In 1930s England, a brutal civil war erupts with the Houses of Lancaster and York battling for control of the throne. Amid the turmoil, the despotic Richard, Duke of Gloucester, plots his own route to power, deviously scheming a murderous agenda to ascend as dictator monarch.

Ian McKellen brings his landmark theatrical performance to the screen for a triumphant take on Shakespeare’s antiheroic tragedy. Costarring Kristin Scott Thomas and Robert Downey Jr., this dynamic adaptation streamlines the text for a propulsive charge through the grubby antechambers of sovereignty.