“Thus with a kiss I die,” wrote William Shakespeare in Romeo & Juliet, and thus echoed a Los Angeles judge today over the alleged sexual abuse and negligence lawsuit from the stars of Franco Zeffirelli Oscar-nominated 1968 adaptation of the doomed lovers play.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor “Euphoria” actor Jacob Elordi and Zachary Quinto star in “He Went That Way,” a film based on the wacky true story of a celebrity animal trainer (Quinto) and his TV chimp Spanky, who spent three days with a serial killer (Elordi) in 1964. While some press reports have described the film as a queer project, Quinto tells me we won’t be seeing him and Elordi steam up the screen: “I wouldn’t say it’s an overtly queer story, but I will say that there are undertones of both emotional and physical tension between these two characters.” The actors became close during filming. “We talked a lot about his desire to do theater,” Quinto recalls. “I was like, ‘Go do a play in London. Go do a play in New York. That’s where you really cut your teeth.’ I’m sure we’ll see him onstage at some point.”

Jennifer Lopez plays a deadly assassin in Netflix film The Mother.Directed by Niki Caro (Mulan), the action thriller follows an assassin who comes out of hiding to protect her estranged daughter.A synopsis reads: “A deadly female assassin comes out of hiding to protect the daughter that she gave up years before, while on the run from dangerous men.”Lopez also serves as a producer alongside Benny Medina, Roy Lee and Marc Evans. The film’s script is by Misha Green (Lovecraft Country) and Andrea Berloff (Straight Outta Compton).Lucy Paez plays 12-year-old Zoe, the daughter of the titular Mother.

David Tennant will take on the lead role in Macbeth at the end of the year for a new Donmar Warehouse production of the William Shakespeare play.

King Charles ascended to the throne of England, he spoke candidly to Kenneth Branagh about his life as the heir apparent, offering insight as the young actor prepared to direct and star in William Shakespeare's. The royal connection, however, ran deeper than their nobility lineage, as the 15th-century monarch was also the first to wear Charles' previous title, The Prince of Wales.Speaking with ET in 1989, Branagh explained the backstory of how then-Prince Charles became an unofficial advisor on the movie adaptation, which brought the play’s oft-quoted sonnets — including the rallying cry at the Siege of Harfleur («Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more») and the St.

EXCLUSIVE: Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal are in talks to star in an adaptation of Hamnet for Amblin Partners, Hera Pictures, Neal Street Productions and Book of Shadows. Chloé Zhao will direct the film is based on the novel by Maggie O’Farrell, who will adapt the script with Zhao.

Fresh from her ratings triumph in the third and final series of Happy Valley, its star Sarah Lancashire is teaming up with Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight to bring the story of William Shakespeare’s First Folio to screen.

Naman Ramachandran “Peaky Blinders” creator Steven Knight is developing a drama series based on the life of William Shakespeare, based on a concept by double BAFTA-winning “Happy Valley” star Sarah Lancashire. The series is being developed with Banijay U.K.’s Kudos and Lancashire’s production company, Via Pictures, which she formed with Peter Salmon. It will be written by Knight and will be produced out of his Digbeth Loc. Studios in Birmingham by Kudos, in association with Via. The drama will tell the complete story of the glove-maker’s son who became the greatest storyteller in history and how his genius survived and thrived in an age of turmoil and terror, danger and disease. It aims to be the first full account of the passion, people and politics that made William Shakespeare the world’s most famous dramatist and the men and women around him who loved and labored, schemed and plotted, killed and connived in one of the most dangerous periods in history.

Ncuti Gatwa will take on a starring role in the BBC’s celebrations for King Charles III’s coronation.

Love The Weekender? Share it with a friend and spread the word!Sign Up For The WeekenderThe Tempest – An Immersive ExperienceWhen you think of Los Angeles, who doesn’t think of Shakespeare? The Shakespeare Center LA and the After Hours Theatre Company joined forces and created The Tempest: An Immersive Experience, a fully reimagined immersive performance based on William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest.“The production takes place on the mysterious island featured in the play. Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, lives on this island with his daughter Miranda after being usurped by his brother Antonio and left to die at sea a decade earlier.

EXCLUSIVE: After dominating the Oscars in 2021, Nomadland writer-director Chloé Zhao looks to be building out her future slate. Sources tell Deadline that she is set to direct an adaptation of Hamnet for Amblin Partners, Hera Pictures, Neal Street Productions and Book of Shadows. The film is based on the novel by Maggie O’Farrell, who will adapt the script with Zhao.

