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'The Weight' Answers the Question: How Far Would You Go?
Hawke says the Great Depression thriller draws on Pacific Northwest history and a physically demanding role that relies on action and emotion.
On Friday, September 18, Ethan Hawke's new film, The Weight, opens in Seattle-area theaters. Starring Hawke and Russell Crowe, the film follows prisoners during the Great Depression tasked with smuggling gold from a remote mine.
When Samuel Murphy is torn from his daughter and sent to a brutal prison, Warden Clancy offers him a high-stakes proposition: smuggle gold out of a remote mine with a dangerous crew and win his freedom. Murphy accepts the challenge.
Hawke's character relies primarily on physicality rather than dialogue in The Weight, representing a departure from previous roles where he played talkative men. This stoic approach challenged Hawke after starring in stage productions emphasizing verbal dexterity.
Hawke lived in Seattle during the mid-1990s while performing in The Cider House Rules at Seattle Rep, an experience he remembers fondly. He later starred in the Washington-filmed Snow Falling on Cedars, a drama about a Japanese American fisher.
Following The Weight, Hawke returns for the second season of The Lowdown in October. He reunites with Yakima-born actor Kyle MacLachlan, whom he previously worked with on Hamlet and Tesla.