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Tom Hiddleston Woos The Deep South In First Trailer For Musical Biopic I Saw The Light

"Everybody has a little darkness in them," whispers Tom Hiddleston in the first full trailer (see below) for musical biopic I Saw The Light. Headlining the drama as the late, great Hank Williams, the British thesp is taking a firm step back from the superhero scene, and it's a creative departure that will even have him flexing his husky vocal chords for Marc Abraham's feature.

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“Everybody has a little darkness in them,” whispers Tom Hiddleston in the first full trailer (see below) for musical biopic I Saw The Light. Headlining the drama as the late, great Hank Williams, the British thesp is taking a firm step back from the superhero scene, and it’s a creative departure that will even have him flexing his husky vocal chords for Marc Abraham’s feature.

Released in select theaters on November 27, I Saw The Light chronicles William’s barnstorming rise to fame, who won over the hearts and minds of Alabama with a string of heart-wrenching and raw performances. But for all of the artist’s brilliance, the late singer-songwriter faced numerous problems with drug abuse and alcoholism, leading him to become increasingly violent and erratic before his eye-catching career came to an abrupt halt at the age of 29.

Joining Hiddleston for the ride is Godzilla and Age of Ultron star Elizabeth Olsen. She’s on board to play Audrey Mae Sheppard, William’s doting wife who bears the brunt of his problems once his fame and success begins to drown out the musical talent that once enthralled a generation.

In today’s full-length trailer (via People), we begin to see red herring after red herring, as Hiddleston’s character begins his downfall. It’s a tragic tale, and the fact that Hiddleston and Olsen are attached in lead roles has us feeling cautiously optimistic that Abraham’s biopic has something to offer about Williams’ brilliance. Bradley Whitford, David Krumholtz, and Cherry Jones complete the cast.

After making its bow at TIFF 2015 earlier this year, Marc Abraham’s I Saw The Light is out in select theaters from November 27.

Hank Williams wrote and recorded some of country music’s most enduring songs before his untimely death at age twenty-nine. These songs were fuelled by a blend of turmoil and heartbreak — not surprising considering the Alabama-born balladeer’s private life, which director Marc Abraham brings to the screen with a clear-eyed appreciation of the man’s complexity. Taking stock of the central moments in Williams’ too-short career, which began when he was barely a teenager, I Saw the Light focuses, as it should, on the flaws of an artist who was endearing to his audience and enraging to his wives and lovers.

When Hank marries Audrey Mae Sheppard (Elizabeth Olsen) at a gas station in 1944, success is only a few years away, but Audrey proves a challenge as she replaces Hank’s mother as the prime influence in his career. Though ambitious, Audrey is a woman of limited talent, and Williams is caught between listening to friends who tell him to remove her from his act and a wife who will listen to no one.