This year sees members of two of the most renowned director-sibling partnerships going solo. Later this year, we have Lana Wachowski steering The Matrix without her sister Lilly in the upcoming The Matrix Resurrections – and with The Tragedy Of Macbeth, Joel Coen (of ‘The Coen Brothers’ fame) is going it alone without Ethan for his Shakespeare adaptation. But fear not – the first trailer for Coen’s take on Macbeth is finally here, and it looks like it’ll be no less of a Coen powerhouse piece, with some eye-catching stark monochrome cinematography, and a stupidly starry cast. Check it out.
If the real authorship here goes to breakout writer William ‘Bill’ Shakespeare (his dialogue seems a bit stuffy, but we hear his bawdy puns are second to none), Coen has written the adapted screenplay as well as taking on directorial duties. Plus he has Denzel Washington playing the Scottish warrior who has an encounter with three witches prophesying his rise to the throne, with (it’s not a spoiler because it’s in the title) tragic results. And starring alongside him is the incredible Frances McDormand (a Coen regular) playing a Lady Macbeth-type, as the cunning wife who might be even more driven for power than her husband is. The name of that role? As yet unknown. Also among the cast are Brendan Gleeson as King Duncan, Corey Hawkins as Macduff, Ralph Ineson as The Captain, and the RSC’s Kathryn Hunter as all three witches.
Produced by A24 (does anyone else reckon this looks like Macbeth by way of Robert Eggers?), The Tragedy Of Macbeth is being released on Apple TV+ on 25 December as an extra Christmas treat – and before then, it’ll be closing the BFI London Film Festival 2021 on 17 October. Hopefully nobody spoils the ending before we get to see it.