Harriet Walter and Timothy Spall have joined the cast of Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light.
As previously announced, Mark Rylance, Damian Lewis, Jonathan Pryce, Kate Phillips and Lilit Lesser will return for the six-part series.
Based on the final novel in Hilary Mantel’s multi-award-winning trilogy, the historical drama directed by Peter Kosminsky and produced by Linda Osborne has now begun filming across England and Wales.
But some new faces will be joining the show for the first time: Killing Eve and Succession star Harriet Walter, 73, will play Lady Margaret Pole, while Harry Potter favorite Timothy Spall will take on the role of the Duke of Norfolk.
They will star Love Actually star Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Rafe Sadler, Joss Porter as Richard Cromwell and Black Mirror actor James Larkin (Black Mirror, McMafia) as Treasurer Fitzwilliam.
Harriet Walter (pictured left, in May) and Timothy Spall (pictured right, in October) have joined the cast of Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light
Based on the final novel in Hilary Mantel’s multi-award-winning trilogy, filming has now begun on the historical drama (LR Mark Rylance, Thomas Brodie Sangster and Joss Porter).
Argo star Richard Dillane as the Duke of Suffolk, Will Keen as Archbishop Cranmer and Hannah Steele as Mary Shelton round out the cast.
Adding volume to the star-studded cast, BBC Two’s historic show will feature The Crown favorites Alex Jennings as Stephen Gardiner, Maisie Richardson-Sellers as Bess Oughtred and Lydia Leonard (The Fifth Estate) as Lady Jane Rochford.
Rocketman star Charlie Rowe will play Gregory Cromwell, Harry Potter icon Harry Melling as Thomas Wriothesley, Corentin Fila as Christophe and Tom Mothersdale (Bodies) as Richard Riche.
Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light brings together the creative team from the BAFTA and Golden Globe-winning first series. The film is directed by seven-time BAFTA award winner Peter Kosminsky – known from the Channel 4 series “The Undeclared War”.
The period piece is being adapted for television by Oscar nominee Peter Straughan and produced by Colin Callender’s Playground and Company Pictures.
British director Peter, 67, said: “Casting director Robert Sterne has done a truly exceptional job in assembling the most impressive cast I have ever had the pleasure of working with.”
“Led by Mark Rylance and Damian Lewis, they were attracted by the quality of the writing by Hilary Mantel and the skilful adaptation by Peter Straughan.”
“As we film on Tudor locations across England and Wales, it is an honor to bring Hilary’s final novel to an international television audience.”
Playground CEO Colin Callender said: “Peter Kosminsky and our brilliant casting director Robert Sterne and his team have assembled a glorious cast, with many of the original cast returning alongside some very exciting new faces.”
Other actors set to appear in the upcoming show also include The Witcher star Viola Prettejohn as Mary Fitzroy, The Serpent’s Ellie de Lange as Jenneke, 1917 star Pip Carter and Barbie actress Hannah Khalique-Brown as Dorothea.
Set in 1536, immediately after Anne Boleyn’s death, the historical series follows Thomas Cromwell as he awakens from the bloodbath to continue his rise to power and wealth, while his formidable master Henry VIII makes peace with his third queen, Jane Seymour. for a short-lived happiness.
But Cromwell, a man who can only rely on his wits, has no large family to support him and no private army.
Navigating the moral complexities that come with wielding power in this brutal and bloody time, Cromwell is caught between his desire to do the right thing and his instinct for survival.
But after Henry VIII executes his queen, no one is safe.
Despite the rebellion at home, the conspiracy of traitors abroad, and the threat of invasion testing Henry’s regime, Cromwell’s powerful imagination sees a new country reflected in the future.
All of England lies at his feet, ripe for innovation and religious reform. But as the wheel of fortune turns, Cromwell’s enemies gather in the shadows.
“Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light” is highly anticipated and years in the making. It will trace the last four years of Cromwell’s life and conclude his journey from self-made man to the most feared and influential figure of his time.
The six-part series will air on BBC One and iPlayer in the UK, while the first series can be seen on BBC iPlayer in the UK and on the PBS MASTERPIECE Prime Video Channel in the US.
The period piece is adapted by Oscar nominee Peter Straughan and produced by Colin Callender’s Playground and Company Pictures (pictured: Damian Lewis).
Navigating the moral complexities that come with wielding power in this brutal time, Cromwell is caught between his desire to do the right thing and his survival instincts
Set in 1536, just after Anne Boleyn’s death, Cromwell continues his rise to power while his formidable master Henry VIII settles for short-lived happiness with his third queen, Jane Seymour (pictured: Kate Phillips as Jane Seymour).