THE mental decline of a 79-year-old philosopher novelist may not sound like the stuff of Hollywood blockbusters but that is the part Dame Judi Dench has chosen for her first major film role since she won an Oscar for playing Queen Elizabeth in Shakespeare In Love.
Dame Judi, 64, has agreed to play authoress Dame Iris Murdoch in a film adaptation of Iris, the best-selling memoir by Murdoch's husband John Bayley, 74, which detailed her struggle with Alzheimer's disease before her death last year. The movie will be directed by Sir Richard Eyre, former artistic director of the Royal National Theatre, and is expected to start shooting at the end of this year with Michael Gambon in the role of Oxford don Bayley.
"It may seem a strange choice for someone best known for playing historical figures and M in the James Bond films but it's an incredibly moving tale and Judi has been keen to play it since she was first approached at the beginning of last year," said a source close to the star yesterday.
Referring to Dustin Hoffman's Oscar-winning portrayal of an autistic adult, the source added: "Without wishing to sound cynical, it's got what film executives call the Rainman factor - it's a fact that actors who convincingly portray serious illnesses win a lot of awards."Dame Judi temporarily put her career on hold when her actor husband Michael Williams developed cancer. She flew back from a Broadway production within hours of the diagnosis but despite Williams's long illness the couple have vowed to continue working.
Thanks to Mike Kennedy for point me to this article.