The Madness of King George
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The Madness of King George is a 1994 film which tells the story of King George III of the United Kingdom's deteriorating mental health, and the equally declining relationship between him and his son, the Prince of Wales. This film was originally released in theatres by The Samuel Goldwyn Company.
It stars Nigel Hawthorne as George III, Helen Mirren as Queen Charlotte, Ian Holm as Dr. Willis, Rupert Graves as Greville, Amanda Donohoe as Lady Pembroke, Rupert Everett as the Prince of Wales, Julian Rhind-Tutt as the Duke of York, Julian Wadham as George III's Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger, and Jim Carter as Whig MP Charles James Fox.
The movie was directed by Nicholas Hytner, and adapted by Alan Bennett from his play The Madness of George III. Bennett refused to sanction a film version unless Hawthorne was given first refusal for the title role after having a highly acclaimed performance in the theatre.
An urban legend circulates to this day that the Roman numerals were removed from the title of the film because U.S. test audiences misinterpreted them to mean it was a sequel. This, however, is untrue.
It won the Academy Award for Best Art Direction, and was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Nigel Hawthorne), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Helen Mirren) and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.
External links
- Template:Imdb title
- Snopes.com discussion of the urban legend of the movie's title (http://www.snopes.com/movies/films/george.htm)