Words of War
| Words of War | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | James Strong |
| Screenplay by | Eric Poppen |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
Production companies |
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| Countries | United Kingdom Latvia |
| Language | English |
Words of War is an upcoming biographical film about the late Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya. Directed by James Strong, it is set to star Maxine Peake as Politkovskaya, Jason Isaacs as her husband Sascha, and Ciarán Hinds as her Nobel Peace Prize-winning editor at the Novaya Gazeta, Dmitry Muratov.[1]
Synopsis
[edit]Anna Politkovskaya was a journalist and human rights activist who persisted with reporting on the conflict in Chechnya despite considerable danger to herself, and tried to expose corruption within Russia under the governance of Vladimir Putin. She continued in the face of poisoning, intimidation and violence before being the victim of a contract killing in the elevator of her house on October 7, 2006.[2]
Cast
[edit]- Maxine Peake as Anna Politkovskaya
- Ciarán Hinds as Dmitry Muratov
- Jason Isaacs as Alexander Politkovsky
- Naomi Battrick as Vera Politkovskaya
- Harry Lawtey as Ilya Politkovsky
- Ellie Bamber as Elena
- Fady Elsayed as Anzor
Production
[edit]The project was announced as Mother Russia at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival with Maxine Peake, Jason Isaacs, and Ciarán Hinds attached to the main roles.[3] The film had James Strong attached as director, working from a screenplay by Eric Poppen, and was announced to be made by the production company Luminosity, with filming scheduled for UK and Latvia in 2022.[4] Producers were listed as Dean Altit, David Banks, Paul Brennan, Kia Jam, and Miriam Segall,[5] with co-production from Forma Pro Films at their Latvian studios,[citation needed] K. Jam Media, and BuzzFeed Studios, with a reported budget of $13 million.[6]
In February 2023, the family of Anna Politkovskaya released a joint statement expressing concern about the factual accuracy of the script they had been given at the start of production, that they had not contributed in any way, nor had they granted permission for their names to be used in the film.[7] In May 2024, the title of the film was confirmed as Words of War'’.[8]
Casting
[edit]In September 2022, Emma D'Arcy, Harry Lawtey and Ellie Bamber were added to the cast, with the project title being changed from Mother Russia to Anna.[9] Lawtey confirmed his role as Anna Politkovskaya's son and discussed the film within a geo-political context saying "The film has been planned for years and obviously now it has unfortunately become too relevant... Being part of a project that feels current and meaningful is a privilege."[10] D'Arcy was replaced by Naomi Battrick due to scheduling issues.[11]
Principal photography
[edit]Selling rights to the film became held by Film Bridge International from Luminosity in late 2022. Principal photography was revealed by Deadline Hollywood to have commenced in Latvia in December 2022, with filming scheduled to last into February 2023.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ "Ciarán Hinds to portray Nobel Peace Prize winner in film about murdered Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya". rte.ie. May 16, 2022.
- ^ "Maxine Peake To Play Fearless Russian Journalist & Putin Scourge Anna Politkovskaya In Timely Cannes Package 'Mother Russia'; Ciaran Hinds Co-Stars With Jason Isaacs". Deadline.com. May 13, 2022. Archived from the original on December 15, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ "Maxine Peak, Jason Isaacs set for Mother Russia movie". Filmstories.co.uk. May 16, 2022. Archived from the original on October 8, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ "A film about Anna Politkovskaya will be filmed in the UK". afisha.london. May 13, 2022.
- ^ "Mother Russia". Productionlist.com. June 27, 2022.
- ^ "ANNA AKA Mother Russia". goodfilmscollective. Archived from the original on January 29, 2023. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ Ntim, Zac (March 7, 2023). "Family Of Russian Journalist Anna Politkovskaya Claim Upcoming Biopic Is "Grossly Inaccurate"". Deadline. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
- ^ Ntim, Zac (May 6, 2024). "'Words of War:' Maxine Peake, Ciarán Hinds & Jason Isaacs Political Thriller Heading To Cannes Market With Concourse Media, First Look Images Revealed". Retrieved May 6, 2024.
- ^ "'House Of The Dragon' Star Emma D'Arcy, 'Industry' Actor Harry Lawtey & 'Willow' Star Ellie Bamber Join Movie 'Anna' About Murdered Russian Journalist & Putin Scourge Anna Politkovskaya". Deadline.com. September 12, 2022. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ "Harry Lawtey is weighing the price of success". zonadeprensard.com.
- ^ "House Of The Dragon' Star Emma D'Arcy Drops Out Of Anna Politkovskaya Biopic 'Anna', Replaced By Naomi Battrick". Deadline. November 23, 2022. Archived from the original on December 29, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ Wiseman, Andreas (December 1, 2022). "'Anna': First Look At Maxine Peake As Russian Journalist Anna Politkovskaya, Film Bridge Takes Over Sales Duties". Deadline. Archived from the original on March 25, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
External links
[edit]- Words of War at IMDb