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[Edmond Dantès]

Principal photography has begun on The Hollow Crown: The Wars Of The Roses, a Neal Street co-production with Carnival/NBCUniversal and Thirteen for BBC Two, filming in locations around the UK.

Following an outstanding critical and audience reaction to the BAFTA Award-winning The Hollow Crown series in 2012, Neal Street Productions and Carnival Films/NBCUniversal bring the concluding part of this ambitious cycle of Shakespeare’s History plays to the screen in three further filmed adaptations, Henry VI (in 2 parts) and Richard III.

Assembling some of the UK’s finest acting talent and, in addition to the stellar cast recently confirmed - Benedict Cumberbatch, Judi Dench, Sophie Okonedo, Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Keeley Hawes and Tom Sturridge - new names revealed today are - Michael Gambon as Mortimer, Philip Glenister as Talbot, Andrew Scott as King Louis, Jason Watkins as Suffolk, Samuel West as the Bishop of Winchester, Stanley Townsend as Warwick, Adrian Dunbar as Plantagenet, Geoffrey Streatfeild as Edward IV, Ben Daniels as Buckingham, Ben Miles as Somerset, Sam Troughton as George, Stuart McQuarrie as Vernon, Anton Lesser as Exeter, Kyle Soller as Clifford, Phoebe Fox as Anne, James Fleet as Hastings and Lucy Robinson as Young Cecily.

Cast list for each film follows at end of release.

Sam Mendes, executive producer for Neal Street Productions, said: “After the critical and popular success of the first part of The Hollow Crown - and seven years after we very first suggested the idea to the BBC - I am delighted to announce the start of principal photography on the second half of this magnificent epic story. Yet again we have assembled an amazing cast - led by Benedict Cumberbatch, Judi Dench, Hugh Bonneville, and Sophie Okenedo, amongst many others - under the direction of the hugely talented Dominic Cooke. I'm very excited indeed to see them all bring the rest of this astonishing story to life.”

Reuniting the creative team at Neal Street Productions, who were behind The Hollow Crown, the films are a Neal Street co-production with Carnival/NBCUniversal and Thirteen for BBC. Dominic Cook‎e (former Artistic Director of The Royal Court theatre) will make his TV directorial debut with the three films. Ben Power (Associate Director of The National Theatre), who previously wrote the screenplays for Richard II and Henry V, has adapted the cycle for the screen. Rupert Ryle-Hodges also returns as producer.

Cast announced for each film:

Henry VI part 1

Sophie Okonedo (Queen Margaret), Hugh Bonneville (Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester), Sally Hawkins (Eleanor, Duchess of Gloucester), Tom Sturridge (Henry VI), Adrian Dunbar (Plantagenet), Stuart McQuarrie (Vernon), Lucy Robinson (Young Cecily), Samuel West (the Bishop of Winchester), Stanley Townsend (Warwick), Michael Gambon (Mortimer), Anton Lesser (Exeter), Ben Miles (Somerset), Jason Watkins (Suffolk) and Philip Glenister (Talbot).

Henry VI part 2

Benedict Cumberbatch (Richard III), Sophie Okonedo (Queen Margaret), Keeley Hawes (Queen Elizabeth), Tom Sturridge (Henry VI), Adrian Dunbar (Plantagenet), Geoffrey Streatfeild (Edward IV), Sam Troughton (George), Stuart McQuarrie (Vernon), Kyle Soller (Clifford), Lucy Robinson (Young Cecily), Stanley Townsend (Warwick), Anton Lesser (Exeter), Ben Daniels (Buckingham), Ben Miles (Somerset), Jason Watkins (Suffolk), Phoebe Fox (Anne), James Fleet (Hastings) and Andrew Scott (King Louis).

Richard III

Judi Dench (Cecily, Duchess of York), Benedict Cumberbatch (Richard III), Sophie Okonedo (Queen Margaret), Keeley Hawes (Queen Elizabeth), Geoffrey Streatfeild (Edward IV), Sam Troughton (George), Ben Daniels (Buckingham), James Fleet (Hastings) and Phoebe Fox (Anne).

