Jude Law always believed The Talented Mr. Ripley would become a classic

Jude Law always believed that his movie The Talented Mr. Ripley would go on to become a classic.

The actor played wealthy playboy Dickie Greenleaf in the 1998 psychological thriller, which was written and directed by the late Anthony Minghella, and also starred Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Cate Blanchett, and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

The Talented Mr. Ripley followed outsider Tom Ripley, played by Damon, who is sent to Italy by Dickie's father to bring his wayward son home to the U.S. However, he falls in love with the lothario and his lifestyle, and after his advances are rebuffed, Tom murders Dickie, and impersonates him, enjoying the riches of his family wealth, while killing those who get in his way.

It had a resurgence of viewers during the Covid-19 lockdown, and Law wasn't surprised to hear that the critically-acclaimed movie was now being enjoyed by another generation of film lovers.

"I haven't seen it in many years, but I certainly remember of my early films, I was always quite confident that Ripley was going to be possibly one of the only ones I'd made that could be considered a classic," he told USA Today.

The 47-year-old heaped praise on Minghella, who passed away in 2008, and said the filmmaker wasn't under pressure while making the movie.

"It was in the hands of a fantastic filmmaker who had the right amount of money and the right lack of pressure on him, with a cast that were all just in their ascendancy," Law added, noting that the breathtaking Italian scenery contributed to the film's beauty.

"It was a beautifully made film on a complicated and very interesting subject. I could hazard a guess that the escapism of those beautiful Italian vistas and yachts and red sports cars may have been attractive during lockdown.”