The Critic (upcoming film)
# The Critic (upcoming film)

The Critic is an upcoming British period thriller film directed by Anand Tucker and written by Patrick Marber, based on the 2015 novel Curtain Call by Anthony Quinn.

## Premise

In 1934 London, an actress finds herself in a dark situation involving a theatre critic and his paper's editor.

## Cast

* Ian McKellen as Jimmy Erskine
* Gemma Arterton as Nina Land
* Mark Strong as David Brooke
* Lesley Manville as Annabel Land
* Romola Garai as Madeleine Farewell
* Ben Barnes as Stephen Wyley
* Alfred Enoch as Tom Tunner
* Nikesh Patel as Ferdy Harwood
* Jay Simpson as Slyfield
* Claire Skinner
* Rebecca Gethings

## Production

It was announced in November 2020 that Colin Firth, Gemma Arterton, Simon Russell Beale and Paapa Essiedu were set to star in the film, at the time titled Curtain Call like the source novel, with Anand Tucker directing and Patrick Marber writing the screenplay. By February 2021, filming was expected to begin later that year.

In June 2022, the film was retitled The Critic, with Firth, Beale and Essiedu no longer involved. Ian McKellen, Mark Strong, Lesley Manville, Romola Garai, Ben Barnes and Alfred Enoch were announced to be joining Arterton, and production began in London.

