The ‘Elsinore’ Trailer Is Andrew Scott’s Oscar Reel
The heart-wrenching biopic will dramatize actor Ian Charleson's final performance at the National Theatre.
“To be or not to be, that is the question.” This line from Hamlet is probably the most famous in all of Shakespeare, perhaps in all of Western literature. It is also a key theme of the heart-wrenching biopic Elsinore, which explores existential questions of life, death, and art through the story of actor Ian Charleson’s final stage performance.
Best known for his role as Olympic runner Eric Liddel in Best Picture winner Chariots of Fire, Charleson took over as Hamlet in Richard Eyre’s 1989 production at London’s National Theatre after Daniel Day-Lewis departed mid-run. Despite privately battling AIDS and in rapidly deteriorating health, Charleson gave what is considered by many to be one of the greatest portrayals of the Prince of Denmark in theater history.
He performed 24 shows before his death in January 1990. To publicize the disease and further raise awareness, Charleson himself requested that it be announced that he died of AIDS following his passing. His was the first celebrity death in the U.K. openly attributed to the illness.
Andrew Scott (Fleabag) stars as Charleson, and his performance is already building major Oscar buzz from screenings at the Toronto International and London Film Festivals.
Even the trailer is likely to make some (read: me, I am some) a bit weepy.
Here’s the movie’s synopsis.
A powerful, deeply moving and inspiring story of the actor Ian Charleson who faced incredible odds while preparing to give the performance of his life in Hamlet at the National Theatre in London.
Alongside Scott, the film features a bevy of buzzy British performers, including Olivia Colman (The Crown), Billie Piper (Doctor Who), Johnny Flynn (Ripley), Luke Thompson (Bridgerton), Monica Dolan (Mr Bates vs The Post Office), Juliet Stevenson (Professor T), Joe Locke (Heartstopper), Adeel Akhtar (Sherwood), Matthew Beard (Vienna Blood), David Dawson (The Burning Girls), Kaiff Kirwan (Slow Horses), Dickie Beau (The Gold), and Peter Mullan (Outlander: Blood of My Blood).
The film is written by Stephen Beresford (Pride) and directed by Simon Sloane (The Dig). Scott also executive produces with Stefano Massenzi and Carolyn Marks Blackwood, alongside Andrea Occhipinti of Lucky Red, Gaby Tana of Magnolia Mae Films, and Pete Shilaimon and Mickey Liddell of LD Entertainment.
Elsinore premiered Friday, September 4, at the 53rd Telluride Film Festival, followed by a Saturday, September 12 premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and a Wednesday, October 7 premiere at the BFI London Film Festival’s Opening Night Gala. The film will open in the U.S. in limited release starting Friday, November 20, with a slow rollout that will reach nationwide by Thursday, December 24, 2026. The film won’t open in the U.K. until Friday, January 29, 2027.
(That’s the most Oscarbait release schedule in existence. -Ed.)
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