Hamnet Trailer, Fun Facts & Review
Hamnet Synopsis:
Hamnet is a fictional drama about William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal) and his wife, Agnes Shakespeare (Jessie Buckley). The film explores their passionate marriage and the devastating grief that follows the death of their 11-year-old son, Hamnet, who succumbs to the plague. As the couple struggles with profound personal tragedy, this intense private loss becomes the heart-stopping inspiration for Shakespeare's iconic play, Hamlet, immortalizing their sorrow through art.
Genre: Drama
Release Date: In theaters December 12th, 2025
Hamnet Fun Facts:
Oscar-Winning Director:
The movie is directed by Chloé Zhao; she won the Academy Award for Best Director and Best Picture for her earlier film, Nomadland (2020).
Screenplay Collaboration:
Director Chloé Zhao co-wrote the screenplay with Maggie O'Farrell, who is also the author of the historical fiction novel Hamnet. This collaboration ensured that the movie adaptation stayed very faithful to the storyline of the highly award-winning novel.
Oscar Nominee Lead Couple:
The movie features Jessie Buckley (an Oscar nominee for The Lost Daughter) as Agnes Shakespeare and Paul Mescal (an Oscar nominee for Aftersun) as William Shakespeare.
Legendary Producers:
The movie is produced by some of the biggest names in the industry, including Sam Mendes and Steven Spielberg, under his Amblin Entertainment company.
Two Brothers Take on Hamnet and Hamlet:
The character of Hamnet is played by rising child star Jacobi Jupe, while his older brother Noah Jupe (A Quiet Place) played the role of Hamlet on stage in the movie.
Film Festivals:
Hamnet had its world premiere at major film festivals, including the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in 2025, with a limited theatrical release on November 27th, 2025, before its nationwide release on December 12th, 2025, in North America.
Hamnet Review:
Chloé Zhao’s adaptation of the book Hamnet, written by Maggie O’Farrell, is a deep, emotional, and beautifully made historical drama. The movie is held together by two amazing performers, Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal. The film is much more than a typical movie about a famous writer; instead, it gives a real, personal look at the marriage between William Shakespeare and his wife, Agnes.
The movie mainly tells the story of Agnes (Buckley), a strong-willed woman who loves nature, and her passionate, spontaneous young husband, Will (Mescal), who teaches Latin and dreams of writing plays. Their intense love and early days as parents in Stratford are portrayed in a beautiful way, but the storyline takes a tragic turn with the death of their 11-year-old child, Hamnet (Jacobi Jupe), due to the plague. The film is a powerful and heartbreaking examination of how this profound grief tears them apart and eventually inspires one of the most renowned masterpieces: Hamlet.
Jessie Buckley's performance as Agnes is truly amazing and eye-opening. She plays Agnes with a natural, strong, and powerful feeling of a woman. Buckley successfully captures every deep emotional moment of Agnes: the great happiness of being a mother and the heavy feelings of grief and being let down. Her performance is the most important part of the story, displaying emotions full of anger and endless love.
Paul Mescal's performance truly captures a very sensitive and grieving Will. He plays Will not as the famous writer but as a husband and father who is struggling, ambitious, and deeply affected by the tragedy. Mescal perfectly shows how Will turns his pain into writing, but this artistic escape also creates distance from his grieving wife. The two actors have a very clear and strong connection, which makes watching their relationship fall apart even more painful.
Director Chloé Zhao uses her special, poetic, and natural style to capture the Queen Elizabeth era that makes it feel real and close to us. Working with cinematographer Łukasz Żal, the movie creates beautiful, almost perfect pictures of the English countryside. This beauty is a painful contrast to the difficult realities of that time, like the hard work of giving birth and the quick spread of disease.
Zhao's directing is clever and quiet; she avoids making things too emotional or over-the-top. She allows the audience to understand and feel the emotion when Agnes watches the first performance of the play Hamlet. The film shows the play Hamlet as a deep, yet painful, love letter from Will to Agnes and a way to honor their son. This scene is one of the most powerful and emotional moments; it perfectly shows how art can be used to deal with deep trauma, even if it can't completely make the pain go away.
Hamnet is a movie you must see. It is a quiet, beautiful, and deeply heartbreaking story that focuses on the real human pain. By changing the focus from the well-known writer to the wife and son whose love and death inspired his great talent, Zhao has made one of the most impactful and life-changing historical dramas of the year.