Critics Are Praising Paul Mescal In Hamnet, But It’s Jessie Buckley Who They Can’t Stop Talking About: ‘The Performance Of The Year’

There are plenty of 2025 movies that critics have been touting as possible awards contenders, and before it even hit theaters, Hamnet was one of them. In fact, with the book-to-screen adaptation about William Shakespeare's family getting its wide release on Friday, December 12, the film has already acquired six Golden Globe nominations . So what’s all the buzz about? Let’s see what critics are saying.

The story is a fictionalized version of the famous playwright and his wife Agnes’ lives following the death of their 11-year-old son. Directed by Oscar winner Chloé Zhao and starring Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley, this adaptation of Hamnet is inspiring emotional reactions in audiences, including Moira Macdonald of the Seattle Times . The critic gives the movie a perfect 4 ou