Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Did you see Batman in Henry V?

I was watching the 1989 film version of Henry V and I noticed a young Christian Bale (actor that plays Batman in the latest Batman films).  I was curious to see what other famous actors of today have starred in Shakespeare film adaptations.  Here is what I found:
Ethan Hawke (Training Day, Assault on Precint 13) and Julia Stiles (Bourne movies, Save the Last Dance) starred in a 2000 adaptation of Hamlet.
Heath Ledger (Knights Tale, The Dark Knight) and Julia Stiles starred in 10 things I Hate about you which is surprisingly an adaptation of The taming of the Shrew.  I had no idea.
Josh Hartnett (Black Hawk Down, Hollywood Homicide) and Julia Stiles (I don't know how she has managed to star in everyone so far) starred in O, a 2001 adaptation of Othello.
Michelle Pfeiffer (What lies beneath, Hairspray) starred in A Midsummers Night Dream in 1999.
Anthony Hopkins (The Mask of Zorro, Thor) starred in Titus, a 1999 adaptation of Titus Andronicus.
Al Pacino (Ocean's 13, The Recruit) and Jeremy Irons (Man in the Iron Mask) starred in The Merchant of Venice in 2004.
Leonardo Dicaprio (Titanic, Inception) starred in a 1996 adaptation of Romeo and Juliet.
Mel Gibson (Braveheart, Signs) and Glen Close (101 Dalmatians, Fatal Attraction) starred in an adaptation of Hamlet in 1990.
Keanu Reeves (The Matrix) stars in My Private Idaho, a loose adaptation of Henry IV.
Denzel Washington (Remember the Titans, Training Day) starred in Much Ado About Nothing in 1993.
Mathew Broderick (Ferris Buehlers Day Off) and Jeremy Irons in Disney's Lion King which takes from Hamlet and Richard III.
Ian McKellen (X-Men, Lord of the Rings) was in Richard III in 1995.
Charlton Heston (Ben-Hur, The Ten Commandments) appears in Hamlet in 1996 (Heston isn't really a star of today but he's famous enough).

3 comments:

  1. I love looking to see which actors have been in adaptations of Shakespeare. One of my favorite movies/plays is "Much Ado" and I love the movie with Denzel Washington, Emma T. and Keanu Reeves (though it is funny to try and picture Denzel and Keanu as brothers eh?) What great history on the cinematic history of Shakespeare actors! :)

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  2. I had no idea, that is really fascinating.Oh I thought of another one: Amanda Bynes stars in She's the Man 2006, which is a loose adaptation of the Twelfth Night.

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  3. That's right. I forgot about that one.

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