As such, she too falls in love with Shakespeare the man and Shakespeare the writer. Shakespeare also learns that Viola and Thomas Kent, the young man who recently joined the company of the Rose, are one and the same, Viola masquerading as a man to infiltrate the theater world, a domain purely for the male sex, as she is in love with the written word, especially Shakespeare's. Will begins to write again and passionately when he falls in love with Viola De Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow), who comes from a well respected well-off family. Will's block is partly due to the loss of his muse, his mistress, who he caught in bed with another man, he having a mistress as he would otherwise be alone with his wife back in Stratford. That current unwritten play commissioned is a comedy tentatively titled 'Romeo and Ethel, the Pirate's Daughter'. So William's current writer's block does not help matters for him or for the owner of the Rose Theatre, Philip Henslowe (Geoffrey Rush), for whom Will generally writes his plays, that is when the theater is not closed due to the plague or Henslowe's financial problems. Master William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes), an up-and-coming playwright and sonneteer, is not nearly as well known as his counterpart, Christopher Marlowe (Rupert Everett).

As the company rehearses his new play, William and Viola's love is transferred to the written page leading to the masterpiece that is Romeo and Juliet.ġ593 London. Shakespeare soon sees through her disguise and they begin a love affair, one they know cannot end happily for them as he is already married and she has been promised to the dour Lord Wessex (Colin Firth). Dressing as a man, and going by the name of 'Thomas Kent', she auditions and is ideal for a part in his next play. She is also a great admirer of Shakespeare's works. She loves the theatre and would like nothing more than to take to the stage, but is forbidden from doing so as only men can be actors. He is in search of his muse, the woman who will inspire him but all attempts fail him until he meets the beautiful Viola De Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow). William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) is a known but struggling poet, playwright, and actor, who not only has sold his next play to both Philip Henslowe (Geoffrey Rush) and Richard Burbage (Martin Clunes), but now faces a far more difficult problem: he is bereft of ideas and has yet to begin writing. The world's greatest ever playwright, William Shakespeare, is young, out of ideas and short of cash, but meets his ideal woman and is inspired to write one of his most famous plays.

Shakespeare in love 1998