Emily Watson already counts Lars von Trier, Robert Altman and Paul Thomas Anderson among the high-profile directors she's worked with. Now the British star adds Steven Spielberg to that impressive list with War Horse.
The Oscar-nominated actress takes on the role of Rose Narracott, a mother who watches her only son (Jeremy Irvine) march off to the battlefields of World War I.
Speaking to Digital Spy, Watson praised War Horse author Michael Morpurgo for writing a "simple, powerful" story that has endured on the page, stage and screen.
"It's such a simple, powerful thing and I think it comes from a very real place, which is a very good writer who writes for children in a really direct way," she said.
"It comes from his anger. He moved into a village where there were these old men (World War I veterans) who unburdened themselves and told him what their experiences were like in the trenches. He was moved to write a story."
War Horse opens in UK cinemas on January 13.
> War Horse premiere video interviews
> War Horse in pictures
Movies Editor
Simon has worked as a journalist for more than a decade, writing on staff and freelance for Hearst, Dennis, Future and Autovia titles before joining Cision in 2022.
