Overview
- Chloé Zhao directs and co-writes with novelist Maggie O’Farrell, adapting O’Farrell’s book into an intimate period drama centered on family and loss.
- Jessie Buckley plays Agnes opposite Paul Mescal’s William Shakespeare, with critics spotlighting her performance as a defining strength.
- Hamnet reaches UK and Irish cinemas on 9 January, expanding its audience as awards season intensifies.
- Reviews praise the film’s earthy, grounded aesthetic and focus on domestic life, with some noting debate over certain emotional choices.
- Fresh off a Critics’ Choice Best Actress win, Buckley is widely viewed as an Oscars frontrunner, and she has linked the role to her own recent experience of becoming a mother.