Trivia / Elizabeth

• All-Star Cast:
  • Cate Blanchett, Richard Attenborough, Joseph Fiennes, Christopher Eccleston, Geoffrey Rush, Daniel Craig, Vincent Cassel, John Gielgud... and Eric Cantona.
  • The sequel features Cate Blanchett and Geoffrey Rush once again, as well as Clive Owen, Tom Hollander, Samantha Morton, Rhys Ifans ...
• Awesome, Dear Boy: One of the reasons why Vincent Cassel signed on for this movie was because he relished the opportunity of shooting a scene in drag.
• Channel Hop: The first film was produced by Polygram Filmed Entertainment and distributed (at least in the US) by their Gramercy Pictures arm. The Golden Age was from Universal, which acquired and absorbed most of Polygram's assets not long after the first film was released.
• Dawson Casting: Elizabeth is twenty-one in the opening, and played by the thirty-year-old Cate Blanchett. Of course the film covers several years and Elizabeth is much older by the end.
• Fake Brit: Australians Cate Blanchett, Geoffrey Rush and Abby Cornish as Elizabeth, Walsingham and Bess Throckmorton respectively. Kelly Macdonald hides her Scottish accent under an English one for her small role as Isabel.
• Fake Nationality: James Frain (British) plays the Spanish ambassador.
• Fake Scot: The second film has English actress Samantha Morton as Mary Queen of Scots.
• The Other Darrin: Jordi Mollà plays Philip II of Spain in The Golden Age, replacing George Antoni from the first film.
• Real-Life Relative: Alfie Allen and Lily Allen made their film debut on Elizabeth, a film that their mother produced.
• Star-Making Role: For Cate Blanchett, who had only done Australian theatre beforehand. This turned her into a star almost overnight.
• Stunt Casting: The small but significant role of the Pope played by John Gielgud in his final film role. As noted below, the first choice was Marlon Brando.
• Throw It In!: In the sequel when Elizabeth arrives at St Paul's, construction is going on. This is because the cathedral needed repairs in real life, so Shekhar Kapur gave the workers period costumes and tools and let them work in the background.
• Typecasting:
  • Joseph Fiennes starred in an Elizabethan period piece - Shakespeare in Love - the same year. In that, it's him who is the accessory to adultery. Geoffrey Rush stars in both as well.
  • Vincent Cassel as the French Jerk in late 90s period pieces is nothing new either.
• What Could Have Been:
  • Shekhar Kapur's original choice for Elizabeth was Emily Watson, however she turned it down. Meryl Streep was interested, but was turned down. Nicole Kidman, Gwyneth Paltrow and Winona Ryder were also considered.
  • According to the DVD Commentary, Kapur mentioned that the role of the Pope was originally offered to, and accepted by, Marlon Brando. However, plans changed when Kapur noted that many on set would probably be concerned that Brando would be sharing the set with them for two days. Later, when John Gielgud had taken the role, Kapur at one point suggested (in vain) that the Pope's accent should be Italian; he added that every British actor within earshot was horrified that any director was asking Sir John Gielgud to speak in an accent that "wasn't John Gielgud".

---