Legend trailer: Watch Tom Hardy star as notorious gangster Kray twins in rip-roaring film

Hardy plays both Ronnie and Reggie Kray in movie about their criminal lives

Tom Hardy stars as Kray Twins Reggie and Ronnie (YouTube)

The first full-length trailer for Kray Twins film Legend looks every bit as thrilling as the hype surrounding the movie suggested.

Starring Tom Hardy as Ronald and Reginald Kray, the film follows the real-life story of the two brothers operating an organised crime ring in London in the swinging sixties.

Helmed by Oscar-winning LA Confidential director Brian Helgeland, the film gives a chilling insight into the relationship between the twins, who were both sentenced to life imprisonment.

In the trailer, Ronnie is portrayed as a social outsider with deep commitment to his brother, at one point telling Reggie’s wife: “My loyalty to my brother is how I measure myself.”

Australian actress Emily Browning plays Reggie’s East End wife Frances Shea, who comes between the two brothers’ criminal empire when Ronnie realises she knows too much about their illicit dealings.

The Krays were involved in armed robberies, arson, assaults and the murders of fellow criminals Jack “The Hat” McVitie and George Cornell in the Sixties.

The identical twins were West End nightclub owners and mixed with well-known entertainers of the day including Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland.

Tom Hardy as the Kray twins

Ronnie and Reggie Kray were arrested in 1968, and were both sentenced to life imprisonment in 1969. Ronnie, who is thought to have suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, remained in Broadmoor Hospital until his death in 1995.

Tom Hardy plays Ronnie Kray

Reggie was released from prison in August 2000, eight weeks before dying from cancer.

Legend is due to be released in the UK on 11 September.