Where to watch Shakespeare in Love (1998)
It can also be rented or bought from AppleTV and Amazon.
A struggling playwright in Elizabethan London races to stage a new comedy while searching for inspiration. When a noblewoman secretly pursues her love of theater, their forbidden romance transforms his work, drawing them into a lively world of ambition, disguise, backstage rivalries, and theatrical danger.
Cast: Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, Tom Wilkinson, Judi Dench, Imelda Staunton, Colin Firth, Ben Affleck, Simon Callow, Steven Beard, Jim Carter, Rupert Everett
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Trivia & production notes
- Marc Norman's son Zachary suggested the original concept for Shakespeare in Love to his father in the late 1980s.
- Tom Stoppard was hired to rewrite Marc Norman's screenplay after director Edward Zwick rejected the initial draft.
- Julia Roberts withdrew from the film six weeks before shooting was set to begin because Daniel Day-Lewis refused the role and she rejected other actors offered for chemistry tests.
- Julia Roberts' departure from the production cost Universal $6 million and forced the film into turnaround before Miramax picked it up.
- Kate Winslet turned down the lead role of Viola after the success of Titanic to pursue independent films instead.
- Harvey Weinstein's producer credit on the film sparked controversy that led to the creation of the "Harvey Rule," requiring producers to demonstrate a tangible role in making a finished film.
- The ending of Shakespeare in Love was reshot multiple times until Tom Stoppard came up with the idea of Viola suggesting to Shakespeare that their parting could inspire his next play.
- Prince Edward reportedly became interested in the title Earl of Wessex after watching Shakespeare in Love and requested Queen Elizabeth II grant him that title instead of Duke of Cambridge.
- Roger Ebert gave Shakespeare in Love four out of four stars, praising its blend of wit and a sweet love story.
- The Writers Guild of America ranked the screenplay 28th among the greatest ever written in 2005.
Adapted from the Wikipedia article Shakespeare in Love, available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Rewritten for StreamShack; errors are ours — tell us about them.
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