Knightley/Hopkins “Lear” Axed
The Telegraph reports that a movie version of “King Lear” has been cancelled. Keira Knightley (pictured) was due to play Cordelia, the youngest daughter of the King, who would have been portrayed by Anthony Hopkins. Gwyneth Paltrow as Regan, Lear’s treacherous middle daughter, and Naomi Watts as Goneril would have completed the cast. The film was announced at the Cannes Film Festival last year and was expected to feature epic battle sequences. The cancellation now leaves the way open for a rival production Shakespearean production with Al Pacino in the title role. And now Knightley may be free to play Eliza in the upcoming Emma Thompson-scripted movie version of “My Fair Lady.”
