This week it was reported that Hugh Grant will appear in a new limited series for HBO, The Palace, alongside past co-star, Kate Winslet. According to Deadline, Grant will feature in a guest-starring capacity. There are few details about the series, apart from the basic plot outline: The Palace will follow a year spent under a totalitarian regime.
This comes after Grant’s previous HBO role in The Undoing, which earned him an Emmy. It was HBO’s most-watched show of 2020. The Undoing was a psychological thriller and allowed Grant to flex his acting muscles, something he has seemingly put emphasis on in the last few years. Recently, he’s become known for his self-awareness as to his typecasting as the leading man in romantic comedies, such as Four Weddings and a Funeral, and has since tried to push himself with his roles. To see Grant returning to a more conventionally presumed English setting for The Palace, could allow him to continue his current career trajectory of challenging himself, whilst appearing in a more familiarly grandiose setting, much like in Sense and Sensibility.
Grant is set to reunite with his Sense and Sensibility co-star Kate Winslet for the project. Ang Lee’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel did not have the two actors playing love interests, so The Palace could play into their known work together and cast them as a couple, maybe even a King and Queen.
Winslet has also made a name for herself in television, starring in the critically acclaimed Mare of Easttown, also for HBO. Similar to The Undoing for Grant, Mare of Easttown allowed Winslet to show her range in the thriller genre; a genre she doesn’t often get the chance to act in. Like Grant, Winslet also won an Emmy for her role.
Adding to this exciting pairing is the addition of Andrea Riseborough. Riseborough has made a name for herself as somewhat of a character actress in indie films, not afraid to appear in more bizarre projects, such as Mandy. The inclusion of Riseborough with Grant and Winslet, two known leading stars, could suggest a larger role for Riseborough in The Palace.
Given HBO’s track record, and Grant’s and Winslet’s recent Emmy wins and successful career form, coupled with enjoyably daring Andrea Riseborough, The Palace has all the right ingredients for another hit for HBO.
Words by James Evenden
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