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"Yo, Hadrian!" Who will play the Roman Emperor in a new biopic?
After years in limbo, the long rumoured bio-pic of Roman emperor Hadrian is finally coming to the big screen. John Boorman, who's directed such visionary films as Excalibur and The Emerald Forest (as well as two of my favorite insane movies, Zardoz and Exorcist II: The Heretic: "I was possessed by a demon. Oh, but it's okay, he's gone now.") is set to direct, from a script based on the best-selling novel Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourcenar. From Wikipedia:
"The book takes the form of a letter to Hadrian's cousin and eventual successor "Mark" (Marcus Aurelius). The emperor meditates on military triumphs, love of poetry and music, philosophy, and his passion for his lover Antinous."
The facts of Antinous are sketchy. He drowned under mysterious circumstances, and his age has been listed anywhere from thirteen to mid twenties. It'll be interesting to see how Boorman portrays this relationship. Hopefully he learned a lesson from Oliver Stone and the debacle that was Alexander.
As far as casting, it's been rumoured that Antonio Banderas is very close to signing on to play Hadrian, but there's no word on who might play Antinous (unless you go to IMDB, where one of the first entries in the Memoirs of Hadrian message board is "Zac Efron 4 Antonius":
"Have you gazed upon anything more beautiful than this young man? Add a slightly good acting credit and you have a winner. Now whether Disney will allow their most bankable star to star in a gay love story is the question. With rumors already swirling that he's been paired with his costar Vannesa to shield his sexuality, I wouldn't be shocked if they decline when asked. Now that I see it, he is a perfection in every way just as Antinous was some 1000s of years ago."
Wow. That's certainly persuasive, but we're interested to hear your dream casting decisions. Will Antonio make an appropriate Hadrian? And who would you like too see star as his love interest? Submitted by on Tue, 2008-07-29 09:11. |
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Antonio Banderas make my
Antonio Banderas make my knees weak.Sigh,how much I adore him....
Zac Efron,HELL NO!!!!
But my biggest concern would be that they de-gay this one.
Well, it goes without saying...
That the director who introduced the tapdancing sequence to the Exorcist canon is the man to handle this story.
Oh, I keed - he's brilliant.
Banderas and Hunnam
Apparently it will indeed be Banderas as Hadrian and Charlie Hunnam as Antinous. Here's one source (in the middle of the page):
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4386896.ece
An interesting choice
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0402271/
just looked him up and it turn out that he played Nathan in the original UK version of Queer As Folk(basically equals Justin in US Version).I haven`t seen much of his work,but at least he is familiar with gay material.
That makes the 4th biopic
That makes the 4th biopic
That makes the 4th biopic
Yo Hadrian!
Message board
Hey! I posted that topic on IMDB and those were my words. Small world eh? When I heard of the project some years ago i decided it was worth a buzz so I entered it into the database of IMDB myself listing all the production details that I read from an interview with its writer Malerio My plan was to build a buzz around the project, which worked of course because everything that appears on IMBD is automatically copied to countless other movie sites. I then started a board too to see if here were any enthusiasts like me out there. I'm proud to see it getting made finally.
You know there's nothing more pathetic than a dead god!
As the great new documentary "Chris and Don" reveals
Boorman is a great choice
I worked with Boorman when he had a production deal at MGM. Nothing came of it, alas, but he is a very bright, well-informed director. If Banderas goes in, I suspect they will go with an unknown the way he chose his own son in Emerald Forest. He is also the man who really made a star out of Helen Mirren in the US. Zac Efron is pretty but not a very good actor at all. It would be a big mistake to cast him. I doubt Disney will let him, not because of the gay thing, but because of the way they are building his career as a musical star.
I would consider Stephan Bender (Superman Returns) LukeTreadaway (Brothers of the Head), among others.
Hope they do this right
And I'm not just talking about making another Alexander--de-gayed yet wildly over-the-top at the same time. The tricky part won't just be showing Hadrian and Antinous' relationship, but simply adapting Yourcenar's novel--which is literally all in Hadrian's mind--into a visual story. But Boorman is one of the better directors out there--not just Excalibur and The Emerald Forest, but his Hope and Glory is magnificent (and shoulda won the 1987 Oscar)--so my fingers are crossed that he gets it right.
But I'm not sure about Banderas as Hadrian; not only is he not exactly physically right, I wonder if he has the gravitas to carry off the role. Personally, I'd much rather see Eric Bana as Hadrian--he looks the part, has the talent and can project intellectual yearnings. As for Antinous, I don't know; I don't follow many of the twinkie stars of the day--at the very least, let's pray that Disney keeps that Stepford twink Zac Efron away from the film.
Eric Bana! yummmmm
nah,it`s all
nah,it`s all right.I wasn`t necessarily talking about him as the right cast,just comment on his hotness ;-)
I wouldn`t mind if we got Eric Bana instead,but after Troy & The Other Boleyn Girl it seems a little bit typecast to me(maybe it`s just me though).
And according to IMDb,Eric Bana probably won`t have time for this,he`s already got a very busy schedule
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0051509/
If they REALLY want to freak
Antinuous cult
Banderas would be
You're right
James Bond to play gay
Ok, not really, but Daniel Craig will.
Apparently Daniel Craig will play Hadrian in this proyect. The blogosphere has been buzzing all morning. The Advocate has been the most reputable? sourse so far.
http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid58580.asp
"Allegedly"????
From the article: "Hadrian, who ruled the Roman Empire from 117 to 138 A.D, allegedly had an affair with a teenage Greek boy, Antinuos, while married."
1. Um, it's a historical fact.
2. Isn't "allegedly" reserved for accused criminals? Doesn't that make the use of the word rather offensive in this context?