The Children Act premiere: On the red carpet with Emma Thompson, Fionn Whitehead and Ian McEwan

There are some people for whom even the most stubborn of British clouds will make way. One of these is cinematic icon Emma Thompson. After a morning of heavy rain, the Academy Award-winning actress and her co-stars took to the red carpet under clear skies for the premiere of Ian McEwan’s latest adaptation.

The Children Act follows Justice Fiona May (Thompson) as she is handed the case of a 17-year-old Jehova’s Witness (Fionn Whitehead) who is refusing a life-saving blood transfusion for religious reasons. As her involvement with the boy becomes personal and her workload seeps even more into her homelife, the judge’s frustrated husband (Stanley Tucci) puts their marriage to the test. This is a film which dismantles our ideas of right and wrong and explores what it is to be human.

We caught up with McEwan, director Richard Eyre and producer Duncan Kenworthy as well as cast members Thompson, Whitehead and Anthony Calf to discuss what the movie means to them.

Thompson spoke about researching her role, and the women who inspired her performance.

Whitehead discussed how the feature enabled him to bring a new dimension to McEwan’s character.

We also chatted with author McEwan about what the story is really about, and why he wanted to adapt it.

Rosamund Kelby
Videos: Filippo L’Astorina

The Children Act is released nationwide on 24^th August 2018. Read our review here.

 

 

Watch the trailer for The Children Act here: