Benedict Cumberbatch's 'Brexit' to premiere Jan. 19 on HBO

Dec. 21 (UPI) -- Brexit, a TV movie starring Sherlock icon Benedict Cumberbatch, is to premiere Jan. 19 on HBO.

Cumberbatch plays Britain's Vote Leave campaign leader Dominic Cummings, while Penny Dreadful alum Rory Kinnear plays Craig Oliver, Prime Minister David Cameron's director of communications and head of the Remain effort.

The film was directed by Toby Haynes and written by James Graham.

"The result of the Brexit referendum in summer 2016 caused a political earthquake that laid waste to the normally stable British establishment and sent political tremors around the world," a synopsis said. "This provocative feature-length drama goes behind the scenes, revealing the personalities, strategies and feuds of the Leave and Remain campaigns."

A 2-minute trailer for the film shows Cummings and his team using social media to persuade British citizens who have never voted before to support the initiative for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union.