The new teaser trailer for “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” co-starring Oscar winner Frances McDormand and directed by a solo Joel Coen, features Denzel Washington in an ominous mood.
The director chose a black-and-white theme for his cinematic adaptation of William Shakespeare’s “Macbeth,” a theatrical critique of blind political ambition and megalomania. He is now working separately from brother Ethan Coen for the first time since announcing his hiatus from the film in August.
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It’s also the first time McDormand, as Lady Macbeth, and Washington, as the titular character, will share the screen. Corey Hawkins (“The Walking Dead”) also appears as Macduff, Macbeth’s antagonist.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the brooding footage the first look at the highly anticipated Bard adaptation, which is set to hit theaters on December 25 before streaming on Apple+ — was trending heavily on Twitter.
The trailer follows actress-producer McDormand’s two Oscar wins for “Nomadland” earlier this year. Meanwhile, Washington was most recently seen in this year’s neo-noir crime thriller “The Little Things,” co-starring Rami Malek.
During an Instagram Live discussion last year, McDormand, 64, discussed the significance of her collaboration with Washington, 66, on this particular project.
She said, “In Joel’s adaptation, we are exploring the age of the characters and in our adaptation, the Macbeths are older. Both Denzel and I are older than what is often cast as the Macbeths.
“We’re postmenopausal, we’re past childbearing age. So that puts pressure on their ambition to have the crown. I think the most important distinction is that it is their last chance for glory.”
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Joel cast Brendan Gleeson and Harry Melling, stars of the Coen Brothers’ previous film “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs,” in the upcoming film, which is currently in post-production. Moses Ingram (“The Queen’s Gambit”) and Ralph Ineson (“Game of Thrones”) also appear.
“The Tragedy of Macbeth” will be released in theaters on December 25, 2022, and will then be available on Apple TV+ on January 14, 2022. It will also open the New York Film Festival on September 24.