Paul Greengrass is stepping back onto the historical battlefield with The Rage, a sweeping new drama set during England’s explosive 1381 Peasants' Revolt. Focus Features is reportedly close to clinching U.S. distribution rights for a cool $11 million, making it one of the hottest properties at this year’s Cannes film market.
In a notable casting twist, Andrew Garfield is now in active discussions to take the lead, stepping in for Matthew McConaughey, who was previously attached to the project. Garfield would play a humble farmer who rises to lead a full-scale rebellion against the English crown — an arc that may draw from the life of Wat Tyler, the historical figure who led the actual uprising before meeting a grim end at the hands of King Richard II’s forces.
Written and directed by Greengrass himself, The Rage promises the filmmaker’s signature blend of kinetic intensity and grounded realism. While details remain under wraps, the film looks set to channel the director’s strengths in capturing both chaos and character — much like he did in Captain Phillips and United 93. It also marks Greengrass’s first feature since News of the World (2020), a pandemic-era Western that received solid, if subdued, acclaim.
Meanwhile, Greengrass has just wrapped production on The Lost Bus, a dramatization of California’s 2018 Camp Fire, starring McConaughey and Jamie Lee Curtis. With that project headed for the fall festival circuit, The Rage appears poised to be his next major release.
