Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana: See the first look at her new movie

Kristen Stewart has had a fascinating career over the years. From her breakout in Twilight to her emergence as a real indie talent to watch, to a lesbian icon, it’s been an interesting progression. Now, after Emma Corrin played Princess Diana in The Crown, Stewart steps into the role of the royal that has fascinated the world – before and after her tragic death – in Spencer. 

The first photo for the film, which is directed by Jackie’s Pablo Larrain, was released. Stewart definitely has slipped into the role of Diana with the image. It’s genuinely a little bit of uncanny valley in looking at her. What is Kristen Stewart’s new movie about? Why is she playing Diana? Here’s everything you need to know.

What is Kristen Stewart’s movie Spencer about?

Spencer follows Diana (Stewart) over a single weekend when she spent a Christmas holiday at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk with the royal family. It’s here where Diana decided to leave Prince Charles and the royal life. What happened during that weekend? What will go on in the movie? According to Kristen Stewart in a statement: a lot.

She said, “Spencer is a dive inside an emotional imagining of who Diana was at a pivotal turning point in her life. It is a physical assertion of the sum of her parts, which starts with her given name; Spencer. It is a harrowing effort for her to return to herself, as Diana strives to hold onto what the name Spencer means to her.” It definitely sounds like Kristen Stewart’s latest movie will be an interesting character study. 

Who else is involved in Spencer?

With Kristen Stewart starring as Diana, the cast is rounded out by Timothy Spall (Mr. Turner), Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water), and Sean Harris (Mission: Impossible – Fallout). The film was written by Stephen Knight, whose credits include Locke & Peaky Blinders. Pablo Larrain, again, will direct the film. 

This wouldn’t be the first time that Larrain explored a famous woman at a pivotal time in her life. In 2016’s Jackie, which starred Natalie Portman, we follow the former First Lady in the week following her husband’s assassination and the relationships with people around her as she copes with his loss. It netted Portman a Best Actress nomination at the Academy Awards. 

Needless to say, it would be interesting to see how Spencer will play off of what Larrain brought forth with Jackie. At the very least, it sounds like the pair of films would make interesting companion pieces to each other. 

Anything else we need to know?

Details about the film remain relatively scarce. Filming, clearly, has recently started for the Kristen-Stewart-led movie. It’s hoped that it could be released in Fall 2021, but in these COVID times? We don’t know when it’s going to be released. This is just a hope, skip, and a prayer, you know? Either way, it’s clear that the hope for Spencer is to be an Oscar contender. 

If Kristen Stewart really shows her acting chops in the movie, then chances are that there could be a slew of award nominations when that time comes around. Jackie netted Portman a ton of accolades both won and in terms of nominations. It will be interesting to see if the same holds true for Stewart leading Spencer. 

Either way, the project sounds interesting to see. Stewart is clearly picking her roles that either let her cut loose or have something important to say. In an interview with Variety about Spencer, Knight said, “To talk to people who knew her and to try and get a view of this person — who this person really was — who was an ordinary person in extraordinary situations, is the way I think of her.”