Vanessa Redgrave, Mark
Strong, Oscar Isaac, Léa Seydoux, Scott Grimes,
Kevin Durand and Alan
Doyle Join Cast of
Epic Action-Adventure
Produced by Brian Grazer, Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe
London, U.K., March 26, 2009 – Academy Award®-winning
actors Russell Crowe (Gladiator, American Gangster) and Cate
Blanchett (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Elizabeth: The Golden
Age) have begun production on an untitled Robin Hood adventure, the next
film from celebrated director Ridley Scott (Gladiator, American
Gangster). The epic action-adventure, which reunites Crowe and Scott
for their fifth collaboration, will be produced by Oscar®-winner
Brian Grazer (A Beautiful Mind, American Gangster), Scott
and Crowe. It will lens in the United Kingdom.
Crowe
stars as the legendary figure known by generations as “Robin Hood,” whose
exploits have endured in popular mythology and ignited the imagination of those
who share his spirit of adventure and righteousness. In 13th
century England,
Robin and his band of marauders confront corruption in a local village and lead
an uprising against the crown that will forever alter the balance of world
power. And whether thief or hero, one man from humble beginnings will
become an eternal symbol of freedom for his people.
The
untitled Robin Hood adventure chronicles the life of an expert archer,
previously interested only in self-preservation, from his service in King
Richard’s army against the French. Upon Richard’s death, Robin travels to
Nottingham, a town suffering from the
corruption of a despotic sheriff and crippling taxation, where he falls for the
spirited widow Lady Marion (Blanchett), a woman skeptical of the identity and
motivations of this crusader from the forest. Hoping to earn the hand of
Maid Marion and salvage the village, Robin assembles a gang whose lethal
mercenary skills are matched only by its appetite for life. Together,
they begin preying on the indulgent upper class to correct injustices under the
sheriff.
With
their country weakened from decades of war, embattled from the ineffective rule
of the new king and vulnerable to insurgencies from within and threats from
afar, Robin and his men heed a call to ever greater adventure. This
unlikeliest of heroes and his allies set off to protect their country from
slipping into bloody civil war and return glory to England once more.
Joining
Crowe and Blanchett for the film are Oscar® winner Vanessa Redgrave
(Julia, Atonement) as John and Richard’s mother, Queen Eleanor of
Aquitaine; Mark Strong (Body of Lies, Stardust) as King John’s
vicious henchman, Sir Godfrey; Oscar Isaac (Che, Body of Lies) as
King John; and Léa Seydoux (13 French Street, upcoming Inglourious
Basterds) as the woman who will become queen, French Princess
Isabella. Playing key members of Robin’s band of men are Scott Grimes
(television’s ER, American Dad) as Welshman Will Scarlet; Kevin
Durand (upcoming X-Men Origins: Wolverine, 3:10 to Yuma) as
Robin’s right-hand, Scotsman Little John; and newcomer Alan Doyle as their
troubadour, Irishman Allan Adayle.
Ridley
Scott directs the project from a script by Ethan Reiff & Cyrus Voris
(creators of television’s Sleeper Cell) and Oscar® winner
Brian Helgeland (L.A. Confidential). Scott assembles a team of
longtime collaborators for the action-adventure, including John Mathieson (Gladiator,
Hannibal) as its cinematographer and Arthur Max (Gladiator, American
Gangster) as the production designer. The film’s editor is two-time
Oscar® winner Pietro Scalia (Black Hawk Down, JFK),
and its costume designer is Oscar® winner Janty Yates (Gladiator,
American Gangster). The executive producer is Charles Schlissel (Matchstick
Men, Flightplan).
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