Danny Boyle brings Murdoch drama Ink home for U.K. premiere
Danny Boyle's Murdoch drama Ink has had its U.K. premiere in London.
The director joined Jack O'Connell and Guy Pearce on the carpet at the BFI London Film Festival on Monday 12 October, The Hollywood Reporter reported. It was a homecoming screening. About a month earlier, the film had opened the Venice Film Festival.
That Venice slot had been set for 2 September, when the festival announced its line-up in July, The Hollywood Reporter reported. Ink then held its world premiere there. Boyle, O'Connell, Pearce and Claire Foy attended that launch, according to StudioCanal.
Ink is a biographical drama, a film built around real people and events. It is adapted from James Graham's stage play written for the theatre. The story follows Rupert Murdoch's entry into the British newspaper business in 1969 with the purchase of The Sun, then a failing tabloid newspaper known for bold, short stories and large headlines.
Pearce plays Murdoch. O'Connell plays Larry Lamb, the editor — the journalist in charge of the paper's daily content — whom Murdoch hires to turn The Sun around. The BFI lists Ink as a 2026 UK film directed by Boyle.
O'Connell told The Hollywood Reporter in London that Ink is "a London film." "If it doesn't work here, it's not going to work anywhere," he said. It was a short line. It drew a clear test for the night.
Boyle said the story looks back to the start of the attention economy and the clickbait economy. By that he meant the contest for readers' attention through sharp headlines and striking front pages, a contest that later moved online. Pearce added a family note. He said Liz Murdoch had told him her father was happy with his casting as the young proprietor.
The London screening took place at Southbank Centre at 21:00 on 12 October as part of the festival's 70th edition. The wider festival runs from 7 to 18 October, with films and events at venues in London and around the UK, according to the BFI. The BFI lists tickets for Ink from £10, with £6 tickets available for 16 to 25 year olds.
For audiences beyond the festival, the next date is set. StudioCanal has said Ink will open in cinemas across the UK on 8 January.
