Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle's upcoming film Ink, which chronicles Rupert Murdoch's rise in the UK media landscape, will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. The biographical drama stars Guy Pearce as the Australian media mogul and Jack O'Connell as news editor Larry Lamb, following their efforts during the relaunch of The Sun newspaper in the late 1960s.
Cast and Creative Team
Ink also features The Crown actress Claire Foy as Jules Davies, the wife of controversial editor Larry Lamb. The screenplay has been adapted by award-winning playwright James Graham from his stage play of the same name. Boyle, known for hits including Trainspotting, 28 Days Later, and Slumdog Millionaire, directed and co-produced the film.
Plot and Historical Context
Set in 1969, the film explores how Murdoch and Lamb transformed the failing British newspaper The Sun into one of the country's most successful and controversial tabloids. Boyle remarked: “1969, the year we first walked on the moon, and the year Rupert Murdoch and Larry Lamb launched a newspaper that was to change the world far more.”
Director's Statement
Boyle added: “Long before Fox News, clickbait, and Truth Social; decades before Twitter, Facebook, Google and Only Fans, these two men created a new tabloid which against all the odds became the biggest selling newspaper in the world. Cheeky, irreverent, daring: The super soaraway Sun challenged the establishment and remade our world for the modern era. A script by James Graham I felt compelled and privileged to make.”
Stage Play and Festival Premiere
The stage production of Ink, written by Graham, premiered at the Almeida Theatre in London in 2017 and later transferred to the West End for an almost four-month run. It made its Broadway premiere in 2019 and picked up two Tony Awards. The film will have its world premiere on September 2 at La Biennale Di Venezia, part of the Venice Film Festival.
