Actress and unsuspecting gay icon Rachel Weisz is set to play Elizabeth Taylor in a new biopic focusing on the star's journey from actress to activist.
Not only that, but the movie, titled A Very Special Relationship, will be directed by female directing duo Bert & Bertie, the film-making team behind Troop Zero and “real-life best friends and creative collaborators".
“Audiences are clearly fascinated by the private lives of iconic Hollywood stars,” producers Iain Canning and Emile Sherman said in a statement, according to .
“There is no one more iconic than Elizabeth Taylor, and Simon Beaufoy has written a role that shines a light on Elizabeth’s humour and humanity, which will be beautifully brought to life through the extraordinary talents of Rachel Weisz.”
The Hollywood Reporter states that the biopic will explore Taylor's role in the fight against the AIDs epidemic in the 80s.
The 'very special friendship' at the centre of the film's plot is that shared between Taylor and her new personal assistant, Roger Wall, a gay man from a childhood of poverty and homophobia. The pair's deep friendship is said to have opened Taylor's eyes to the ongoing challenges faced by gay people, altering the course of her later life.
Pegged as a "never-before-seen portrait of the real woman behind the violet eyes," the film will show how Taylor went "toe to toe with the leader of the free world" and assisted in galvanising the public to rally in support of those diagnosed with AIDs.
Needless to say, Queer Twitter was extremely here for the announcement.
"Rachel Weisz playing Elizabeth Taylor in a film about Liz’s HIV/AIDS activism means we’ll get another full film promotional cycle of Rachel showing endless love for the gays and I, for one, love to see it," one social media user wrote.
"Immediately fanning myself after reading that Rachel Weisz is playing Elizabeth Taylor in a new biopic," another added.
