After being left in limbo by the closure of parent company Miramax, Julie Taymor’s gender-bending adaptation of William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” has finally found a distribution home through Disney subsidiary Touchstone which will release the film this December.
The film will be Taymor’s second Shakespearean adaptation after 1998’s “Titus,” and the news of its forthcoming release will likely be music to the director’s ears considering the immeasurable bad luck she’s had with with her Broadway musical, “Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark,” which has seen a string of complications.
“The Tempest” follows Helen Mirren’s Prospera — seen here in the first official photo — a woman scorned after being unjustly usurped and exiled by the brother of her deceased husband so he can claim her title. “She had her whole life taken away from her because she was a woman,” Taymor explains. “Prospera is a volcano herself, about to erupt. And you know Helen Mirren. When she invokes the black powers, she’s got the rage. She’s got it all.”
“I wanted to do it because there are actresses like Helen Mirren who never get to play these fantastic parts because they were not written for women,” Taymor added. “We changed the [gender] role. It’s one of the few plays where it not only doesn’t hurt the play, but enhances the play.”
Mirren letting loose in this uniquely catered role is an exciting prospect and, considering the timing of the release, one that may bring the actress to the forefront of the award season. Add to that the illustrious supporting cast of Chris Cooper, Felicity Jones, David Strathairn, Djimon Hounsou, Reeve Carney, Alan Cumming, Alfred Molina, Ben Whishaw and Russell Brand, we may seriously have something special in our hands.