James McAvoy and Robin Wright Penn Are Robert Redford's Conspirators
Filed under: Drama, Independent, Casting, Newsstand, War
At least one Civil War / Abraham Lincoln themed film is racing out of the starting gate. a few weeks after it was announced that Robert Redford would be directing The Conspirator, he has his lead actor and actress. According to Variety, James McAvoy and Robin Wright Penn are heading to the courtroom to answer for Mr. Lincoln's assassination.Penn will be playing the role of Mary Surratt, the lone woman to be part of John Wilkes Booth's conspiracy, and the only woman to be arrested. The Surratts were all Confederate sympathizers, and while her son confessed to being actively involved in plotting Lincoln's assassination, he denied his mother had been. Nevertheless, Mary was tried, convincted, and executed. Mary Surratt is the first woman to have been executed by the U.S. government and it's probably worth noting that while she was described as "a handsome woman," she doesn't resemble Ms. Wright-Penn.
The history makes McAvoy's part a little thankless, as he will be playing Frederick Aiken, Surratt's lawyer. Variety calls him "an idealistic young war hero" though his historical record is actually pretty sketchy. Defending Surratt was his first major case (and since he only lived 13 years longer, he can't have enjoyed many of them). Variety notes that he "reluctantly defends" Surratt, and then comes to believe in her innocence. I imagine the movie will use his real defense speech (which you can read here) which is probably one of the few concrete things Mr. Aiken left behind. The Conspirator begins shooting next month, and should be an interesting period piece. I don't know if it's a replacement for Spielberg's Lincoln biopic but as few know this particular story, maybe it'll encourage a rush of interest in the Civil War.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-15-2009 @ 12:16PM
Julie said...
Trust Robert Redford to find the most obscure bit of the Lincoln story and make a film out of it. I trust him. If he says there's drama there than there is. Sounds full of sadness. Here's hoping it does bring on a flood of civil war films. I'm ready for some American history in my movies.
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9-15-2009 @ 3:03PM
Heather King said...
We think Bob got his inspiration from "The Killing of Mary Surratt" on IMDB from Chris King's short film doing the festival circuit now. Seriously though, we're big fans of Redford's filmmaking so we're happy about the feature and kudos to casting, though we hope Robin puts on 50 lbs. for the part.
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9-15-2009 @ 9:08PM
Richard Sloan said...
John Surratt never confessed to being a conspirator in Booth's plot to assassinate Lincoln. He only confessed to having been part of the actor's earlier scheme -- to kidnap Lincoln and hold him hostage (in return for Confederate POW's). Let's keep our eye out for gross historic innacuracies in this flick. I hope the film's historical consultant, Prof. Tom Turner, will be called upon to keep some historic accuracy in check, at the expense of the usual poetic license.
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9-16-2009 @ 9:45AM
kathlenn kiernan said...
Robert always seem to bring the best out in every movie he is in or directs. He has tons of energy and he pick the best actor to play the parts. Hey Robert, I would love to play a part in a movie your in or director.
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9-16-2009 @ 10:24AM
CINDY said...
AUDITIONS-SAVANNAH: NOT TO BOAST BUT I LOOK LIKE MARY SURRATT @ 63. BACK THEN WOMEN AGED 20 YEARS OR MORE. I LIVE ON HILTON HEAD 17 MILES NORTH OF SAVANNAH. WHERE IS AUDITION LOCATION?
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9-25-2009 @ 9:27PM
herb swingle said...
frederick aiken had mysterious life before the trial.the spot light should be on mary surratt.guilty as tried!
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