Over a century after his death, Shakespeare’s infamous lovers have been making headlines again in 2024. As Tom Holland (Spider-Man: No Way Home) steps into the role of literature’s most famous loverboy on the West End, Rachel Zegler (The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) and Kit Connor (Heartstopper) prepare to play the star-crossed heroes in another new production of Romeo and Juliet on the other side of the pond.
Romeo and Juliet has become synonymous with tragic love story over the years, and it remains one of Shakespeare’s most iconic plays, with a number of equally iconic iterations. It’s been interpreted as a 90s gangster epic on Venice Beach by Baz Luhrmann, as a battle of wills and hard done-by communities in West Side Story, as animated gnomes in neighbouring gardens in Gnomeo and Juliet, and has been reimagined in nearly every era possible on stage.
It’s a play that has generated a century’s worth of discourse, with some declaring it the greatest love story ever told, while many point at it as a fable about the pitfalls of teenage lust and stupidity. It’s a morality tale about the futilities of feuds, while other interpretations focus on the specificity of fate in every turn of this tale. However, while the play itself has been understood in different ways, there is something about these lead characters that has always been appealing to the industry’s biggest stars. Romeo has been played by the likes of Sir Ian McKellen, Daniel Day-Lewis, David Tennant, Leonardo DiCaprio, Josh O’Connor, Orlando Bloom, Douglas Booth and Richard Madden. Meanwhile, Juliet has been played by Claire Danes, Norma Shearer, Olivia Hussey, Hailee Steinfeld, Lily James, Jessie Buckley and even Dame Judi Dench. And now, three of Gen Z’s biggest stars are taking on the mantle.
Of course, playing Shakespeare is on the bucket list of most young actors, but why these roles particularly?
If anything, Romeo is something of a pathetic romantic hero. When we first meet him at the start of the play, he is lamenting his crush Rosaline, and has to be convinced by his friends to show his face at a party. When he meets Juliet, he immediately forgets the previous girl’s name, and within one night, is swearing to forget everything to worship at the altar of his new love. He’s the epitome of a drama queen, and by modern standards, would be coined as a simp.
In contrast, Juliet is assured and somewhat more sensible, despite her young age. And yet, she too is completely consumed by this love (or lust, depending on your reading of the text), to the point of suicide.
However, even when their foolishness is on full display, which it often is, there is something in the nature of these characters, and in the essence of their romance, that means you can’t help but root for them. It’s a very fine tightrope to walk, and as such, makes it a great challenge for actors. Romeo and Juliet as a play doesn’t work if Romeo and Juliet as characters do not work: the whole thing hangs on the chemistry of the leads, but also their willingness to be desperate and yearning and all-in, without ever crossing the point where they stop being endearing. Not all of the famous names previously listed managed this well, but when they did, they became performances that are timeless and unforgettable.
As a Shakespearean tragedy, the genre allows for these characters to revel in heightened emotions and the revelry of melodrama. As one centred around two teenagers, there is even more scope for this: when grounded in youthful naivety, Romeo and Juliet’s actions require suspension of disbelief paired with a distinct earnestness. In many ways, it allows actors to enjoy the playfulness of playing teen characters, but separated from the often maligned genre of teen dramas. The skills it requires are similar, but the pairing of old English and the name drop of Shakespeare, immediately elevates the acclaim of the role itself, and of the actor to take on the mantle.
However, even more, contemporary re-imaginings demonstrate the underlying complexity of these roles. Rachel Zegler as Juliet on Broadway is something worth getting excited about, because she already proved her ability to play the role when she starred as Maria in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story. Her Maria is innocent, but not naïve: there is a distinct sensuality in the way she yearns for Tony. She is clever, but not necessarily wise, letting herself be swayed by her feelings. Duality is key to the role.
Holland and Connor, in playing Romeo, will continue to build up the reputations they have as some of the industry’s nice guys. There is a sweet nature to both of them; one can easily imagine pining underneath their respective Juliet’s balcony (Holland stars opposite Francesca Amewudah-Rivers). There is also a physicality to both of them—Holland made his name playing Spider-Man, meanwhile Connor’s Heartstopper character Nick Nelson is captain of the rugby team—that makes the more violent aspects of the character considerably more believable. Much like their romantic counterpart, Romeo is a character for whom a duality of essence is required.
The other considerable factor that makes these roles so appealing after all these years, is their universal relatability. This is not to say that many of us will have experienced high level family-feuds, murdering our girlfriend’s cousin, or romantic suicide pacts. It is to say, however, that nearly everyone will have experienced the all consuming feeling of first love, or at the very least, the teenage hormones that convince us that the person we just met is in fact the love of our life. All of us will have experience yearning in some way or another. All of us will know the loyalty of brotherhood to our dearest friends. All of us will know the pain of having something we love ripped from us. Romeo and Juliet still connects with audiences all these years later, because Romeo and Juliet are protagonists we recognise, with feelings we understand from our own lives.
It is no wonder that three of Gen Z’s hottest stars are now all taking on the challenge of making these roles their own. They continue to be sought after because these characters allow them to exhibit the knowledge and hindsight of their recent youth, and apply it to one of the most poetic and romantically written tales of reckless teenage optimism to ever exist.
Tom Holland can be seen in Romeo & Juliet at the Duke of York’s Theatre until 3 August. Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor can be seen in Broadway’s Romeo + Juliet later this year.
Words by Rehana Nurmahi
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