It was just announced that Benedict Cumberbatch and Claire Foy will star in new biopic entitled Louis Wain. Cumberbatch will play the title character while Foy will play his love interest, Emily Richardson.
Louis Wain (1860-1939) was famous for his drawings of anthropomorphous cats, but his relationship with his sister’s governess, Richardson, who was ten years his senior was scandalous during the time he lived. Three years after they married, Richardson died of breast cancer and financial burdens plagued Wain for the remainder of his life because it became his responsibility to provide for his mother and sister. Cumberbatch is reportedly excited to take on the role and told Dateline that he is “thrilled by the prospect of playing the courageous, playful spirit that is Louis Wain and to be producing such a special film.” Cumberbatch will be producing the film through his production company SonnyMarch, along with StudioCanal, Shoebox, Film4 and Amazon Studios.
Cumberbatch’s latest projects have included the massively successful Avengers: Endgame, now the highest-grossing film of all time, and his upcoming projects now includes Doctor Strange 2, which has just been announced for a 2021 release. Foy has had successful roles as well, with Netflix’s The Crown, as well as First Man and The Girl In The Spider’s Web.
The film will also star Andrea Riseborough, who starred in Birdman and won critical acclaim for her role as Margaret Thatcher in A Long Walk to Finchley, and Toby Jones, who was nominated for an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his role as Alfred Hitchcock in the television film The Girl.
Will Sharpe, best known for his work on the British show Flowers starring Olivia Coleman, is set to be director and wrote the film with Simon Stephenson.
Filming for Louis Wain is scheduled to begin on August 10 and will be released in the United States by Amazon Studios.
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