Joe Alwyn's new film based on best-seller releases emotional first trailer featuring Normal People star

Alwyn is set to play Bartholomew in the film, whilst Mescal (Normal People, Gladiator II) and Buckley (Wicked Little Letters, The Lost Daughter) star as a grieving William Shakespeare and his wife Agnes.

The trailer is almost as poetic as some of Shakespeare's very own works, giving us a glimpse into the harrowing grief that enveloped the pair as they grapple with the death of their 11-year-old son.

We see montages of him and Agnes dancing cut into clips of Alwyn and Mescal performing at The Globe Theatre. The footage provides a sweeping look into their lives before and after the death, teasing how Shakespeare turned this tragedy into art and created the Hamlet that went on to become one of his defining works.

Watch for yourself below.

The movie is based on Maggie O’Farrell’s 2020 novel of the same name. Oscar award-winning writer and director Zhao co-wrote the screenplay with the author, and also serves as producer.

On the producing front, she is joined by likes of directing greats Steven Spielberg and Sam Mendes, as well as Liza Marshall, Pippa Harris, Nicolas Gonda, Kristie Macosko Krieger and Laurie Borg.

Whilst Zhao is known for her work in independent cinema, her most recent film was 2021's Eternals, which she co-wrote and directed. The film marked Zhao's first foray into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but wasn't met with the warmest of reactions amongst fans.

Hamnet marks Zhao's return to the big screen four years on.

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The book itself won the Women's Prize for Fiction in 2020 and is described as a "novel inspired by the son of a famous playwright".

According to the book's synopsis: "It is a story of the bond between twins, and of a marriage pushed to the brink by grief. It is also the story of a kestrel and its mistress; flea that boards a ship in Alexandria; and a glovemaker's son who flouts convention in pursuit of the woman he loves. Above all, it is a tender and unforgettable reimagining of a boy whose life has been all but forgotten, but whose name was given to one of the most celebrated plays ever written."

As of now, there's no telling how close to the source material the film will be, but we do know, according to the film's synopsis, that it will "tell the powerful love story that inspired the creation of Shakespeare’s timeless masterpiece, Hamlet".

Hamnet will release in UK cinemas on 9th January 2026.

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