Olivia Colman
as Queen Anne
In her heart, she doesn’t really feel like a Queen, which comes out in her rages and in her way of putting her foot down. I enjoyed myself, being cantankerous and slapping page boys.
Rachel Weisz
as Lady Sarah
The universe Yorgos creates is always unique to his sensibility and it couldn’t be replicated by anybody else. Tonally, the film is a pure creation of Yorgos—and how he creates tone is perhaps the most brilliant and most mysterious thing he does.
Emma Stone
as Abigail
That there are three really beautifully crafted females at the center of this story still remains rare in film scripts. The way they are each so flawed, so hilarious and so very complicated, I love that. It’s just reflective of real life.
Joe Alwyn
as Masham
With Yorgos, As long as you come willing and open to play around and jump into his mad mind, that’s all that you need to do.
Nicholas Hoult
as Harley
I love that the film is about the power and the love of three women—Rachel, Emma and Olivia’s characters. Whose characters are actually much stronger than the male characters in many ways and certainly, in terms of appearance compared to these men running around in three inch heels, leggings and big wigs.
Yorgos Lanthimos
the Director
I didn’t want to have a villain and a victim. Instead the idea of who is a villain or a victim is one that shifts and changes and moves from one character to another. This way you feel for what they each do and you aren’t able to make absolute judgements on their characters even if they do a horrible thing.
Early 18th century England is at war with the French. Nevertheless, duck racing and pineapple eating are thriving. A frail Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) occupies the throne and her close friend Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz) governs the country in her stead while tending to Anne’s ill health and mercurial temper. When a new servant Abigail (Emma Stone) arrives, her charm endears her to Sarah. Sarah takes Abigail under her wing and Abigail sees a chance at return to her aristocratic roots. As the politics of war become quite time consuming for Sarah, Abigail steps into the breach to fill in as the Queen’s companion. Their burgeoning friendship gives her a chance to fulfil her ambitions and she will not let woman, man, politics or rabbit stand in her way.