Hamnet Film Adaptation: Cast, Story & Everything We Know About The Chloe Zhao Movie

Hamnet is set to be Chloé Zhao's fifth feature film and there's been a lot of news coming out about the cast, story, and more. Chloé Zhao has had an interesting career. The Chinese-born Zhao began her career making a series of short films before her feature directorial debut in 2015 with Songs My Brother Taught Me, about the bond between a Lakota Sioux brother and sister. She then went on to make the acclaimed The Rider in 2017, which she followed up with the personal and moving Nomadland, her most acclaimed film that shot her to stardom.

Her next film, Eternals, is not one of the most beloved in MCU history, but few of them have been since Avengers: Endgame. Zhao takes quite a bit of time in between her feature films, so it wasn't exactly a surprise that there wasn't much news about a new movie from the Academy Award-winning director after Eternals. Thankfully, Zhao did eventually announce her next film, Hamnet, based on the 2020 historical fiction novel by Northern Irish author, Maggie O'Farrell. News has been coming out slowly about the cast, story, and more for the film.

Hamnet Film Latest News

Hamnet Has Finished Production

The latest news for Hamnet comes from World of Reel in September 2024. Hamnet recently wrapped up production in late September 2024, with much of the filming taking place in Wales.

Hamnet Film Confirmed

Zhao And O'Farrell Worked On Adapting The Novel Into A Movie

Hamnet was first announced in April 2024, when Chloé Zhao was revealed to be adapting O'Farrell's novel for Amblin Partners, Hera Pictures, Neal Street Productions, and Book of Shadows (via Deadline). It was also announced that O'Farrell would be helping Zhao adapt her script. At the time, it was unknown if Hamnet would be Zhao's next movie.

Later, in August 2024, the film was confirmed to be in production, landing at Focus Features and Steven Spielberg joined the project as a producer (via Variety). At the moment, there is no official release date, but with production having wrapped, it's very possible that audiences could be watching Hamnet in theaters in 2025.

Hamnet Film Cast

Paul Mescal And Jessie Buckley Star

The first cast members to be announced for Hamnet were the two stars. Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley have joined the cast of the film as William Shakespeare and Jessie Buckley as Agnes Shakespeare (via Vogue). This will be the second time the two actors have appeared in a movie together after appearing in the cast of Lost Daughter. However, as Buckley played a younger version of the character in the main plotline, Hamnet will mark the first time the pair have actually shared the screen together.

In August 2024, Emily Watson of Dune: Prophecy and Chernobyl, and Joe Alwyn of The Brutalist and The Favourite were cast in unnamed parts (via Deadline). According to Independent Talent, Jacobi Jupe has been cast as the titular role of Hamnet, a role which may not end up having much screen time. Some sources list Jack Shalloo of 1917 in the cast, but no reputable sources can be found with the announcement. Shalloo has appeared in the theater production, Hamlet the Musical as Hamlet, which may be where the confusion comes from.

Hamnet Film Story Details

William And Agnes Shakespeare Deal With The Loss Of Their Son

Hamnet is a historical drama film based on Maggie O'Farrell's 2020 historical fiction novel and the author helped Zhao adapt the book to the script. The story is a fictional account of William and Agnes Shakespeare, who are reeling from the death of their son, Hamnet, who died at age 11 in 1596. A true thing that happened to the great English Bard and his real wife. Hamnet is a moving story about grief, love, and loss, told through the prism of late 16th-century aesthetics and sensibilities, combined with the popular rise of Shakespeare as a playwright.

It's a family drama, a romance story, and a tale about wealth and fame, weaving everything together for what will hopefully be a resonant look at family, pain, regret, and forgiveness, which are all frequent themes in Zhao movies. The novel, and the stage adaptation that premiered in 2023 at the Royal Shakespeare Company, both utilize a time-jumping narrative where Hamnet is a young boy who falls ill and an earlier narrative where a young William Shakespeare meets Agnes for the first time and falls in love.

There is a large ensemble of characters, primarily Shakespeare's family, in both the 1596 timeline and in the earlier one, which means more cast members should be announced sometime soon. After Hamnet's death, William becomes hyper-focused on writing his ode to his son, the play that will come to be known as Hamlet, and the film will follow his efforts to get the project onto the stage.

This Is Chloe Zhao's Third Adapted Work

Zhao Has Had An Impressive Career Adapting Notable Works

This is the third time in Chloé Zhao's career that she's adapted a story into a movie. Her first time was with Nomadland, which was based on the 2017 non-fiction book, Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century by Jessica Bruder. The film features several real-life nomads who appear as fictionalized versions of themselves. This film earned Zhao three Academy Award wins after being nominated for six at the 93rd Academy Awards.

Her fourth feature film, Eternals, was, of course, based on the Marvel comic characters of the same name. While Eternals was not based on any one comic book run, Zhao still had to adapt multiple comic characters for the screen and make sure they all fit together in a coherent and interesting way. Whatever problems there are with Eternals, it's not with the way Zhao adapted the characters and story to the big screen.

She clearly has a strong ability to adapt source material into something engaging and fresh on-screen. Hamnet will be her chance to once again show just what she can do adapting a story, and it will also give her a chance to combine elements of her last two films. It's not a modern film, and Zhao will have a fantastic time with the costuming and setting like in Eternals, but it's also a much more human and down-to-Earth story, like in Nomadland.