Kenneth Branagh is uncanny as Boris Johnson in new coronavirus drama This Sceptred Isle
KENNETH Branagh is uncanny as Boris Johnson after transforming into the PM for coronavirus drama This Sceptred Isle.
The 60-year-old A-lister will play the Tory leader in the new Sky Atlantic series.
The five-part production will chart the events surrounding the Prime Minister, the government, and the country in the face of the first wave of the global pandemic.
Kenneth's casting as BoJo was announced last month and now the first-look image of him as the PM shows his utter transformation into the 56-year-old politician.
Kenneth has swapped his neatly trimmed brown hair for Boris' trademark wild blonde locks and prosthetics appear to have been used to give him more of Bojo's fuller features.
The series will be directed by Michael Winterbottom, who will also co-write, while Tim Shipman, the political editor of The Sunday Times, will act as a consultant.
The five-part drama begins with Boris Johnson’s appointment as Prime Minister, before recounting from the first coronavirus cases in the UK - through to Mr Johnson falling ill with the virus, and the arrival of his son.
This Sceptred Isle will go on to trace the impact on Britain from the pandemic and the response of scientists, nurses, and doctors
It is based on the first-hand testimony of people inside Number 10 Downing Street, the Department of Health, The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), and from hospitals and care homes across the country.
Kenneth, just four years older than the Prime Minister, has starred in Valkyrie, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Dunkirk.
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He received a knighthood in 2012 and has won three BAFTAs and two Emmy Awards.
Michael Winterbottom has co-written This Sceptred Isle with Kieron Quirke, and will direct all five episodes.
This Sceptred Isle will air on Sky Atlantic in Autumn 2022.