Kate Winslet`s upcoming biographical war drama Lee is set to premiere on Lionsgate Play this week. The Academy Award-winner steps into the life of a woman who refused to observe history from afar and instead chose to document it, often at great personal cost.
About the film Lee
Set during the upheaval of World War II, Lee follows the extraordinary journey of Lee Miller, a former fashion model who traded fame and comfort for a place among the most fearless war correspondents of her time, in a commanding performance. Lee delivers a story that feels both deeply historical and urgently relevant.
Director Ellen Kuras traces Miller’s path from the creative and political circles of pre-war Europe to the brutal realities of the battlefield. As she travels through occupied territories, records the aftermath of violence, and enters spaces few women were allowed to enter, Miller reshapes what it means to be both a journalist and a witness. Her singular talent and unbridled tenacity resulted in some of the 20th century`s most indelible images of war, including an iconic photo of Miller herself, posing defiantly in Hitler`s private bathtub.
Along the way, Lee explores the woman behind the camera – her relationships, inner conflicts, and the emotional weight of witnessing history. The film does not look away from the devastation of war, but it also captures the fleeting human moments that survive within it. It is a portrait of strength, vulnerability, and the uneasy clarity that comes from seeing too much.
Featuring standout performances from Alexander Skarsgård, Marion Cotillard, Josh O’Connor, Andrea Riseborough, Noémie Merlant, Samuel Barnett, and Andy Samberg alongside Kate, the film weaves a richly layered depiction of the world Miller inhabited, shaped by the collision of art, politics, love, and violence.
Kate Winslet on playing Lee Miller
Talking about stepping into the role of Lee Miller, Kate Winslet said, “I’m just so taken by her, how she lived, how she didn’t care what people thought of her, or her choices and opinions, how she was free with her affections, her ability to connect with other women and in revealing the truth, speaking the truth and encouraging other people how to do exactly that! That’s everything I live for, and Lee Miller was already doing it years before I was and way better than everybody and certainly better than me.
She added, “To be playing someone who I truly admire, adore, look up to, and aspire to be even a little bit like is the most enormous privilege. To tell this story about a woman who saw the world in her own unique way, and who gave a voice to those who didn’t have the power to use theirs. A woman who knew how to be a woman herself by embodying her femininity and power…that’s Lee’s message, and with it she is still showing us all the way.
Lee Miller was a truth-seeker and a truth-teller. That was the thing that drove her, and that was the reason she wanted to reveal the truth of the atrocities of the Nazi regime. She was a woman who was so intrinsically true to who she was, even though at times there was an enormous emotional and personal cost. She held up a mirror to the many horrific faces of evil, whilst being a selfless, defiant observer herself.”
Lee arrives in India on Lionsgate Play on December 5.
