Billie Piper on Elsinore, Acting Through Crisis, and Working With Andrew Scott

Billie Piper returns to the screen on November 20 in the Oscar-tipped British film Elsinore, bringing her trademark intensity to a drama exploring the final months of actor Ian Charleson.

The film focuses on Charleson taking on the role of Hamlet at the National Theatre in autumn 1989 while living with AIDS, prior to his death in January 1990. Andrew Scott stars as Charleson, while Piper plays his close friend and casting director, Patsy Pollock. The project brings together several theatrical heavyweights, featuring Olivia Colman as Charleson’s doctor and Johnny Flynn as the National Theatre director, according to Gold Derby.

Piper admitted she never met the real Pollock, relying entirely on the script by Stephen Beresford. She noted to The Guardian that Pollock loved Charleson as a friend and played an integral role in raising her daughter Alice.

“She saw an acting potential in other people in the industry were maybe missing slightly,” Piper told The Guardian regarding Pollock’s view of Charleson.

“Whether it’s people coming out or #MeToo stuff, I don’t know how much has really changed,” Piper told The Guardian.

The film launched at the Telluride Film Festival, establishing Scott as an immediate best-actor contender ahead of the upcoming awards season, as The Hollywood Reporter noted. Piper’s performance as Pollock provides a vital emotional anchor for the narrative, reflecting a chosen family dynamic.

“Their relationship was beautiful chaos,” Piper told The Hollywood Reporter, describing the bond between Pollock and Charleson. “They partied hard.”

Following its North American theatrical release on November 20, Elsinore is scheduled to open in the United Kingdom on January 29.

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