Ellen Kuras’ new play “Lee” tells the story of an extraordinary woman: Lee Miller, the 1920s model and cover star who became Man Ray’s star), turned to photography, set up her own studio, and survived World War II. From her first sunny meeting with her future husband, the painter Roland Penrose, in the late 1930s, to her travels across Europe and the last years of her life, during which she shared what she saw with her son Anthony and told the story of what happened, the film tells only a small part of Miller’s wild and varied life, but it had a huge impact.
Who will play the legendary photographer, his partner, son, colleagues and associates during the build-up to war? To celebrate Lee’s arrival, we’re comparing his powerful cast to his equally impressive real-life cast.
Kate Winslet – Lee Miller
The Oscar-winning star, whose credits include “Creatures from Heaven,” “Sense and Sensibility,” “Titanic,” “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” “Little Children,” “The Reader” and “Revolutionary Road,” recently celebrated a television revival with the veteran starring in roles such as “Easttown Maroons” and “The Regime.” She plays Lee Miller, a highly intelligent and extremely flighty character who falls under the spell of Roland Penrose and becomes his protege, but never gives up on her dreams and realizes her former employer in the British Esquire was working behind the scenes to sabotage her. Soon she became their official field correspondent, embarking on trips with the U.S. armed forces, enduring constant bombing and documenting the horrors she witnessed at the concentration camps of Buchenwald and Dachau, which many in Europe still refuse to believe.
Decades later, when we meet her, she is 60 years old and living in the beautiful Sussex farmhouse of Farleys, still reflecting on her experience. It was here that she died of cancer in 1977 at the age of 70 and her ashes were scattered in the garden. Years later, her son Anthony and wife Suzanne discovered more than 60,000 negatives and prints of her work in the attic, eventually turning the collection into the official archive of Lee Miller and ensuring that her legacy would be preserved for future generations.
Alexander Skarsgard – Roland Penrose
The role was originally intended for Winslet’s “Holiday” co-star Jude Law, the Swedish heartthrob who won Emmy Awards for his roles in “Big Little Lies,” “Succession,” and “Northerners” and received critical acclaim for his performance in “Diary of a Teenage Girl.” The British surrealist artist met Miller through a circle of talented and creative friends before the two fell in love and moved to London, where Penrose volunteered as an air raid warden and did camouflage work in the army during the war, teaching Milling the art of painting. He co-founded the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London in the late 1940s, held several critically acclaimed exhibitions and was knighted in 1966 for his contributions to the visual arts. Like Miller, he died in Fowlis in 1984 at age 83.
Josh O’Connor – Anthony Penrose
The charming Emmy-winning Brit, who charmed audiences in every film from “Contenders” to “Chimera,” became a royal after playing the only son of Anthony, Miller & Penrose Young Prince Charles. Growing up in Fowlis among his parents’ distinguished friends such as Picasso, Joan Miro and Man Ray, he developed an interest in photography and later became a documentary filmmaker.
After his mother’s death, he and his wife discovered her work in the attic, founded the Lee Miller Archive, and wrote several books, including “The House of the Surrealists: Lee Miller, Rowland Their Circle at Penrose and Farley Farms” and “Lee’s Life.” Now, at age 77, he is living and working with his daughter Ami Bohsen at Farleys, which has been transformed into a stunning museum and gallery in an effort to memorialize her parents’ experiences.
Andrea Riseborough – Audrey Withers
British actor To Leslie, recently nominated for an Oscar for his roles in Birdman and Battle of the Sexes, wore a smart suit and gray wig to transform into British actor Audrey Withers, the legendary wartime editor of British Ask & Wear. She ran the magazine from 1940 to 1960, busying herself with war work, keeping Ask & Wear’s office open during the Blitz, publishing valuable government advice, encouraging women to work, ordering groundbreaking photography and seeking out celebrities like M. Era-defining talents like Leigh and Cecil Beaton. In Leigh, we see her supporting Miller’s early work, backing her decision to go to the front line, and insisting that her photographs be printed, even when others found them deeply disturbing. After leaving office, she was made a lady, published an autobiography and died in 2001 at the age of 96.
Samuel Barnett – Cecil Beaton
The British actor plays Lee in the film, portrayed by Cecil Beaton, a respected photographer, portraitist and three-time Oscar-winning costume and set designer of My Fair Lady and My Fair Lady, the designer of “Gigi.” But before that, he was a newcomer and employee of Askew who documented the war with Miller, including stunning photographs such as 1941’s stunning “Fashion is Indestructible.” He photographed royalty and Hollywood celebrities, was knighted and had a major retrospective at the National Portrait Gallery before his death in 1980 at age 76.
