Irish actor Brendan Gleeson has joined the cast of ‘Suffragette’, a UK based drama which focuses on the foot soldiers of the early feminist movement.
Based on true events, the historical drama stars Carey Mulligan (Inside Llewyn Davis) and Meryl Streep (August: Osage County) as the leading ladies. Streep plays the ‘Suffragette’ leader Emmeline Pankhurst and Mulligan a foot soldier called Maude, who becomes radicalized and turns to violence as a way to further the cause.
Gleeson most recently stared in John Michael McDonagh’s 'Calvary', which received major success at the Sundance Film Festival. No description has yet been released for Gleeson’s character.
Directed by Sarah Gavron (Brick Lane), ‘Suffragette’ is produced by Faye Ward and Alison Owen of Ruby Films. Backed by Pathe, Film4 and the BFI, executive producers on the film are Pathe’s Cameron McCracken, Film4’s Katherine Butler and Tessa Ross, and Chris Collins from BFI Film Fund.
The script is written by Abi Morgan, who also penned the 2011 script for Streep’s ‘The Iron Lady’. Morgan also co-wrote ‘Shame,’ the Steve McQueen-directed film that Mulligan starred in with Michael Fassbender, James Badge Dale and Nicole Beharie.
Ben Whishaw (Skyfall) is also the latest name to be confirmed along with Gleeson. Other cast members on board for supporting roles include Helena Bonham Carter (The Young and Prodigious T.S. Spivet), Anne-Marie Duff (Closed Circuit), Romola Garai (The Last Days on Mars) and Samuel West (Mr. Selfridge)
Gleeson will next be seen in Brad Anderson’s asylum thriller ‘Eliza Graves’ and Ron Howard’s drama ‘Heart of the Sea’, which will also star Whishaw as Herman Melville.
‘Suffragette’ will be distributed in the UK and France by Pathe Films.
Filming is due to start on February 24th and additional casting will be announced in the coming days.
