The Father | 35 facts about the Oscar awarded film

The Father is a film that was nominated for 6 Oscars, and Anthony Hopkins was awarded for its tremendous performance in this fascinatind drama.

Let’s find out more about the film!

1. The Father is a 2020 drama film.
2. It was co-written and directed by Florian Zeller.
3. This Florian Zeller’s directorial debut.
4. He co-wrote it with fellow playwright Christopher Hampton.
5. It is based on Zeller’s 2012 play Le Père.
6. It’s a French-British co-production.
7. In the film stars Anthony Hopkins, Olivia Colman, Mark Gatiss, Imogen Poots, Rufus Sewell, and Olivia Williams.
8. It follows an aging Welshman who must deal with his progressing dementia.
9. It is the second adaptation of the play after the 2015 film Floride.
10. The Father had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on 27 January 2020.
11. It was released in France on 26 May 2021 by UGC Distribution and in the United Kingdom on 11 June 2021 by Lionsgate.
12. The film was acclaimed by critics, who lauded the performances of Hopkins and Colman, as well as the production values and its portrayal of dementia.
13. At the 93rd Academy Awards, Hopkins won Best Actor and Zeller and Hampton won Best Adapted Screenplay.
14. The film received six nominations in total, including Best Picture and Best Supporting Actress (Colman).
15. At the 78th Golden Globe Awards, the film received four nominations, including Best Motion Picture – Drama.
16. It received six nominations at the 74th British Academy Film Awards, winning Best Actor (Hopkins) and Best Adapted Screenplay.
17. In addition, Hopkins and Colman were nominated for Outstanding Leading Actor and Outstanding Supporting Actress respectively at the 27th Screen Actors Guild Awards.
18. It was announced in May 2019 that Florian Zeller was to direct a screenplay with Christopher Hampton based on his play.
19. Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman were cast in the film.
20. Olivia Williams, Rufus Sewell, Imogen Poots and Mark Gatiss joined later that month, with filming beginning on 13 May.
21. Filming locations included West London Film Studios, and Hayes, Hillingdon.
22. As of 17 June 2021, The Father has grossed $2.1 million in the United States and Canada, and $12 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $14.1 million.
23. In the film’s opening weekend in the United States, the film made $433,611 from 865 theatres, finishing eighth at the box office.
24. The weekend following its six Oscar nominations, the film made $355,000 from 937 theatres.
25. Following its two Oscar wins, the film made $147,000 from 713 theatres, for a running total of $1.9 million.
26. In Spain the film made $171,901 in its opening weekend from 156 theatres, then $160,378 in its second and $54,901 in its third
27. Florian Zeller wanted Sir Anthony Hopkins specifically for the part. He sent Hopkins the script in 2017 and waited for a reply. In the meantime, he did not pursue production with any other actors in the lead role. He said if Hopkins had not agreed to the film, then it likely would have been made in French instead.
28. When Anthony says his date of birth, December 31, 1937, which is Sir Anthony Hopkins’ actual date of birth.
29. Sir Anthony Hopkins portrayed a character, Anthony, who had the same first name as his own. The main character’s name is Anthony because the role was written for Hopkins and no one else. The director claimed it was a dream come true when he accepted.
30. Sir Anthony Hopkins won the Best Actor Academy Award at age 83 for his role in this film which made him the eldest ever winner of an acting Oscar beating the previous record set by Christopher Plummer who had won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar at the age of 82 for Beginners (2010) just under a decade earlier and had passed away just under three months prior to the 2021 Oscars Ceremony.
31. Olivia Colman receives her second Oscar nomination, following her win for her role in The Favorite (2018). In both films, her character is named Anne.
32. With his win for this film, Sir Anthony Hopkins became the first person to publicly be on the autism spectrum to win an Oscar.
33. The location of Anthony’s flat in the film is in a building on the junction of Lauderdale Road and Elgin Road in London’s Maida Vale.
34. In order to better convey the experience of fading memory to the audience for the original stage play “Le Père,” as the drama progressed, items such as furniture would gradually be removed from the stage until, by the end of the play, the setting would be essentially bare, but for the actors. For the film adaptation, Anthony’s flat, his daughter Anne’s flat, and the residential care home he ultimately occupies, all play out in the very same space within permanent architecture. As a means of immersing the viewer in Anthony’s failing mind, production designer Peter Francis made subtle ongoing alterations to the color schemes throughout, gradually switching familiar day-to-day objects in this space, so that as the story moves forward the viewer becomes almost as uncertain of his/her surroundings as Anthony himself. Different pictures were hung in similar arrangements on the walls over the course of the film, further adding to the visual confusion of Anthony’s (and our) space.
35. Olivia Williams filmed her final scene opposite Anthony Hopkins separately in shots they were not together, since she said it would have been impossible for her to hold her composure in reaction to the moment he spontaneously breaks down.