Two-time Academy Award winning filmmaker Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland,” “Eternals,” “The Rider”) will direct “Hamnet,” an adaptation of the critically acclaimed, award winning novel by Maggie O’Farrell, Amblin Partners, Hera Pictures, Neal Street Productions and Book of Shadows announced on Tuesday.Zhao and O’Farrell will write the script together.The New York Times Bestselling historical fiction novel imagines the story of Agnes – the wife of the world’s most famous writer, William Shakespeare – as she struggles to come to terms with the loss of her only son, Hamnet. The novel charts the emotional, familial and artistic consequences of that loss, bringing to life a human and heart-stopping story as the backdrop to the creation of Shakespeare’s most famous play, Hamlet.

The big question surrounding Chloe Zhao right now is what’s next? After winning several Oscars for her work on “Nomadland,” the filmmaker followed that up quickly with Marvel Studios’ “Eternals.” However, since the release of the superhero film, she hasn’t officially announced which film project she’s pursuing next. Perhaps it’s “Hamnet?” READ MORE: ‘Eternals 2’: Barry Keoghan Had To Text Kumail Nanjani For Updates, But Still Doesn’t Have Answers On A Sequel According to Deadline, Chloe Zhao has signed on to direct the film, “Hamnet.” Based on the historical fiction novel of the same name by author Maggie O’Farrell, the film will follow the story of Agnes, the wife of William Shakespeare.

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer Oscar-winning filmmaker Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland”) will direct an adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s acclaimed Shakespeare-era novel “Hamnet” for Amblin Partners. Zhao is writing the screenplay with O’Farrell. Amblin Partners, Hera Pictures, Neal Street Productions and Book of Shadows are all backing the project. O’Farrell’s New York Times bestseller reframes the creation of William Shakespeare’s most famous play, “Hamlet,” through the lens of the playwright’s wife Agnes (a variation on Anne Hathaway, the name of Shakespeare’s real wife), as she grieves the death of her only son, 11-year-old Hamnet, to the bubonic plauge. The novel also traces the beginnings of Agnes’ relationship with young Shakespeare — who is never named, known only as the world’s most famous playwright. In 2020, “Hamnet” won the Women’s Prize for fiction and the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction.

The  Royal Shakespeare Company’s stage adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s best-selling novel Hamnet, a tale of love and heartbreak concerning Agnes Hathaway and her beloved one William Shakespeare, has taken the unheralded step of announcing its West End transfer before it has has even opened in the famous playwright’s place of birth.

Angelique Jackson Tony, Emmy and Grammy-winner and Oscar-nominee Cynthia Erivo has joined the producing team of “Fat Ham” as the Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy heads to Broadway. “Fat Ham” will begin performances on Tues., March 21, and officially open on Wed., April 12, at the American Airlines Theatre on Broadway for a strictly limited 14-week engagement through Sun., June 25. “Almost 10 years ago, I was introduced to the Broadway community in a musical that shook my world and changed my life irrevocably,” Erivo said in a statement to Variety. “I have been waiting for the right opportunity to return to the theater community and am thrilled to be back, this time as a first-time producer with ‘Fat Ham.’”

EXCLUSIVE: Toheeb Jimoh, who plays AFC Richmond’s goal-scoring Sam Obisanya onTed Lasso. will tackle rhyming couplets when he and Red Rose actress Isis Hainsworth play William Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers in what’s expected to be a sizzler of a Romeo and Juliet production in London this summer.

“Prevent Program,” claiming that it — along with works such as the “The Lord of the Rings” books, William Shakespeare’s writings and the “Great British Railway Journeys” docuseries — could lead viewers toward right-wing extremism. But 89-year-old Caine denounced that claim in an interview with The Spectator, saying, “That is the biggest load of bulls–t I have ever heard.”“Zulu” tells the story of the 1879 Battle of Rorke’s Drift amid the Anglo-Zulu war, including a scene in which 150 British soldiers fight off 4,000 Zulu warriors. But the Daily Mail reported that the film is facing criticism for its alleged “racist overtones” and “factual inaccuracies.”Caine, a two-time Oscar winner, was discovered by a “Zulu” producer while performing in a play at a theater in London’s West End.“An American director who was in the audience saw me and gave me a part in the film ‘Zulu’ as a posh officer. This made me a star and I never went back on the stage again,” he told The Spectator.

