Guy Pearce is taking on another challenging role after earning an Oscar nomination in 2024 for his performance in The Brutalist. This time, the Australian actor is playing a real and highly controversial figure, media businessman Rupert Murdoch. Pearce stars as Murdoch in Ink, a new film directed by Danny Boyle that looks at the early rise of the British tabloid newspaper The Sun. Netflix has released the teaser ahead of the film’s world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. The film is set in 1969 and focuses on Murdoch’s efforts to expand his media business outside Australia.
Ink is based on James Graham’s 2017 play of the same name. Graham has also written the screenplay for the film. The story follows Murdoch as he takes control of The Sun and brings in British newspaper editor Larry Lamb, played by Jack O’Connell, to change the struggling publication. Their partnership becomes central to the story as they try to turn The Sun into one of the biggest newspapers in the United Kingdom. The film looks at the aggressive methods used by the newspaper to attract readers, including sensational stories, attention grabbing headlines and sexualised photographs of female glamour models.
The stage version of Ink received strong reviews and earned major recognition. Bertie Carvel played Rupert Murdoch in the original West End and Broadway productions and won both Olivier and Tony Awards for the role. The film version now gives Guy Pearce the chance to portray the media figure during an important period in his career. Jack O’Connell, who previously worked with Danny Boyle on 28 Years Later, plays Larry Lamb. Claire Foy also stars as Jules Davies, a fictional reporter created as a combination of several female journalists who worked during that period.
Danny Boyle produces the film with Tracey Seaward, Tessa Ross and Michael Ellenberg. James Graham serves as executive producer along with Anna Marsh, Ron Halpern, Tonia Davis, Zoë Edwards, Joe Naftalin and Sudie Smyth for StudioCanal. Ink is produced by StudioCanal, Media Res and House Productions. The film will have its world premiere as the opening film of the Venice Film Festival on September 2. It will release in select theaters on December 11 and will stream on Netflix in the U.S. and Latin America on January 8. StudioCanal will distribute the film in European territories as well as Australia and New Zealand.
