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First Look At Daisy Ridley In Hamlet Reimagining Ophelia
The first image of Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley, playing a new interpretation of a classic Shakespeare character, has been made available. Whilst hordes of fans are used to seeing Ridley as Rey, possibly the first of a new generation of Jedi Knights in the new cycle of movies, she has plenty of other projects that she is currently prepping and filming.
Ridley may have started with small parts in many popular UK TV shows (Mr Selfridge, Silent Witness, and Casualty), but her role in Star Wars: The Force Awakens catapulted her to global recognition and brought her to the attention of many filmmakers. At one point she was considered for the role of Lara Croft in the Tomb Raider reboot before Alicia Vikander was announced, and in 2017 as well as returning as Rey in the insanely anticipated Star Wars: The Last Jedi she is also appearing in Kenneth Branagh’s new version of Murder on the Orient Express. However, one of her biggest roles in 2018 is set to be that of Ophelia, in which Ridley takes the title role as the forbidden love of Hamlet in this radically different version of the Shakespearean story.
The film is currently being promoted at Cannes and THR have the first look at Ridley in the role. You can check it out below.
Ridley’s long hair, blue dress, and pensive look seem to capture the usual tone of the tragic character. But it will be interesting to see how this new version will re-imagine the classic tale and what Ridley will bring to the role.
Ophelia is described as being “A dynamic reimagining of the Shakespeare tale which tells the untold story of her tragic romance with the prince”. The film will be set in the 14th century but with contemporary dialogue. The main hook, though, is that the whole story will be seen from her perspective, rather than that of the Prince who spurns her and feigns madness (at least in the original text); here Ophelia is the Queen’s most trusted lady-in-waiting, who soon captures the attention of the handsome Prince Hamlet (MacKay) and a forbidden love blossoms.
Other actors in the cast include Naomi Watts (as the Queen), Clive Owen, George MacKay (as Hamlet), Tom Felton, and Devon Terrell. It’s directed by Claire McCarthy, and the adaptation comes from Lisa Klein’s book with Semi Chellas writing the screenplay. A formal release date for Ophelia is yet to announced.
[Screen Rant]
