One of the most exciting biopics coming to us this fall has to be Theory of Everything, from Man on Wire helmer James Marsh. Covering the early life of famed physicist Stephen Hawking, the movie stars Eddie Redmayne as Hawking and Felicity Jones as his wife Jane Wilde. Now, we’ve received our first look at the film, which you can check out below.
Granted, the shot of Hawking and Wilde on their wedding day is not the most exhilarating image we could have received, but it shows Redmayne and Jones in character, which for me will be the biggest draw for Theory of Everything. Both actors are tremendously talented up-and-comers who seem primed to top a future New A-List in Hollywood. Redmayne is probably best known to audiences for playing Marius in Tom Hooper’s Les Miserables, but he also had major roles in My Week with Marilyn opposite Michelle Williams and in Justin Chadwick’s The Other Boleyn Girl. Jones broke out in romance Like Crazy and also did strong work in Breathe In. It will be a thrill to see them together in Theory of Everything. In particular, Redmayne’s performance as Hawking is sure to be the actor’s most fascinating work yet. The still gives us just a hint of the intense physicality that Redmayne will have to bring to the part of Hawking, who was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (a condition that would significantly worsen in the coming years) at the age of 21.
Though Theory of Everything, from Working Title, hasn’t accumulated much buzz, it’s possible that Redmayne could get a push for awards attention if his performance is strong enough. Jones, too, is a highly impressive actress who’ll surely do great work in the part of Jane Wilde, but I’d imagine the more physical aspects of Redmayne’s performance will make him the film’s major awards contender. The film also stars David Thewlis, Emily Watson, Charlie Cox, Harry Lloyd, Tom Prior, Charlotte Hope, Maxine Peake and Adam Godley, among others.
Theory of Everything opens November 7th.
