Damian Lewis Brings Orwell to Life: Inside the Impactful Documentary of 2025

Damian Lewis and Raoul Peck’s Timely Collaboration

Every year, as the calendar turns, cultural enthusiasts anticipate the “Best of” lists that spotlight defining moments in arts and entertainment. In 2025, one entry stood out not just for its artistry, but for its urgency: Damian Lewis’s transformative performance in Raoul Peck’s documentary, Orwell: 2 + 2 = 5. More than a narration, Lewis’s voice became the pulse of the film, embodying George Orwell’s spirit in a world still wrestling with his warnings.

Orwell: 2 + 2 = 5—Why the Story Matters Now

Premiering at the Cannes Film Festival, Orwell: 2 + 2 = 5 quickly drew global attention. Critics at the Critics Choice Documentary Awards honored it with Best Narration—crediting Lewis’s compelling delivery—and Best Score for its haunting soundtrack. The National Board of Review went further, naming it one of the top five documentaries of the year.

But the accolades only scratch the surface. The documentary delves into Orwell’s final years, as he wrote 1984 on the remote Isle of Jura, while facing deteriorating health. Peck’s vision weaves together archival footage, Orwell’s writings, and contemporary scenes of political unrest, blurring the line between the past and the present. Lewis’s narration is central, guiding viewers through a landscape where propaganda and distorted truths aren’t relics—they’re current realities.

Lewis as Orwell: Not Just a Narrator, but the Essence

What sets Lewis’s performance apart is the depth of his immersion. At a Q&A session after a screening at New York’s IFC Center, director Raoul Peck clarified: “He’s not a narrator. He’s Orwell. That’s the magic of cinema.” Peck’s search for a voice was deliberate—he needed someone who could convey gravitas, subtlety, and a sense of lived experience. Lewis, with his Shakespearean background, was the ideal choice. Their collaboration was meticulous, involving hours of discussion, rehearsal, and studio recording. Peck described the process as similar to jazz: improvisational, responsive, and deeply personal.

Lewis’s delivery is calm, measured, and intimate, allowing viewers to feel Orwell’s pain, irony, and conviction. Through him, Orwell’s words—like those from Why I Write—gain new resonance: “My starting point is always a feeling of partisanship, a sense of injustice. When I sit down to write a book, I do not say to myself, ‘I am going to produce a work of art.’ I write it because there is some lie that I want to expose, some fact to which I want to draw attention, and my initial concern is to get a hearing. The very concept of objective truth is fading out of this world.”

Relevance in a Year of Unrest

The documentary’s title, “2 + 2 = 5,” is a direct reference to Orwell’s 1984, where the state forces citizens to accept blatant falsehoods. Peck and Lewis illustrate how these tactics persist, both in autocratic and democratic societies. The film juxtaposes images of past dictators—Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini—with modern strongmen like Putin, Modi, and Orbán. The message is clear: the manipulation of truth and the corrosion of democratic norms are not confined to history books.

As discussed in the film and highlighted in Fan Fun with Damian Lewis, propaganda doesn’t always mean censorship. Sometimes, as seen in the U.S. post-9/11, it is woven through repetition, emotion, and media complicity. The documentary’s segment on the January 6 Capitol Hill attack is particularly chilling, showing how language and narrative can fuel real-world chaos.

The film also touches on contemporary issues like book banning in U.S. schools, noting that over 3,000 titles are currently challenged or banned, including Orwell’s own 1984. This modern echo of Orwell’s warnings drives home the documentary’s urgent message: vigilance is needed to protect democratic values from erosion.

Behind the Scenes: Crafting the Narrative

The creative partnership between Peck and Lewis was built on trust. Peck sent the script to Lewis, then refined the delivery together over phone calls and studio sessions. Lewis’s experience on stage—his ability to inhabit a character fully—was crucial. Peck recalls, “You are Orwell,” was his main direction, trusting Lewis to find the emotional truth in every line. The final product was achieved through iterative recording, sometimes redoing the first ten minutes at the end of a session to capture the right tone.

Peck’s editing style is frenetic and immersive, mirroring the chaotic nature of modern political discourse. The result is a documentary that leaves viewers unsettled but compelled to confront uncomfortable truths.

Lewis’s Lasting Impact on 2025

This year, Damian Lewis has proven himself not just as a skilled actor and musician, but as a storyteller with a mission. His work in Orwell: 2 + 2 = 5 is a reminder of the power of art to illuminate and challenge. The film invites audiences to reflect on the nature of truth, the cyclical patterns of authoritarianism, and the importance of critical thinking in an age of misinformation.

Whether through his evocative voice or his presence on screen, Lewis has left an indelible mark on 2025. As News SSBCRACK puts it, his performances and commentary have resonated deeply, reinforcing the necessity of vigilance and integrity in public discourse.

Damian Lewis’s embodiment of Orwell is not just a highlight of his career—it is a cultural milestone for 2025. In an era when the boundaries between fact and fiction are increasingly blurred, his voice serves as both a warning and a beacon, urging viewers to look beyond the surface and defend the fragile truth at the heart of democracy.