“It was less about what’s happening on the outside and more about what’s happening on the inside for me when it came to why I wanted to tell this story now,” Nia DaCosta said this morning during a session about her latest feature, Hedda , at Deadline’s Contenders London .

The film stars Tessa Thompson as Hedda Gabler, a newlywed who is precariously dissatisfied with life. The gun-loving daughter of the late General Gabler, she has convinced her husband, George (Tom Bateman), a timid but ambitious scholar, to throw a lavish party the couple cannot afford. On the teeming guest list is Eileen Lovborg (Hoss), a celebrated author of a book exploring sexuality, and George’s key rival for a coveted academic post. Hedda sees the guests as pawns in an elaborate game she plans to orchestrate

See Full Page