Kenneth Branagh has morphed into the PM for a new TV series, successfully transforming into a Boris Johnson lookalike thanks to a skilled makeup department.
Sky released the first image from the series This Sceptred Isle, which sees the Northern Irish actor play the Prime Minister.
Set to air in 2022, the drama explores the UK government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, charting the impact of the lockdown from the perspective of the country’s leading political features.
With a mop of blonde hair, a suit, and enhanced features, Kenneth, 60, looked jarringly similar to the PM in the teaser snap.
Sky TV tweeted: “No, you’re not seeing things. That’s Kenneth Branagh as U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the first day of filming This Sceptred Isle.
Kenneth Branagh has transformed into Prime Minister Boris Johnson for a new Sky Original series (Image: PA)
“This Sky Original drama will be coming to your TVs in Autumn 2022…”
Below, fans couldn’t get over Kenneth’s transformation, amazed by the uncanny resemblance he bore to the Tory leader.
One wrote: “I mean props to the makeup department I cannot pull Branagh out of those prosthetics…”
“Uncanny,” added a second.
Kenneth has been nominated for five Academy Awards and five Golden Globe Awards (Image: Getty Images)
And a third chimed: “He’s captured the face better than the hair here. Needs to run his hand through it!”
A master of both the screen and stage, Kenneth is famed for his roles in everything from Hamlet to fantasy flick Thor.
More recently, he dazzled viewers by playing Inspector Poirot in Murder On The Orient Express, acting opposite the likes of Michelle Pfieffer and Johnny Depp.
Boris’ experience of the pandemic will be dramatised for the new series (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
With production underway, This Sceptred Isle looks set to captivate the nation, as Kenneth acts out a dramatised version of the chaos of the pandemic.
Scriptwriters consulted staff working in the Department of Health, Number 10 Downing Street, and in hospitals and care homes across the country to accurately portray the reality of the past year.
Discussing the series, director Michael Winterbottom explained his aim to depict the government’s response to the “invisible enemy” of the virus.
“The first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic will be remembered forever,” he said.
“A time when the country came together to battle an invisible enemy. A time when people were more aware than ever of the importance of community.
“Our series weaves together countless true stories – from Boris Johnson in Number 10 to front line workers around the country – chronicling the efforts of scientists, doctors, care home workers and policy makers to protect us from the virus.”
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
