Andrew Garfield, Cynthia Erivo to lead Audible adaptation of ‘1984’

Audible’s adaptation of famous author George Orwell’s dystopian masterwork “1984” features British stars Andrew Garfield and Cynthia Erivo.

The three actors lent their voices to the new take, which made its debut on Audible’s platform on Thursday, along with well-known actors Andrew Scott and Tom Hardy.

Published in 1949, the novel takes place in the province of Airstrip One under the superstate Oceania. It portrays a society of perpetual war, omnipresent government surveillance and public manipulation.

The province is governed by a political system euphemistically known as English Socialism, which is controlled by a privileged Inner Party elite and prosecutes individualism and independent thinking as ‘thought crimes’.

Garfield appears as Winston, the adaptation’s protagonist, while Erivo as Winston’s lover Julia, Scott as the mysterious and dangerous O’Brien, and Hardy as the infamous Big Brother.

Garfield, widely known for films such as “Hacksaw Ridge,” “Angels in America,” “Under the Silver Lake,” and “99 Homes,” expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to play Winston in “1984”.

In a statement, the actor said, “I’m very grateful to Audible to be a part of this new incarnation of Orwell’s radical, political classic, 1984. A classic that, disappointingly, humanity seems to need to be constantly engaged with. To keep ourselves awake and remembering that we each have a soul, and that that soul is full of beauty and value.”

The statement further reads, “And how vital it is for each of us to resist the forces that wish to subdue and strangle that collective soul. The cast and crew is clearly the best of the best of British and Irish talent. It was truly a joy to tell this story for an audience hungry for their own liberation.”