The first full trailer has been released for Martin Scorsese’s much-anticipated and highly secretive religious period drama Silence. The film, which the famous director has described for decades as a labour of love, stars Liam Neeson, Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver as Jesuit priests in Japan.
Based on the classic 1966 novel of the same name by Shusaku Endo, the film is set in 17th-century Japan and follows Driver and Garfield as they go in search of their mentor, with Neeson taking on the role of the older priest who has lost his faith.
Scorsese’s version of the story, itself a remake of a 1971 Japanese film, had been caught in development hell for years, with Daniel Day-Lewis, Gael García Bernal and Benicio Del Toro once cast in the roles.
The film is also set to have its premiere in the Vatican, with several hundred Jesuits and Martin Scorsese in attendance, though it is not yet known where Pope Francis, also a Jesuit, will be at the screening.
Silence is slated for release on December 23rd, with the film expected to be a prominent feature in next year’s awards season.
