Paul Mescal and Jesse Buckley "in talks" to star in Hamnet

According to Deadline, Oscar-nominated Irish actors Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal are reportedly in talks to star in Hamnet.

The big-screen adaptation of the Maggie O'Farrell bestseller of the same name will be directed by Academy Award winner Nomadland Chloé Zhao.

A work of historical fiction, Hamnet tells the story of Agnes, the wife of William Shakespeare, as she struggles to come to terms with the loss of her only son, Hamnet.

The US entertainment publication claims the film will chart "the emotional, familial and artistic consequences of that loss, bringing to life a human and heart-stopping story as the backdrop to the creation of The Bard's Hamlet".

Coleraine-born author O'Farrell will apparently adapt her book for the screen alongside director Chloé Zhao.

Paul Mescal plays William Shakespeare and Jessie Buckley stars as his wife Agnes in Chloé Zhao’s adaptation of novel ‘HAMNET.’

The story fictionalizes the life of Shakespeare’s family at the time of his son Hamnet’s death in 1596 and the writing of the play ‘Hamlet.’ pic.twitter.com/gZnjFWAWCM

— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) May 1, 2023

Set in Stratford, England, in the late 16th century, Hamnet imagines the emotional, domestic, and artistic repercussions after the world's most famous (though never named) playwright and his wife lose their only son, 11-year-old Hamnet, to the bubonic plague in 1596. Four years later, the boy's father transposes his grief into his masterpiece — titled with a common variant of his son's name — in which the father dies and the son lives to avenge him.

Paul Mescal has just released his debut single 'Slip Away' ahead of the release of new film Carmen. Benjamin Millepied's modern-day adaptation of the classic opera stars Barrera as Carmen, a Mexican immigrant who is forced to cross the border into the U.S. illegally after her mom is murdered. Mescal plays Aidan, a U.S. soldier, who finds Carmen crossing the border but can't bring himself to arrest her, so instead he helps her run to safety. The two began a journey to find Carmen's mom's best friend, Masilda, who runs a nightclub. It is in the nightclub where they take refuge and their love story unfolds through dancing and music.

Recently bagging the Olivier Award for Best Actor for his performance in A Streetcar Named Desire in London's Phoenix and Almeida Theatres, Mescal is also set to star in Ridley Scott's Gladiator 2 alongside Barry Keoghan, Pedro Pascal, Denzel Washington and Connie Nielsen.

Mescal will play the adult Lucius, who is the nephew of evil emperor Commodus, played by Joaquin Phoenix in the Oscar-winning 2000 film. Up next for the Kildare man on the festival circuit is Garth Davis’ Foe alongside Saoirse Ronan, which recently completed production.

Meanwhile, Chloé Zhao already has her Dracula western in the works. Kerry's Jessie Buckley recently delivered an astonishingly powerful performance in the new feature film Women Talking, earning accolades and award nominations.

Jessie, who was an Academy Award nominee last year, was presented was recently presented with her Oscar Wilde Award by Sarah Polley, the director of Jessie’s latest film.