The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses is a Neal Street co-production with Carnival/NBCUniversal and Thirteen for BBC. Executive producers are Sam Mendes, Pippa Harris and Nicolas Brown for Neal Street Productions, David Horn for THIRTEEN and Gareth Neame for Carnival Films/NBCUniversal. It was commissioned by Ben Stephenson, Controller BBC Drama commissioning.

Previously:

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=480715

 

[Currygan]

finally! been waiting for it. The first four movies were astoundingly good, i'm always up for brilliance like this

 

[Night Hunter]

 

[Uzzy]

Spectacular. What a cast!

 

[Edmond Dantès]

Ben Whishaw's performance as Richard II was certainly the standout performance of the first series.

For example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXGkbBbXVSA

 

[Spaghetti]

Sophie Okonedo

can't wait for the "b-buh-but historical accuracy" people to get pissed at this.

just shut up and enjoy the performances

Spoiler

though inside i know the casting decision was the result of ticking a box for the bbc

 

[Rich!]

I still need to watch the first one...is it on UK netflix? If not, hopefully BBC2 will show it again.

 

[Lach]

I only recently learned about the existence of the Series. Need to catch up with the first series....I feel as a non native english speaker I'll have a lot of trouble understanding anything

 

[Empty]

yessssss

richard iii is my fav of shakespeare's history plays too

 

[Atrophis]

Good stuff.

Although all the talk of the success of the first series smarts a little because the BBC refuse to release it on bluray

 

[Indrid Cold1]

First series was amazing, can't wait.

Though casting Sophie Okonedo as Margaret of Anjou really, really bothers me. Let's change the race of a hugely important figure in Early Modern English history into a randomly black person because PC. It absolutely stinks of some producer whose recently been on a diversity course just throwing a token person of colour in the mix to avoid the odd twitter or tumbler dickhead calling a story about Early Modern European royalty racist because there's no minority representation. Seems both pointless and lazy.

 

[Kuraudo]

I guess they cut Joan of Arc to get Henry VI down to two parts

First series was amazing, can't wait.

Though casting Sophie Okonedo as Margaret of Anjou really, really bothers me. Let's change the race of a hugely important figure in Early Modern English history into a randomly black person because PC. It absolutely stinks of some producer whose recently been on a diversity course just throwing a token person of colour in the mix to avoid the odd twitter or tumbler dickhead calling a story about Early Modern European royalty racist because there's no minority representation. Seems both pointless and lazy.

I don't see the problem with it. It's an adaptation of an early modern play, not a biopic striving for historical accuracy. The plays are very loose with history and in their first performance wouldn't have been any more accurate with casting (at least Okonedo is the same sex as the character she is playing). At any rate, it's pretty common practice in modern production to use a racially diverse cast.

 

[Blue Lou]

The trailer/promo was published earlier today: https://amp.twimg.com/v/c5ed6f8e-c8e9-4ffa-8316-16453b0cae13

 

[Llyranor]

I'm curious about this series. I understand they're adaptations of the plays. But are they word-for-word the plays, or just based on them? Been wanting to get into Shakespeare.

 

[Kathian]

I'm curious about this series. I understand they're adaptations of the plays. But are they word-for-word the plays, or just based on them? Been wanting to get into Shakespeare.

The original ones were more or less just abridged versions iirc.

 

[mclem]

Henry VI, Part 1 has been scheduled; it's on on the 7th May on BBC2

(Just to clarify, since the OP doesn't say; as I understand it, it's not that they're missing out Henry VI, Part 3, but the first two films encompass all three of Shakespeare's parts - unfortunately it somewhat confused matters when they also called them "Part 1 and 2"!)

 

[Apt101]

Oh I hadn't heard about this. This is right up my alley. I was thinking about rereading Richard III.

 

[Xion385]

Damn. Does Cumberbatch ever rest?

Ben Whishaw (or Cillian Murphy) should be cast as Maximus the Mad whenever Marvel decides to finally make the Inhumans movie. Love the guy's work.

 

[Blue Lou]

It's now available on iPlayer.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episod...crown-the-wars-of-the-roses-1-henry-vi-part-1