Two theatrical titans lock horns while Liz Taylor watches from the wings.
In 1964, Richard Burton, newly married to Elizabeth Taylor, is to play the title role in an experimental new Broadway production of Hamlet under Sir John Gielgud’s exacting direction. But as rehearsals progress, two ages of theatre collide and the collaboration between actor and director soon threatens to unravel.
Acting
Flynn and Gatiss deliver masterclasses in barely contained resentment.
Direction
Mendes makes a filmed play feel dangerously intimate.
Writing
Jack Thorne's script finds Hamlet inside the rehearsal room.
Director
Sam Mendes
Johnny Flynn
Richard Burton
Mark Gatiss
Sir John Gielgud
Tuppence Middleton
Elizabeth Taylor
Aysha Kala
Luke Norris
William Redfield
Allan Corduner
Hume Cronyn
Ryan Ellsworth
George Voskovec
Elena Delia
Jessica Levy
Huw Parmenter
Clement Fowler
Laurence Ubong Williams
Hugh McHaffie
Shaun McKee
Robert Milli
Stephanie Siadatan
Susannah Mason
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The real 1964 production holds the Broadway record for longest-running Hamlet at 137 performances—Burton reportedly never gave the same performance twice.
Mendes filmed this National Theatre production mere weeks after its stage premiere, capturing the original cast before any performances calcified—Flynn reportedly lost 15 pounds during the stage run.
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