Hamnet
Opens November 26, 2025
A lush and tender drama about William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal) and his family, as seen through the eyes of his thoughtful wife Agnes (a luminous Jessie Buckley). From Academy Award–winning director Chloé Zhao (Nomadland).
In William Shakespeare’s day, the names Hamlet and Hamnet were interchangeable. Chloé Zhao (Nomadland), working from Maggie O’Farrell’s novel, uses that context as the basis for a tender exploration of Shakespeare’s domestic life, connecting a family tragedy to one of his most famous works. Maybe we can better understand “Hamlet” if we consider that it was developed while the most famous writer in the Western canon was mourning the death of his 11-year-old son, Hamnet. The main character here isn’t The Bard — played here by an impressive Paul Mescal — or even the child who gives the film its name. Hamnet belongs to Agnes, Shakespeare’s thoughtful wife, played by an enthralling Jessie Buckley, who bathes the film in her warmth. In this world, Shakespeare was not a distant, untouchable genius but a real man whose literary prowess was irrevocably impacted by his domestic life. Grief is a theme here, but Hamnet is not just a film about death - like any family story, this one contains joy alongside sorrow.
- Director: Chloé Zhao
- Principal Cast: Paul Mescal, Jessie Buckley, Emily Watson, Joe Alwyn
- Country: United Kingdom
- Year: 2025
- Running Time: 125 min.
- Producer: Liza Marshall, Pippa Harris, Nicolas Gonda, Steven Spielberg, Sam Mendes
- Screenplay: Chloé Zhao, from the novel by Maggie O'Farrell
- Cinematographers: Łukasz Żal
- Editors: Chloé Zhao, Affonso Gonçalves
- Music: Max Richter
- Awards: Toronto Film Festival 2025 (Audience Choice Award: Best Feature Film)
- Filmography: Nomadland (2020), The Rider (2017)
- Language: English
- US Distributor: Focus Features