John Lithgow to star in Royal Court play about Roald Dahl’s antisemitism

US actor will appear in Mark Rosenblatt’s drama Giant, directed by Nicholas Hytner, in first season of new artistic director David Byrne

His bestselling children’s books are regularly turned into hit plays and musicals but now Roald Dahl’s personal life has inspired a new drama. John Lithgow, best known for the TV comedy 3rd Rock from the Sun, will star as the author in Giant, written by Mark Rosenblatt and directed by Nicholas Hytner at the Royal Court theatre in London this autumn.

“I’m thrilled to be performing at the Royal Court where I’ve seen so much great work, stretching all the way back to the late 1960s,” said Lithgow. “There’s no better place to unveil Mark Rosenblatt’s stunning new play.”