---
title: 'The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939)'
type: 'film'
director: 'Michael Curtiz'
released: '1939-01-01'
runtime_minutes: 107
genres:
  - 'Drama'
  - 'History'
  - 'Romance'
countries:
  - 'United States'
canonical: 'https://cinepixo.com/movies/the-private-lives-of-elizabeth-and-essex-1939'
review_count: 0
imdb: 'https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031826/'
publisher: 'CinePixo'
---

# The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939)

1939 · 107 min · Drama, History, Romance · United States


## Synopsis

The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, for a time also entitled Elizabeth the Queen, is a 1939 American historical romantic drama film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Bette Davis, Errol Flynn, and Olivia de Havilland. Based on the play Elizabeth the Queen by Maxwell Anderson—which had a successful run on Broadway with Lynn Fontanne and Alfred Lunt in the lead roles—the film fictionalizes the historical relationship between Queen Elizabeth I and Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex. The screenplay was written by Norman Reilly Raine and Aeneas MacKenzie.

## Credits

- **Director:** [Michael Curtiz](https://cinepixo.com/people/michael-curtiz)
- **Screenplay:** [Norman Reilly Raine](https://cinepixo.com/people/norman-reilly-raine), [Maxwell Anderson](https://cinepixo.com/people/maxwell-anderson), [Æneas MacKenzie](https://cinepixo.com/people/neas-mackenzie)
- **Original Music Composer:** [Erich Wolfgang Korngold](https://cinepixo.com/people/erich-wolfgang-korngold)
- **Producer:** [Hal B. Wallis](https://cinepixo.com/people/hal-b-wallis)
- **Director of Photography:** [W. Howard Greene](https://cinepixo.com/people/w-howard-greene), [Sol Polito](https://cinepixo.com/people/sol-polito)
- **Editor:** [Owen Marks](https://cinepixo.com/people/owen-marks)

## Cast

- [John Sutton](https://cinepixo.com/people/john-sutton) as Capt. Armand of the Queen's Guard
- [Leo G. Carroll](https://cinepixo.com/people/leo-g-carroll) as Edward Coke
- [Robert Warwick](https://cinepixo.com/people/robert-warwick) as Charles Blount, 8th Baron Mountjoy
- [Doris Lloyd](https://cinepixo.com/people/doris-lloyd) as Handmaiden
- [Alan Hale](https://cinepixo.com/people/alan-hale) as Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone
- [Bette Davis](https://cinepixo.com/people/bette-davis) as Elizabeth I of England
- [Ralph Forbes](https://cinepixo.com/people/ralph-forbes) as William Knollys, 1st Earl of Banbury
- [Guy Bellis](https://cinepixo.com/people/guy-bellis) as Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham
- [Rosella Towne](https://cinepixo.com/people/rosella-towne) as Lady of the Court
- [Henry Stephenson](https://cinepixo.com/people/henry-stephenson) as William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley
- [Donald Crisp](https://cinepixo.com/people/donald-crisp) as Francis Bacon
- [Olivia de Havilland](https://cinepixo.com/people/olivia-de-havilland) as Lady Penelope Gray
- [Holmes Herbert](https://cinepixo.com/people/holmes-herbert) as Majordomo
- [Vincent Price](https://cinepixo.com/people/vincent-price) as Walter Raleigh
- [Errol Flynn](https://cinepixo.com/people/errol-flynn) as Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex

## Criticism on CinePixo

No reviews published yet.

Source: https://cinepixo.com/movies/the-private-lives-of-elizabeth-and-essex-1939
Film facts: Wikidata (Q1420016); synopsis from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Reviews, themes and notes are the work of this site's members.