Anonymous

Anonymous is a historical drama set in Elizabethan England, when Queen Elizabeth I has reigned for decades and William Shakespeare has risen to fame as the most popular playwright of the age. The film advances the theory that the plays attributed to Shakespeare were actually written by Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford. Because of his high rank, Oxford cannot admit to the authorship, and his secret becomes entangled with court intrigue, the succession question, and the Essex Rebellion against the queen.

Roland Emmerich directed the film from a screenplay by John Orloff. It is the tenth of the fifteen films Emmerich has directed to date, following 2012 and preceding White House Down. Rhys Ifans plays Edward de Vere, with Vanessa Redgrave as Queen Elizabeth I, David Thewlis as William Cecil, Joely Richardson as Princess Elizabeth Tudor, Jamie Campbell Bower as the young Earl of Oxford, and Sebastian Armesto as Ben Jonson. The large credited cast numbers 77.

Produced across Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States, the film cost about 30 million dollars and took roughly 15 million dollars worldwide, well below its budget. On IMDb it holds 6.6 out of 10 from around 6,500 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.4 from 814. A critics' rating of 5.6 from 174 reviews places it below both audience scores.