On Saturday, March 16, the actor who won an Oscar for his screenplay died at the age of 86 “How to become a king”, David Seidler. The British-American artist died during a fishing trip. The cause of his death was not officially announced. “David was in the place he loved most in the world – New Zealand. He was doing what gave him the most peace – fly fishing. If he had the chance, he would definitely write it like that in the script,” said Seidler’s longtime manager, Jeff Aghassi, quoted via Deadline. Seidler left behind two children: Marc and Maya.
Seidler, 86, was professionally active. At the time of his death, he was working on several projects, including documentaries, limited series and feature films. The production about King George VI was not the only biography for which he wrote the script. His works also include the films “Onassis – The Richest Man in the World” and “Tucker – The Dream Builder”. His last screenplay adapted to the big screen was the Russian “The Queen of Spades” from 2016, based on the opera by Pyotr Tchaiovsky.
Written by David Seidler, the historical “How to Be King” tells the story of King George VI (played by Colin Firth) who, at the dawn of World War II, must overcome his greatest fear of public speaking. An obstacle to his self-confidence is his serious speech impediment. While working to cure his stuttering, he develops a friendship with therapist Lionel Logue. In addition to the Oscar for Seidler, “The King’s Speech” also won awards for best film of the year, best director (Tom Hooper) and best leading actor (Firth).
Seidler waited many years for the script to be brought to the screen. Work on the film began after the death of the Queen Mother, wife of George VI. The monarch’s story was not filmed during her lifetime because remembering her late husband and seeing him on screen would be too painful for her. “When the Queen Mother asked me to stop making the film thirty years ago, I realized how deep the experiences of these events were,” the screenwriter recalled in one of the interviews.
In addition to the characters of the royal couple, the film also featured Elizabeth II herself, then as a little girl, and her sister – Princess Margaret. The Queen issued a special statement after the film’s premierein which she admitted that the story about her father, King George VI, struggling with his condition – stuttering, moved her very much.