The Current War, a film based on the true story of the race between Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla to light up New York City, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, is coming to the big screen in 2019 after an unusual delay.
The movie premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in 2017 but was one of several completed films that found itself dropped from its original distributor, The Weinstein Company, in the wake of Harvey Weinstein’s scandal in the fall of 2017. It has since found new distribution.
“The film, which is a dramatization of real-life events, will follow the tumultuous journey of Thomas Edison, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, as he attempts to use his DC technology to introduce light to Manhattan,” said Variety. “However, his initial efforts are obstructed when businessman George Westinghouse (Michael Shannon) and his partner Nikola Tesla (Nicholas Hoult) rival the inventor with Tesla’s own AC electrical current.”
Set in 1879 when Edison was on the verge of bringing electricity to Manhattan, the film delves into how his plans were thrown into disarray by Tesla and his backer Westinghouse. Theirs was one of the first and greatest corporate feuds in American history.
In the trailer, Edison says, “This is a battle of the greatest minds of America,” to which Westinghouse threatens, “If you want to be remembered, it’s simple: Shoot a president. But if you prefer to have what I call a legacy, you leave the world a better place than you found it.”
https://www.thevintagenews.com/2019/07/16/edison-tesla-film/