PBS pin-up Benedict Cumberbatch channels inventor/scoundrel Thomas Edison in the trailer for his new historical drama The Current War and as you might expect it has a very Cumberbatchian flavor to it. It also looks like a lot more fun and snappy than the words “new historical drama starring Benedict Cumberbatch” might lead you to believe.
Cumberbatch plays Edison and Michael Shannon (who you may recognize as INTENSITY SHAPED INTO A HUMAN FORM) portrays George Westinghouse in the film which is billed as “the epic story of the cutthroat competition between the greatest inventors of the industrial age over whose electrical system would power the new century.” (NO SPOILERS!) The technological and business battle is presented with a proper mixture of flash, personality and Nikola Tesla popping round in this promo.
Set to make its world premiere on September 9th at the Toronto International Film Festival, The Current War marks director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon’s follow-up to 2015’s Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. In addition to having Cumberbatch and Shannon in the cast, the roster of actors also includes Nicholas Hoult, Tom Holland, Katherine Waterston, and Tuppence Middleton. The Current War will see its official release in theaters on November 24th.
