Judi Dench, Benedict Cumberbatch to star in 'Richard III'

LONDON, Aug. 21 (UPI) -- Judi Dench has joined the cast of Richard III.

The 79-year-old actress will portray Cecily, Duchess of York alongside Benedict Cumberbatch as Richard, Duke of Gloucester in a BBC Two adaptation of the William Shakespeare play.

The network is producing Richard III and a two-part adaptation of Henry VI under the title The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses. Sophie Okonedo will co-star as Queen Margaret in all three films, with Tom Sturridge as Henry VI in both Henry VI films and Hugh Bonneville as Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester and Sally Hawkins as Eleanor, Duchess of Gloucester in part one of Henry VI.

Richard III follows Richard, Duke of Gloucester's murderous rise to power, and subsequent short reign as King Richard III of England. Cecily, Duchess of York is Richard's prideful, pious mother. The play is a Shakespearean tragedy, and Henry VI Pt. I-III and Richard III make up the author's first tetralogy.

Dench will appear in The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel in 2015, while Benedict Cumberbatch is scheduled for The Imitation Game, Penguins of Madagascar and The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies later this year.