Sir Anthony Hopkins is reportedly thrilled to be given the shot of playing King Lear in a big screen movie of Shakespeare's great tragedy. Gwyneth Paltrow and Naomi Watts will play the bitchy conniving older daughters and Keira Knightley will likely play lithe Cordelia who's dead body Hopkins will have to carry around and weep over insanely in Act V.
Director Josh Michael Stern insists there will be many more suitable big-name surprises in his blockbuster.
He says, "It's going to be really good... The one thing that I'm staying away from is stunt casting, so there won't be the American comedian, but there will be some really great actors playing smaller roles that will make a lot of sense."
Stern also plans to stick to Shakespeare's dialogue in the film in a bid to make sure the movie is as authentic as possible: "I'm not very fond of the modern adaptations... It's pre-Roman, Celtic, very raw.
"It's a period in British history, from which (Lord of The Rings author) Tolkien took a lot of his inspiration, where there were thatched-roof roundhouses and fortresses."
Plot Spoiler: Everybody dies.
