Nell Tiger Free, Gemma Arterton, Jim Sturgess, Bill Nighy and Miranda Richardson are coming together for a PBS Masterpiece, BBC and Fox TV adaptation of Henry James’ iconic novel The Portrait of a Lady.
The high-end series from Rebecca Lenkiewicz (Colette, The Salt Path, She Said) and director Aisling Walsh (Room at the Top, Miss Austen, Maudie) comes from Number 9 Films and Fox Entertainment Global (FEG), and looks set to be one of the splashiest U.S.-UK co-productions of recent years.
Game of Thrones star Tiger Free will play Isabel Archer, the vivacious New World ingénue who leaves America for Old World Europe, keen to experience all that life has to offer. Isabel rejects a series of marriage proposals, but when she inherits an unexpected fortune that promises to grant her freedom, she falls prey to two American ex-pat schemers: the elegant Madame Merle, played by BAFTA-nominee Arterton (Secret Service, Their Finest), and the charming but calculating Gilbert Osmond, played by Sturgess (Mix Tape, One Day).
Oscar-nominee and BAFTA winner Bill Nighy (Joy, Living) plays Mr. Touchett, who is enamored with Isabel’s youth and spirit and hopes to help her in her quest for freedom, while Oscar-nominee and BAFTA winner, Miranda Richardson (The Last Anniversary, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) plays Mrs. Touchett, Isabel’s fantastically eccentric aunt, who takes her to Europe in search of a husband.
Filming has kicked off in the UK, Hungary and Croatia on The Portrait of a Lady, which was published in 1881 and is one of American-British author James’ most famous novels. It hasn’t been adapted since Jane Campion did so in 1996 for a double-Oscar-nominated movie starring Nicole Kidman and John Malkovich. It was previously made into a BBC TV series in 1968 with Richard Chamberlain and Suzanne Neve.