The 1998 film Elizabeth chronicles the rise to the throne and reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England. The leading role was played by the brilliant Cate Blanchett, who received her first Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
This historical drama tells the story of how Elizabeth I, crowned queen in 1558, skillfully ruled her kingdom and brought the country one of the most prosperous periods in its history. It was an extraordinary achievement in a world then dominated by men.
For the production of Elizabeth, Indian director Shekhar Kapur assembled a stellar cast. Alongside the Australian Cate Blanchett, the film featured many British actors: Geoffrey Rush, known as Barbossa in the Pirates of the Caribbean saga, Richard Attenborough, Joseph Fiennes, who also starred in the romantic comedy Shakespeare in Love, and even a young Daniel Craig.
At the time, Craig was just thirty years old and had only a handful of films behind him, still far from the fame he would later achieve with the James Bond franchise. In addition to this predominantly British cast, several French actors also appeared in Elizabeth, including Fanny Ardant as Mary of Guise, Eric Cantona as Paul de Foix, the French ambassador to the English court, and Jean-Pierre Léaud.
A Strange Scene for Vincent Cassel
Among the French stars in this English film was Vincent Cassel, who portrayed the Duke of Anjou, the future King Henry III of France. The reason he agreed to take on this role was quite unusual: one of his main motivations was the opportunity to perform in a scene where his character disguises himself as a woman.
Whether or not historians approved of this interpretation of the Duke of Anjou, Cassel seemed to thoroughly enjoy playing the scene, dressed in a long gown and a wig with flowing blond curls.