essay for Air Mail recently, noting that Universal Pictures would only pay for the film if Roberts was involved.Zwick then jetted off to London with Roberts so she could do chemistry reads with actors who were in the lead to play loverboy himself, William Shakespeare.The “Erin Brockovich” actress was desperate to star alongside Daniel Day-Lewis in the flick; however, the “My Left Foot” actor had already pledged to shoot 1993’s “In the Name of the Father.”Zwick recollected that Roberts had gushed to him about how “brilliant, handsome and intense” Day-Lewis was at the time. “Don’t you think he’d be perfect? … I can get him to do it,” Roberts reportedly told the producer.The “Mystic Pizza” star even asked her assistant to send two dozen roses to the “There Will Be Blood” star, along with a card that read: “Be my Romeo.”But once Day-Lewis had told Zwick and Roberts’ team that he was fully committed to “In the Name of the Father,” their chemistry read was canceled.Roberts still went through with the casting process, now having been paired with Ralph Fiennes.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Gwyneth Paltrow won the Oscar for best actress thanks to her role in “Shakespeare in Love,” but it was Julia Roberts who was originally courted for the role of Viola de Lesseps. Producer Edward Zwick recently published a first-person essay for Air Mail about the the making of “Shakespeare in Love.” The director behind “Glory” and “Legends of the Fall” championed the film from the beginning, coordinating with Marc Norman on the original script and getting famed playwright Tom Stoppard to come onboard to do a re-write. Zwick also bore witness to Julia Roberts joining and abandoning the project in spectacular fashion. According to Zwick, Universal Pictures only agreed to put down money for the film when Julia Roberts expressed interest in starring in the lead role. As Zwick wrote, “The mere possibility of having the ‘Pretty Woman’ wearing a corseted gown got the studio excited enough to cough up the dough. Ten weeks later I was back in London, where a xeroxed copy of Stoppard’s first draft was waiting in my fancy hotel room.”

Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic As a critic, I’m always looking for a fresh challenge, which is one reason I took up writing about theater: It still has the capacity to scare me. I’ve reviewed nearly 1,700 movies in my time at Variety, but how to weigh in with authority on stage productions of William Shakespeare or Samuel Beckett when I haven’t seen most of their work performed, but know it only by reputation? Last year, I was nervous going in to a fresh revival of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” at Los Angeles’ Geffen Playhouse, as I had only the Mike Nichols movie as a reference point. How to judge Calista Flockhart’s performance, and what might I compare it to, not having seen Uta Hagen play Martha on Broadway? (I did manage to track down a vinyl recording of that show, but still…

She’s a prolific actress of both stage and screen, with a career rivalled by very few – we could only be talking about a legend like Dame Judi Dench. From James Bond to William Shakespeare, the British icon has appeared in some of the biggest franchises in history, earning an Academy Award, a Tony Award, two Golden Globe Awards, four British Academy Television Awards, six British Academy Film Awards and seven Olivier Awards along the way. But we might be seeing less of her in the near future, as she revealed acting has become “impossible” due to health complications.

Aubrey Plaza took over Studio 8H at 30 Rockefeller Center as the host of Saturday Night Live and relived her past as an NBC Studios page and ran into some familiar faces.

Pippo Zeffirelli, son of Romeo and Juliet director Franco Zeffirelli, is criticizing the lawsuit brought by that film’s stars, Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting.

Almost 55 years after the Oscar nominated adaptation of Romeo & Juliet from director  Franco Zeffirelli came out, the stars of the film are now suing Paramount Pictures for more than $100 million for alleged sexual abuse, negligence and more.

“Rosaline,” 20th Century Studios’ campy and modernized retelling of William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” from the perspective of the forgotten Capulet, but the Emmy-nominated actress is anything but. Earning her first executive producing credit on the Hulu film (based on Rebecca Serle’s book “When You Were Mine”), the “Dopesick” star continues her ascent in Tinseltown, setting her sights on directing next and gushing about being featured opposite rom-com greats Julia Roberts and George Clooney in “Ticket to Paradise,” which debuts next week, in a recent interview with TheWrap.“When I approached Rosaline, the way I developed the character and the process behind bringing this character to life was just really pushing any boundaries that I had been afraid of before,” Dever told TheWrap, “because Rosaline has an intensity and her intensity is the drive throughout the story in the film, and I think that it’s not something I’ve really done before. It’s not something I’m necessarily used to.” Though, it might be something that comes easier in time.Dever, who first broke out with 2019’s wildly funny “Booksmart,” first read the script for “Rosaline” at 15, sending in an audition — for Juliet — shortly after.

Love Island 2022 winners Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu and Davide Sanclimenti have announced their brand new travel series with ITV.

The Royal Family shared a poignant tribute to the late Queen on Monday night alongside a Shakespearean quote from the King's first public address.

William Shakespeare rather definitively defined Richard the Third as a deformed, conniving, duplicitous and altogether unsavory monarch in his 1485 play, and the man’s image as such has persisted ever since.

King Charles III ended his historic address to the nation tonight with a very poignant message to his mother with his 'flights of angels' line. Towards the end of his speech, the new King turned attention back to his late mother and made a reference to his father Prince Philip.