‘Spencer’ Official Trailer: Kristen Stewart Is a Best Actress Oscar Frontrunner
Zack Sharf
Neon’s first trailer for “Spencer” only lasted one minute and included just one brief line of dialogue from Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, so it’s an understatement that fans will find a lot more to savor in the “Spencer” official trailer below. Pablo Larraín‘s latest directorial effort is set over a single weekend as Diana contemplates the end of her marriage to Prince Charles. “Spencer” debuted to rave reviews at the Venice Film Festival, where Stewart became an instant Oscar contender in the Best Actress race.
The official “Spencer” synopsis from Neon and Topic Studios reads: “December, 1991: The Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage has long since grown cold. Though rumors of affairs and a divorce abound, peace is ordained for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham Estate. There’s eating and drinking, shooting and hunting. Diana knows the game. This year, things will be a whole lot different.”
IndieWire’s awards expert Anne Thompson caught “Spencer” at Telluride and wrote that the Best Actress Oscar is “[Kristen Stewart’s] to lose,” adding, “Stewart pulls us into the young mother’s emotional turmoil as she seeks comfort from her two sons and her confidante dresser (Sally Hawkins), who lays out an outfit for every occasion. After a long and storied career from David Fincher’s ‘Panic Room’ and the blockbuster ‘Twilight’ series to acclaimed art films like Olivier Assayas’ ‘Personal Shopper’ and ‘Clouds of Sils Maria,’ never-nominated Stewart has shown her chops.”
Stewart revealed at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this month that she signed on for “Spencer” before ever reading the script, which was penned by “Locke” screenwriter Steven Knight.
“[Pablo] called me on the phone,” Stewart said. “At first I hadn’t read the script yet, and he proposed this idea and said he was doing this sort of weird tone poem about Diana, and asked whether or not I would be interested in tackling the subject at all, before he sent the script. Kind of without thinking, very irresponsibly, I said ‘Yes, absolutely…’ In the moment right before I was going to say, in a word, yes or no, I was like ‘Who are you if you don’t say yes?'”
Stewart added that normally when she takes on a role she comes from a place of “trust me, I can do this,” but when she said yes to Larraín she “did not have that.” The actress added, “I could have totally fucked it up.”
Neon will open “Spencer” in theaters November 5. Watch the official trailer for the biographical drama in the video below.
